This was our first pool, so we wanted to make sure we selected someone who is a good pool designer…read moreand builder. We spent many hours researching and carefully reviewed all the pool builders in our area. Many of the local pool companies had mixed reviews, even the pool company recommended by our builder had very mixed reviews. When I researched Jim Chandler Pools, all his reviews were all good, I even checked several different websites and those had good reviews too. Because of this we decided to give him a call to discuss our pool project and from the moment I spoke with Jim, I knew we had the right guy. He was easy to talk with and listened to what we were looking for in a pool, he gave us lots of ideas and options to think about before our first meeting. Jim went to our new home site to review the lot/backyard to ensure what we had discussed was going to work in our new backyard. Once we met in person to review the plans, he made recommendations in order to try to keep us in budget or as close to it as possible. When I called Jim's references, everyone I spoke with highly recommended him, they enjoyed working with him, said he was very professional, kept them up to date with the progress, and completed the project on time and in budget. During Jim's first meeting with the City's Planning department, he found out we had very expansive soil which is a problem when installing pools. Jim explained the extra costs when building a pool with expansive soil, it creates a lot of extra work during construction as well as a lot of extra cost to reinforce the pool and pool deck. To help cover the extra costs, Jim recommended some changes to our design in order to save money to help cover the unexpected costs as we did not budget for this type of problem. We were still over budget but some of it was the expansive soil and the rest were my fault . Jim would be on site for each step to ensure everything was done to his expectations. All the contractors Jim uses do great work, they are on time, very professional, and cleaned up after they completed their work. After working with Jim, I now know why the references I called spoke so highly him, he is a great contractor, stays on top of every detail, works closely with you during the whole process from start to end. We just finished our pool, took longer because of soil issues and Covid but we made it. We are very happy with our new pool; and look forward too many years of enjoying the pool. We are very happy we choose Jim Chandler Pools; he really enjoys his job and it shows with the completed product. I am sure there are cheaper pool builders out there, but if you want it done right then I highly recommend Jim Chandler Pools.

UPDATE: It's been three years now. We have had two issues with our pool. First, a lot of…read morehorizontal trim tile came off on the spa area where it connects with the pool. We had two separate repairs made on it, and it has held since the last repair which was last summer. Apparently some water got under the tile and continued to move through them, pushing them up. The tile work was warranted for three years, so there was no charge to us. The other issue is really a matter of design. The spa was designed at the same level as the pool, with water that communicates between the two. In the summer or when there is not rain, the system works fine, and the hot tub will be hot within about 30-60 minutes, depending on the outside temperature with almost no pool water coming in and cooling it off. However, as soon as the pool water level rises much at all (after just a couple of rains), the hot tub takes much longer to heat. At about $20/hour to heat it and more than an hour, it is not worth it to us. We checked with Jim about raising the level of the spa, and he checked with the builders and it is not recommended. We are very disappointed because the only solution is to spend hours draining the pool down to a normal water level. We had normal rains last year, and more than normal this year, but after five years of drought, it seems wasteful and we know that the autofill will just end up kicking on again when the temperatures warm up. So our choice is to not use the spa all winter or to discard all the extra water at a time when our water infrastructure is at a maximum level in the area. If we were doing another pool/spa combination we would DEFINITELY have the spa elevated to avoid this design issue.

After several consultations and estimates from many different landscape companies my wife and I…read morechose to go with Brandon and his crew at Reliable and couldn't be happier with the results. We had been sitting on a landscape design and needed someone to bring the vision to reality. Brandon immediately translated our plan into his software so we could discuss options and take on suggestions for improvement. He was quick and precise in making adjustments to appease our HOA and fit within our budget. The crew was meticulous in their work on the yard. If it was on the plan it was replicated in the yard. If we saw something that needed a slight adjustment they were happy to accommodate. I recall a situation where we needed a concrete walkway to go wider around an AC unit. The crew quickly responded by forming a wider path. Nate was great at scheduling project dates and also helped to make sure our AC units were reinstalled in a timely manner after our concrete was poured. We were relieved to have them up and running again before a forecasted heat wave arrived. Brandon was there at every stage of the project and was always quick to respond. He was at the nursery with us when it came time to choose the plants, making suggestions for plants that best fit our specific environment. During the middle of construction a rain storm hit our area and we had some concerns about how the yard would handle it in an unfinished state. He came out late at night to make sure the drainage would be okay until the storm passed. Upon completion of the project he was there to make sure everything was tidied up after the final walkthrough. If someone were to ask me for a recommendation on a yard install or remodel I would surely tell them to call Reliable Landscape and Design.

