Mid-Atlantic Waterproofing

Mid Atlantic waterproofed our basement last Fall. So far our basement has stayed dry so I feel happy in that regard however, I only gave 3 starts because I feel like we payed more than a smaller company would charge. There was a pretty high pressure salesman which didnt bother us because I knew they have been in the area for quite some time. At this point, I am just happy our basement doesnt look like a river during a hard rain!

We had their product installed back in the beginning of August and have made multiple requests for someone from the company to contact us about our issues. I’ve had problems since the beginning of the job and do not know what else I can do. Here is what happened…
Their salesperson, Chase, made a very good pitch and convinced us that their product was the best in the industry, there would be nothing visible in the living areas after the fact, there would be minimal work to be done after it was installed, and that the house would be left in «broom swept» condition, albeit a bit dusty. My wife and I were under a time clock to get our project done as we were expecting our daughter in late August, so we opted for the stand by date install which would take place roughly a week later and would be completed a full two and a half weeks before our daughter would arrive. That is where things started to go astray and it has only gotten worse.
When the installation crew arrived the morning of install I had the work area completely prepped for them, or so I thought. I had removed the base boards from our finished basement and had removed all furniture and appliances from the areas. I was told by the Quality Control Manager, A.K.A. Salesman, that we should have little to no work needed to refinish out basement because of our high baseboards. Also that there were not going to be any obstructions from the sump wells into the main living area. And was told that the job was going to last about 2 – 3 days.
But back to the day of installation. That morning the crew showed up (on time) and waited about 30 – 45 minutes for the crew boss to arrive. Once introductions were made we headed downstairs to see the project. And then they proceeded to track red clay all the way through my house and all over my carpets. After about another 30 minutes of walking around they finally pulled back the carpets exposing the concrete. After this they had to cut back the walls and drywall to expose the footer. I was told that they would only cut up 4 inches off the concrete leaving me 2 inches to reattach my base moldings. Instead they used the paint line as a cut line for their saw, cutting much higher than originally expected. (Their choice in saw to cut the wall we will get into later.) About 2 hours into the work a worksite manager stopped by for all of 15 minutes and if I didn’t notice him I doubt he would have even talked to me. After that day one went ok and day two started about the same. After day three they were at the stopping point to get the work inspected by the county.
Two days later he showed up and did not approve the work because they had the pipes for the sump wells installed incorrectly for the code. And the way they had to be installed, they would make them highly visible in the living area. The absence of anything visible/​accessible in the living area was a major requirement from the beginning since this area is used as a playroom for our young children. Not to mention we needed to get them fixed and then inspected by the plumbing inspector not the building inspector. The main office blamed the confusion on the limited number of jobs they did in the area. Also he had made a note saying that the walls that were cut needed to be reframed, insulated, and dry walled before final approval would be granted. After another day the company plumber showed up and luckily the inspector showed and approved the pipes. Two days after that the original crew showed up to pour the concrete back over the system. The concrete took two days to pour and another three days to cure. Then theyfailed inspection, not once but twice, due to poor installation and caulking of the «L» shaped covers allowing the possibility of radon gas to be released into the living space. Again, this space is intended to be a «KIDS PLAYROOM.» After that we had the system approved by the inspector but still needed to get the walls taken care of.
So, at this point we have cured concrete and walls cut up 6 – 8 inches by a reciprocating saw as well as sump pipes coming up inside of the finished walls. The work that was required to re-​finish the walls and get them to pass inspection was almost triple the original expectation, not to mention the saw that the crew used at the beginning put all the cuts at strange and different angles. This made jack studding the walls very difficult and required additional drywall to be cut back to connect the studs. The cost was over $ 970 for materials alone. Not to mention the vacation days my father had to take and the cost of putting my kids in daycare for us to complete the repairs. After the work was done and inspections were passed we had to get the carpets professionally cleaned due to the clay drug in at the beginning of the install. Not to mention the damage that was done to our walls and doorframes throughout the basement from their carelessness during the installation. Needless to say, this was a far cry from «broom

Came out big song and dance. Told me my entire wall had to come down, including my bathroom. It was at a cost of $ 14k !!! Then he started on my non-​affected walls !!! Went with Mr. Basement. Mr. Basement went directly to the problem, showed the problem. They showed the solution in a clear and concise matter. Total cost was less than $ 1400.00 as compared to $ 14k !!! It solved the problem. Home owners beware, get several estimates before paying $ 1000s of unnecessary dollars. A lot of these companies will sell you the World (tear down walls, new Sump Pumps, etc.) Mid-​Atlantic Song and Dance is Big. Home Owner Beware…

