Groundworks

Overall it went well.  We had our crawl space insulated, our front room insulated, fan installed for air flow, had a new sump pump installed, and gutter drain extensions installed at the house.  They also reinforced our flooring in the front room where the problem started. And the salesman gave our three year old a bag which included a mickey mouse puzzle which is his favorite!

My husband heard about this company on the radio, and he gave them a call. The service guy that came out, Blake, was in our home twice to fix some meticulous things that I wanted done and he couldn't have met our needs any more than he did! We sit on clay here so we could never the solve the problem that we had on our own. The workers were very professional, polite and met our needs while they were working and answered all of my questions. They also cleaned up all of their mess! They did an impeccable job, worked with our schedule, and it feels so nice to know that our crawl space is now clean and safe underneath, and that we do not have to go down and check it ourselves!

Overall, it went very well.  The start of the process was a bit rocky, since the guy originally scheduled to give us an estimate called at the last minute to say he would come at a different (inconvenient) time.  Since the "new" time didn't work for us, the company apologized and scheduled Joe (a different gentleman) to give us our estimate. He seemed to really know what he was doing and seemed honest and knowledgeable.  We thought his recommendations made sense, and we decided to have the company do the work.  The companyy worked with our schedule well; their workers were prompt and efficient, and the whole job was completed in just two days.  Our basement walls are secure and look much better as well.  We are very happy with the work that was done.

I provided all of the details in the services performed section.

This is the second time I have used Foundation Systems of Michigan and have been extremely happy with their products and services.  The previous time I contracted them to repair a crack in my basement wall in my prior home.  After having experienced extensive damage to my finished basement in my prior home due to cracks in my basement walls leaking, when I recently moved to a new home, I knew I wanted a full basement water-proofing system installed.  I did not want to have to deal with repairing water leaks, and the resulting damage, after my new basement was finished.   I was driven to take action when I returned home one day to find water covering my basement floor due to the builders-grade sump pump failing after the float got caught on the side of the crock.   I immediately called FSM to have an inspector come out to discuss my options.  After discussing the situation and inspecting my basement, and the fact that I was planning to finish my basement soon, he recommended the WaterGuard perimeter drainage system, a Triple Safe Sump Pump, and a 90 mil thick vapor barrier for my walls to keep any moisture from reaching my basement.   I took all of their recommendations and am so glad I did.  The sump pump gives me complete peace of mind that my basement is protected from water.  I love that it has a sealed lid so any smells/moisture is kept from entering my basement area, and that there are 3 pumps protecting my home, including a battery backed up pump that will pump up to 10,000 gallons of water on a single charge.  The Water Guard perimeter draigage system they installed will direct any water that may enter thru my walls to the sump pump, which will pump it away from my house.  FSM scheduled my job according to my needs, and the workers showed up in a professional marked truck, in uniform, and were very professional.  They worked fast and efficiently and were very respectful to my home by laying down plastic where they worked, and they removed all materials and cleaned up great.  I was very impressed with the installation crew and their professionalism.  I also like how they warranty their products and have a service department to service me should any issues arise, although none have. Overall I had a great experience with FSM and would highly recommend them to anyone considering basement waterproofing or  foundation repair.  They are a very professional operation.  There are a lot of jack-of-all trades companies out there that do waterproofing, but when they also do windows, roofing, gutters, etc.....how could they be experts for the type of service I need?  I trusted FSM since they specialize in this business and carry some unique products. 

Not very well.  Due to an incompetetent sub contractor, I experienced a lot of out of pocket expenses.  I was just about to let it go and chalk it up to experience until I had an oil spill in my basement.  The spill was caused by the incompetent sub contractor that improperly moved my oil drum.  So I posted on Angie's List and 2 days later I was contacted by Foundation Systems of Michigan.   I agreed to let them address the problems and fix the problems I had with them.   UPDATE:Foundation Systems of Michigan came over and addressed all the problems I had with them.   They finished the work within a week and half.  Thank you to Jeff Plumb and his crew, for listening to me and completing the work timely.  Foundation Systems of Michigan have agreed to reimburse me for my out of pocket expenses due to the incompetent sub contractor. (who no longer works for them).  They have also agreed to come back in the fall and level out my oil drum that was improperly moved (by the same incompetent sub contractor).  My experience with Foundation Systems of Michigan has been mixed.  I was dissatisfied at first with the job they did and all the extra costs and repairs due to their choice in the sub contractor.  But after talking with them on 05/23/12 and their subsequence additional work on my basement project...I am now satisfied.

The whole experience, beginning with the sales rep. Jeff, who was very informative honest and who I felt was going to be completely reliable, to the work crew who was very professional and courteous was completely satisfying.  Jeff explained everything in detail as to how the job was to be completed and the benefits it would yield. We received a packet in the mail detailing the service that we were interested in. The packet was very informative and provided many examples of before and after projects. Upon agreeing with FSM to complete the crawl space encapsulation we completed a simple contract and a date and time was set for them to do the job. We received a call 2 or 3 days prior to the date to confirm the time and date. When FSM came to my home they arrived on time and  in a very professional manner. Nice vehicle, tradesman wearing uniforms and very clean.....very impressive. The crew leader did a walk through and explained what he and his crew was going to do. It looked as though they worked together very well as a team because each others safety was of utmost importance to each of them. One of the crew members covered the flooring area where they would be traveling completely. As they were working a crew member would clean up trash and remove it from the basement so as to not get in their way and cause any safety issues. Upon completion of the job everything was cleaned up . I inspected the job along with the crew leader and  was completely satisfied.

They came out when they said they were going to. They followed up and had a very nice video presentation of what they were offering and what they would do. We checked a few other companies and they provided the lowest price.

Some problems were that the opening for crawl space access in laundry room floor was enlarged so the crawl space cover is smaller than the opening, leaving a gap in the floor. There was no floor support installed to replace the foundation where the cinder block hole was made in the foundation wall for access to the crawl space under the family room. Clothes dryer was left in center of laundry room floor. Fan installed under floor runs continuously and is noisy and can be a distraction to sleep at night. These items were satisfactorily corrected by FMS Foundation Systems of Michigan. The fan was switched to a single breaker position so it can be turned off at the main breaker panel. It was expensive but the problem of the house feeling damp was corrected. The house feels drier now and there are no more musty smells. Sealing the foundation vents and the added crawl space insulation reduced home heating cost.

Joe Z from The Carpet Guys recommended us to Foundation Systems of Michigan because our basement was having some water issues. We actually thought we had it fixed when we called Joe to do our carpet, but he explained that in fact that our way of fixing it only would have lasted a few months and our new carpet would more than likely get destroyed and he recommended that we call FSM to repair our foundation before they lay the new carpet. We called FSM and even though we really didn't want to spend money on the repairs, they were very necessary and we realize that if we would have taken any shortcuts it could have cost us a fortune later on down the road by not doing the job right the first time. We are overall very happy that we decided to take Joe's advice and call Foundation Systems of Michigan. We did price out a few other companies that did waterproofing and foundation repair work, but over all we felt that FSM was the best value and they really knew what they were talking about. the crews that did our work were very neat and professional and we could not be happier. They finished the work in one day and cleaned up after themselves too. Joe's company then came in and did our carpet a few weeks after and now our basement feels like another huge family room. Dry and comfortable. We highly recommend FSM to anyone in need of foundation work or that may need a leaky basement repaired.