Reliable Landscaping? This company is the furthest thing from reliable…read more I completely regret choosing this company and trusting them with a major project. We signed a $67,000 landscaping contract with this company in March. While we understood the initial weather-related delays, the way our project was handled afterward was extremely disappointing and unprofessional. On our scheduled project start date (May 26th) no one showed up and we received no phone call, email, or update. After taking time off work to be home for the project, we had to call the company ourselves, only to be met with confusion and surprise, as if they were unaware our project was even scheduled to begin. They then scrambled to contact employees and send someone out later that day for a "walk through." This is something that should have been completed well before the scheduled start date. We were then assured work would begin the following morning at 8:00 AM. By 10:00 AM, no one had arrived and again we had received no communication. When we called for answers, an employee told us the owner and our project advisor should have already been at our house to speak with us. That had never happened. When we calmly expressed our concerns about the repeated lack of communication, the no call/no show, and the fact that we had now missed multiple days of work for nothing, the owner, Brandon, immediately responded by asking if we wanted to cancel the project. We explained that cancellation was not our goal. We simply wanted accountability, communication, and follow-through. Brandon then stated, "I don't like the tone you have. I've been in the landscaping business since the 90s. I have 9 other projects going on and I don't like your tone, so we can just go ahead and cancel this project." At no point were we disrespectful. We were frustrated customers trying to understand why a major project had been mishandled from the start. For a company handling projects of this size and cost, we expected professionalism, communication, and BASIC reliability. Unfortunately, our experience has been the exact opposite. I do not recommend doing business with this company.

I am extremely happy with how David and his crew designed and completed my pond and waterfall, and…read morein just one day! They also installed lighting that accented the pond and trees. David is communicative and honest, as well as knowledgeable and customer oriented. His crew is hardworking, with good landscaping skills. I highly recommend Santana Landscaping services. Thanks David and crew!!

My wife and I built a home on 10 acres in Pilot Hill, CA, last year. I had installed all of the 6'…read morefencing surrounding the upper 3 acres where the house and pool sit. I had also installed a large automatic gate. At that point, we were ready to hire a landscape company. We knew we wanted decorative rock to surround the house (we live in a very high fire risk area), and we wanted grass surrounding the pool and patios to keep dust down and create a microclimate. (We have a well, and have good water pressure.). We found Santana Landscape Hardscape online and read all of the reviews, which were very good. I reached out to the owner, David, who was great on the phone and clearly knowledgeable. He came out to walk the property with me and my wife a few days later, understood what we wanted, and made excellent suggestions. The scope of work was pretty extensive. They had to grade, finalize drainage, install a large irrigation system, install approx. 40 yards of decorative rock, install metal landscape borders, place boulders, finish out the area surrounding a raised bed with stepping stones, build steps into a slope, and install fence posts. They just finished the job yesterday (it took about 8 days). We are extremely happy with everything David and his crew did. They showed up at about 7:30 a.m. every morning, were hardworking, cleaned up after themselves each day, answered any and all questions we had along the way, and basically did everything they could to make sure we were happy with each days' progress and the quality of the work (which was excellent). We were extremely impressed, and have already asked David to come back for the second phase of our project, which is putting in the grass. We highly recommend David and Santana Landscape Hardscape.

I couldn't be happier with the work they did on my pool. They were professional, hardworking, and…read moretook the time to communicate with me every step of the way. The pool looks fantastic, and I'm already counting down the days until I can start swimming this summer. I would definitely recommend them.

Nice guy, (Mike), came out to our home on June 30th for a site visit, and said he will furnish an…read moreestimate in 1-2 weeks. Two weeks was yesterday. We never received any correspondences at all, and did not even acknowledge receipt of my email, (sent the same day of visit), containing all PDF Plans, Civil Engineer report, etc. I guess they're too busy, and/or our project is beyond their capabilities. We wasted our time.

BACKYARD GLOW UP! We…read morewere looking for a minimal easy to maintain landscape for our renters to not have much to do and Acres design definitely achieved that. They worked efficiently to get it done in the time frame we had. We also had some major drainage and irrigation issues that they were able to circumvent!

The Acres team did a great job and were a pleasure to work with. The on-site crew was professional…read moreand showed up to work on time every day. We appreciate the clear communication and fair pricing and we have recommended the Acres team to our friends and families. The final product was everything we hoped for. Thank you to the Acres Design and Landscape family.