They did come back and corrected as much as they could without pouring a new floor. They did patch the cracks that were left, they added sika concrete bonding mixed with cement and painted that mixture over the top of the cement to make the floor look uniform throughout the basement. I will say that at this point we are resolved with the job done. It has been a few weeks and we do have an issue with anything sitting on the floor builds condensation over a 24 hour period, so we have bought and made shelves to get everything off the floor as well as installed 2 dehumidifiers. We are hoping this is just a matter of the floor still curing and not an issue of the sika product causing issues. Also we have long thin cracks along the floor already, so we are not filled with optimism. It did take a month since the work was done before anyone from the company bothered to call and follow up. However, they did call to follow up to make sure we were happy with the work and to ask if we would update our review. I will post pictures of the finished floor and let you, the potential customer, be the judge for yourself. The floor looks so much better than the original attempt, they did come back to fix the issues we had. I was told that they were suppose to make the basement waterproof, not to make it pretty. We are just hoping that it is waterproofed and the condensation and cracking issues will stop soon. When we no longer have to spend our money to fix things caused by the basement issues and when the floor stops sweating and cracking I will post another review and be happy.

They arethe worst company EVER!!! I have contacted the Md Office several times. I set an appointment for them to come check my system (the one they installed) because it was showing no lights or signs of power. No one NEVER showed up in the allotted time frame. Called the company, and spoke with the manager Chris. He had no answer or reason why no one show up. And he’s supposed to get back to me. So til this day. I still have not heard back from him. My unit is still not working. So about a week later, I called the company again, only to get the runaround. There Telling you the manager is always busy or in an meeting. But nonetheless you pay all this money to have this expensive unit installed in your home. And no one is helping you with it when it has an issue. I’m contacting the Better Business Bureau and who else I can contact because I am not going to let them get away with it. Did my last attempt of calling, I asked if I can get the managers info I can email someone and maybe try to get someone to my home and get this matter resolved. And as you can see, I’m still waiting to hear back from someone as of 10/​30/​2015. So there are several other companies to go with to get your basement waterproofed. I would surly stay away from this company. if this was not already installed in my home. I would never deal with this company ever again. Especially when it comes to the Maryland office and that manager Chris that I spoke with. They have display, the worst examples of customer service that I have ever encountered in my years of homeownership. Matter fact in my years of life.

Mid-​Atlantic sales reps do a rehearsed script if you do not jump on its initial price offering (my initial offering was $ 24,000) w/​back & forth phone calling offering «deals» that expire that day. We called to cancel within 3 days, & were offered a lowered price ($ 18,000) to not cancel. We agreed. It was downhill from there.
While excavating the concrete perimeter of our basement, horrible smells were emitted that smelled like sewer. On-​site staff told us it was sewage. We were informed by Mid-​Atlantic that in order for them to continue work, we would need to get our sewer pipe replaced by a plumbing company ($ 11,000). Despite the sewer pipe being inspected by closed circuit television equipment on four separate occasions with the latest one 2 months before, we replaced the sewer pipe because we thought we had to in order to get the work completed.
We had just had all the waste water pipes ($ 6,100) under the basement slab & water main ($ 4,500) replaced. All pipes were brand new. Turns out the sewer pipe had no signs of damage. After replacing the sewer pipe, Mid-Atlantic’s manager, J.G. stated that we would need to sign a waiver of their lifetime warranty & 7-​yr warranty on sump pumps anyway. He claimed that sewage was in the soil under our concrete slab & it would befoul its plastic corrugated tubes «french drain» or its sump pumps despite the sewer pipe being replaced. This was not why we spent $ 11,000 to replace the sewer pipe.
Then, we hired a homeowner’s insurance company-​recommended environmental solutions company to test for mold, fecal cells & other harmful bacteria etc. in the soil under our 34-​yr old concrete basement slab & in the air in the basement & samples were sent to a scientific laboratory. No traces of mold or fecal cells or coliform bacteria were detected & environmental solutions company assured us that if anything were there, its tests would indicate it. J.G. manager was abusive, threatening, and yelled at us so loudly & so long that I finally screamed back — «I can yell just as loud as you can» and his reply was «No you can’t!» I knew then that I was dealing with a troubled adult. His bottom line was he wanted to charge the same price of $ 18,000 yet not include any warranty whatsoever. When I pointed out a Business Management 101 principle of how warranty work was not revenue producing so its potential costs are built into the sales prices of products that may require it, he yelled, called me a liar, & insisted that Mid-​Atlantic never included potential warranty work in its purchase price.
J.G.‘s response to the environmental solutions report was «unless every square inch under your concrete slab was tested, then I have no proof that sewage does not exist.» Subsequent phone calls were just sessions of verbal abuse. Finally, one day, R. (on site interpreter) showed up unannounced to collect equipment per J.G.‘s orders. Another verbally abusive phone call ensued & I couldn’t take it anymore. He yelled, «YOU OWE US OVER $ 6,000 OR ¹⁄₃ OF THE CONTRACT COST — IT’S WRITTEN ON THE BACK OF THE CONTRACT — YOU SHOULD HAVE READ IT!» I paid it that day.
After our contract with Mid-​Atlantic was cancelled, the environmental company informed us that they had been summoned many times before by homeowners due to the same issue with Mid-​Atlantic claiming sewage and trying to make homeowners sign warranty waivers.
Prior to contract cancellation, J.G. revised his stance & stated that IF fecal cells were NOT found when warranty work was done, then such work would be covered. When I had asked J.G. precisely how his warranty workers would ascertain the presence of fecal cells, he stated by the «sniff test.» I objected & asked for a more science-​based method. J.G. then said a testing kit would be used. What test kit, I asked? All require on-​site sample collection & submission to a lab & then a 2^nd visit to do the repair work. This is a costly approach. J.G. never provided a viable test for ascertaining fecal cell presence & the WARRANTY guarantee was ultimately revoked.
The good news is that we received a phone call the next day from the salesman asking if we would consider proceeding with the original contract if Mid-​Atlantic would honor the warranty. We knew that we never wanted to deal with J.G. again, so we declined. Also, the staff at Mid-​Atlantic returned my over$ 6,000 check and stated that I only owed them $ 3,000. I paid it. Now, I discovered that J.G. no longer works for them. Still, I had difficulty hiring anyone to take over Mid-Atlantic’s half-​finished job. The man I was able to hire stated that others were leery of the repercussions Mid-​Atlantic posed to their business if they worked with him. The environmental solutions company shared that it had been threatened by Mid-​Atlantic officers too. I don’t know who would be a better choice for basement waterproofing but I could not believe my horrible experience with former staffer, J.G.

