This March (2016), we decided to do a major overhaul of our pool and pool area. I contacted Dex by…read moreTerra and another major stoneworks competitor. I wanted to replace about 1,000 sq ft of poured concrete decking with a nicer decking and cantilevered coping. And, I also wanted to replace a 3'-high wood retaining wall and pool house steps with a stone wall and steps. The wall traces around our pool house with garden plantings between the wall and the pool house.
Dex by Terra won our business for two very important reasons:
o First, Joe Medeiros from DBT, who is a landscape architect, presented a design plan that wowed us. Joe has an easy old-school manner, is a good listener and has great ideas and is good at explaining why some ideas are good and some aren't based on his years of experience. The plan contours of the decking and stone wall were absolutely beautiful. Joe suggested lowering the 30" height of the retaining wall to make it a sitting wall and added a beautiful wave to the wall that wrapped toward the deep end of the pool. Joe also designed an arc'ed bump-out near the back slope of our property that looks out on a vista of conservation land. A really nice touch. The competitor's plan, which we saw first, had no excitement to it, and I had begun to wonder if I really wanted to spend $30,000-$40,000 on a major decking renovation (in addition to $25,000 in swimming pool renovation and equipment/electrical upgrades).
o Second, the competitor does not do natural stone work, focusing on Techo-Bloc and other manufactured products. While those products have come a long way, and can look like natural stone, as my wife and I thought more about the pool area, we gravitated toward natural stone for both the decking and the wall. We wanted a stone that doesn't cook your feet, that feels smooth, not rough, underfoot and on your hands and doesn't grab your bathing suit when you sit on the coping and dangle your legs in the pool. And, we wanted something that will still look like new when we sell the house in 10-15 years. We ruled out bluestone, which is beautiful, because it get too hot and is too rough. Joe Medeiros and I discussed travertine for the decking, and the more I read up on it, even though it added to the cost, the more travertine became the clear solution for us. We visited DBT's office/showroom in Hudson, and settled on travertine for the decking, and natural stone with travertine capstone for sitting on the stone wall.
How well did DBT deliver? Absolutely stunning! We are ecstatic!
Marco Resendes served as the project manager from DEX. Mark was responsive, helpful and resourceful. He came to me with issues as soon as they arose so the masons could keep the work moving. For example, the travertine decking and pool coping, now a few inches higher than the original concrete decking, would abut the last step of the stairs to our wood deck at too high a height for safety purposes, so he needed my OK to increase the downslope of the travertine). And, when I asked Mark what we could do to hide the ugly cinder block foundation of the pool house, exposed when the original 30" wood retaining wall was replaced with the 20" stone sitting wall, he recommended that his masons could create a stucco look which they did - just great work.
The DBT team did the demolition work of the original concrete decking, the wood retaining wall, a concrete walkway and bushes in two-three days. The team, led by Jeffrey, were fast, efficient and got tons of material loaded into a dumpster and trucked away. Jeffrey is a pro with the excavator and a good guy.
The stone wall masons worked fast as did the team that graded and prepped the decking area with sand and gravel, installed the coping stone along the pool perimeter and laid out the travertine in a beautiful pattern. They are all experienced craftsmen, led by Reuben who knows his stuff.
Were there any negatives? None. But, like any major project, it's important to be there as the work gets done. So, for example, the stone wall team began to build the wall by laying the stone in a horizontal fashion when I had asked for the stones to be assembled with a vertical pattern. By being there, I was able to correct that almost immediately. My opinion is that the homeowner has a daily responsibility to keeping tabs on the work as it's performed to ensure you get what you want.
The timing: First spoke with Joe Medeiros in early April. Signed a contract on May 20. Demolition occurred at the end of May. There was some wait time as the swimming pool team from Farrell Pool did their renovation work. And some wait time for the DBT team as they came off another project. DBT finished their work by July 13. So, overall, about a 6-week duration from the start of demolition. That's pretty good, especially since they've got a lot of jobs going and there is competition for resources.
Kudos to the entire team - highest recommendation!!!
