Absolutely terrible service. First, he had a terrible "plan" to route our mitigation system out through rock work on our house. We were told that it would obviously knock some rocks off so he would try to repair that. This would also require drilling through concrete, painting duct work outside to match the house, and other various time consuming aspects which made the project cost $1800. I was told that I could find a better route. I don't install radon mitigation systems, but I took on the challenge. I crawled in the attic and found a better way to run the piping, with fewer holes to drill, no painting required, and no rock work to tackle. It also would allow the fan to be place right next to an outlet so power wasn't a problem either. He agreed to the change the route and assured me it wouldn't cost any more. Cost any more???? It was significantly less work than his route would have been. We were also told he would use a black cap over our sump pump in the basement and cut a hole for the mitigation system. It ended up being a square piece of 1/4 Plexiglas with silicon and duct tape to seal the edges. Not only does this look terrible, but it is a major concern as our water softener and water heater are on the other side of it. Someone could fall right through if they stepped on it. Granted, this is a furnace room, but the silicon seems to have really got away from him. It's on the boards in the walls, smeared on the concrete inches from the application, and even a spot outside on the carpet in the hallway.
We had quotes from several installers in the area. Ours was done in a finished house so I knew it would be more difficult to hide. I also was concerned about having someone do "good" work. Radon mitigation is basically PVC pipe ran from your basement to your roof, with a fan in the middle. No, I am not licensed, but I know what PVC pipe is, and I know what a fan is. Oh, and stickers that say "DANGER RADON MITIGATION SYSTEM" I assume these are the major expense in the project as everything else is readily available at a home improvement store. We chose Les because of his experience. We had quotes that were 1/3 the price, but he assured us his work was very good and he would certainly do the job correctly. He has been licensed for nearly two decades and is a retired engineer.
I will admit, the number he told us our radon was sitting at now is less than the number we were told prior to the mitigation system. Of course, he did the testing. If I scored my own test, I would pass every time too.
My disclaimer, I thought "radon mitigation" was a joke. I had done my research, lots of it. My wife was convinced that with our children sleeping in the basement, it would be worth it to put it in even if it didn't help. It was peace of mind. I am pleased to say after this experience she is also a firm believer that mitigation is a joke. Definitely money well spent.
Don't hire the expensive guy. This isn't rocket science, and you are more than welcome to look at my system to see it. I have already had extensive clean up from the project, and I still have the Plexiglas to correct. read more