Several years ago, I had a small leak in my basement. I called Mid-​Altlantic Waterproofing for an evaluation and estimate. Within 5 minutes of inspecting, the representative told me that I would need a new sump system (complete with all new drains throughout my entire basement at a cost of $ 20k. It was not even close to being the cause of the leak. They really didn’t even look into what the real cause was. They only wanted the contract signed and my money. I kept on getting calls asking about when they were to start. I was extremely offended and filed complaints several times.
My advice… stay away from this company.

I initially contacted this company to get an estimate on a waterproofing job. When they didn’t return my call, that should have been a clue to move on. When I called again, I reached someone in the sales department who scheduled an appointment. My second clue to move on should have been the line of questioning I received from the sales associate: «Is there a Mr. _​_​_​_​_​_​_​?» «What is his name?» «Is there an alternative phone number [for him]?» «Will he be home at the time of the inspection?» «Are you sure he will be there for the inspection?» «Will you both be there for the inspection?» So our appointment came and went and no estimator. I again called the company when they were 25 minutes late. «Oh — I was just about to contact you…» claims the sales associate. «We can’t make it and need to reschedule. We can be available for you both tomorrow morning.» When I mentioned they’d already wasted our time and that Mr. and Mrs. have better things to do than wait for a contractor who isn’t going to show, the rep went on to say they didn’t really because the estimate was free and things happen and they have a glowing reputation, etc. I need not deal with contractors who think their time is valuable but mine isn’t. And I certainly shouldn’t be chasing them down for a response just to get a simple estimate.

I got an estimate and all that but i wasn’t interested, its not in my budget. But since then they CALL ME EVERYDAY and ALL THE WAY UNTIL 9 AT NIGHT. WHY WHY WHY do you need to call so much i got the quote months ago. Please stop.

Zero stars! This company wasted my time conducting a phoney inspection of my basement only to give me the same standard $ 13,000 estimate for repairs that previous raters noted. The inspector even told me to expect a call from the office within a few days offering a better price. When I didn’t fall for that, they continued to call with various reasons why the price could be reduced: a more senior inspector could find savings, they had met their quota for the year and were offering discounts, they had new technology that reduced the price. I had to tell them twice (two different callers) that I wouldn’t deal with mid-​atlantic even if they were giving away free services. Don’t fall for this! ///////

To validate their comment– refund was received as stated.

After speaking with the Manager Mr. Altman at Mid-​Atlantic, I feel confident that he is attempting to rectify my problem as quickly as possible. Many companies would have blown off my dissatisfaction. Mr. Altman actually cared enough to speak with me at length about the problem and agreed to what was needed to remedy it. They get big kudos for that.
Ann, the scheduler, gets my thanks too as she did what many companies fail time and time again to do. She offered an apology. A sincere one. More companies need to learn that a simple «I’m sorry» has the ability to diffuse the worst of situations. It lets customers know that you see them as human beings and not just another barcode in the computer system.
I’ll add more stars once the work is actually completed. But for right now, well done Mid-​Atlantic.

I have hired numerous contractors for home improvement projects, and have never had an experience quite like the one I had with Mid Atlantic. My experience with this company soured me to the point that I now am doing my own home repairs rather than hiring alleged professionals. Basically, we had a large storm which caused our basement to flood, so we called this company based upon the recommendation of my parents. The salesman claimed to offer a very pricey, but allegedly a far better system than a french drain. He claimed that his company did not hire subcontractors, and only used top of the line parts, NOT from Home Depot. The system that was installed was merely an overpriced french drain system that was improperly designed. The subcontractor broke cinder blocks due to carelessness and was so unskilled that they cemented in a lamp plug to the floor. The subcontractor also failed to honor the terms of the contract, in which he refused to complete the line through our basement family room since he reported it was «dry» when in fact, we found a major leak on the portion he refused to dig up. The subcontractor bought all of his supplies from Home Depot, and his foreman littered our back yard with disgusting chicken bones. After five days of work, they finally sent out a new crew who fixed all the problems caused by the first crew. Basement waterproofing is like buying a mattress, a rare purchase, so this could explain why they have such good ratings on the Better Business Bureau website.
If I performed such subpar work at my current position I would likely lose my professional license (I AM NOT IN HOME IMPROVEMENT), and face civil sanctions.

I called to get a Free estimate on some issues we had with some moisture problems in the basement. We set up time for an tech to come out on Saturday, unfortunately the tech was sick, and could not make it (Totally understandable) so we set up another date for the weekday. and I TOLD the REP HEDI! Thats its hard for my husband to be home at that time, we would have to play it «ear by ear» But i will Def be there. My husband was stuck in traffic, when the tech showed up, and was told he could not do the inspection? because my husband is not there. and I won’t be able to follow? I called back the office and complained. They canceled on us .had us wait a week .then refused to do the inspection!!! And from seeing the reviews I’m happy we didn’t go with them!!!

Mmm-kay…since this company has now three years later written a response to my review, I figured I should address it. My review was definitely not «written for the wrong company.» They say I was not a customer of theirs, which is absolutely true and stated in my original review — I said right off the bat that my review was for the proposal/​estimate process only as I decided not to pay 3x more than all the other proposals I received to have them do the work. They also say they never employed an inspector from Cuba. This appears to be addressed to someone else’s review, not mine.

I would not recommend this company. Very aggressive sales people who get very rude if you aren’t going along with what they are trying to sell. Other reviews on here seem to be similar. I refuse to use this company after their aggressive staff called us and then HUNG UP when we asked for more information. I think they just want people who will go along with whatever they recommend.

Absolutely similar experience to the other reviewer. I was basically held hostage by the sales rep who insisted on not only drawing a fully illustrated guide to drainage issues but also telling me anecdotes about growing up in Cuba before ever even producing their $ 13K quote. I timed it and it was more than a full forty-​minutes of him just doing sales pitch (this was after the hour of walking around the house, taking notes and discussing options). I could not get the guy out of my house, and even after I did, I was peppered by harassing follow-​up phone calls during which I was offered supposed, limited-​time price cuts if I let a different sales rep come torture me for two more hours.
I eventually got a contractor in my house familiar with foundation work and water leaks. He found the leak on the outside of the house (has nothing to do with water rising up from below the floor as the mid-​atlantic rep suggested), demonstrated that running water with a hose there causes it to leak into my bathroom, and showed me the exact leak in the concrete foundation inside. He is patching both the inside and the outside and then repairing and repainting my drywall all for $ 800.
$ 800 to fix the actual leak and restore the room to what it was. Mid-​Atlantic wanted $ 13,000 to not even target the specific leak, but instead install battery-​backed up sump pumps and ultimately they also were not even going to fix the drywall and baseboard that they would have to remove during the process.
Avoid these people like the plague.

scam job. I asked for a free estimate for back-​up battery sump pumps, after 2 hrs of the sales pitch to get me to excavate my whole finished basement and a $ 10K bill– I am glad I checked out other consumer complaints with this company before getting suckered.

We paid over $ 10,000 to have Mid-​Atlantic to waterproof our basement. We were reassured by their «Dry Basement Guarantee.» Three years later, every time there is a heavy rain, the basement still has water in it. Mid-​Atlantic has been back countless times with different «fixes» but nothing has done the trick. Turns out, for $ 10,000 all you really get is a pretty piece of paper and the pleasure of showing a Mid-​Atlantic rep the water in the basement every time it rains.