Calgary General Contractors

The process of our renovation with CGC was nothing short of a nightmare. To begin with, the salesman (who also coordinated the design phase) made unrealistic promises, including fancy renderings that never materialized, a design including 26” deep drawers (when drawer rails only come in sizes up to 22”) and a promise that stacking our washer and dryer would be a “simple” matter of moving the dryer vent.

Most importantly, the salesman said CGC had “all its own people” so the demolition and build phase would take only 3-4 weeks in our home, but in reality it took four MONTHS.

On the day that the on-site work was to start, the site manager failed to show up or even call. My husband took a day off from work for nothing. The initial 2-month long schedule that CGC provided allowed week-long windows for each phase of construction. Some contractors were only present for 1-2 days, so nothing more would happen during the rest of the week. Then we fell off CGC’s radar and sometimes 2 weeks would go by before anyone showed up to work. Worst of all, the job site manager would tell us contractors were coming without actually notifying the contractors that they were scheduled to come.

During the build, we discovered that changes had been made to our design without our knowledge. We ended up with substantially less storage space than what was originally planned. Bulkheads that were supposed to be removed had to be left in place. Slotted storage for baking sheets was forgotten, as was the spice rack I had requested. It was ordered later but ultimately did not fit into the cabinet.

We were initially charged $2670 for a design change when we were told that moving the dryer vent would be difficult and expensive. We later negotiated a reduction, but still paid $1000 for what was a design error by CGC.

There was damage to a hall wall that was sloppily patched by CGC. CGC offered to paint only over the patch but the hall had a textured finish so it would not have matched. We had to hire someone else to paint the entire hall. Deep grooves in our hardwood floors from contractors dragging wood panels around were attributed to our dog. Most of the time, the job site was a filthy mess. And somehow, a box containing $500 of Denby stoneware managed to disappear from our home during this renovation.

In the end, our cabinets are attractive and of good quality but the counter obviously differs in height by 1/8” on either side of our range. The refrigerator barely fits into its surround and the dishwasher could not be properly attached as it did not initially fit into its enclosure. The grout in the backsplash was never sealed so now I am struggling to remove grease stains from behind my stove and will have to seal it myself. And finally, the leftover paint I used to do my own touch-ups somehow does not match the wall.

I believe CGC has grown too fast and taken on more than it can handle. Our job site manager was juggling 17 renovations at once. Until they hire more people, I would not recommend this company.

The process of our renovation with CGC was nothing short of a nightmare. To begin with, the salesman (who also coordinated the design phase) made unrealistic promises, including fancy renderings that never materialized, a design including 26” deep drawers (when drawer rails only come in sizes up to 22”) and a promise that stacking our washer and dryer would be a “simple” matter of moving the dryer vent.

Most importantly, the salesman said CGC had “all its own people” so the demolition and build phase would take only 3-4 weeks in our home, but in reality it took four MONTHS.

On the day that the on-site work was to start, the site manager failed to show up or even call. My husband took a day off from work for nothing. The initial 2-month long schedule that CGC provided allowed week-long windows for each phase of construction. Some contractors were only present for 1-2 days, so nothing more would happen during the rest of the week. Then we fell off CGC’s radar and sometimes 2 weeks would go by before anyone showed up to work. Worst of all, the job site manager would tell us contractors were coming without actually notifying the contractors that they were scheduled to come.

During the build, we discovered that changes had been made to our design without our knowledge. We ended up with substantially less storage space than what was originally planned. Bulkheads that were supposed to be removed had to be left in place. Slotted storage for baking sheets was forgotten, as was the spice rack I had requested. It was ordered later but ultimately did not fit into the cabinet.

We were initially charged $2670 for a design change when we were told that moving the dryer vent would be difficult and expensive. We later negotiated a reduction, but still paid $1000 for what was a design error by CGC.

There was damage to a hall wall that was sloppily patched by CGC. CGC offered to paint only over the patch but the hall had a textured finish so it would not have matched. We had to hire someone else to paint the entire hall. Deep grooves in our hardwood floors from contractors dragging wood panels around were attributed to our dog. Most of the time, the job site was a filthy mess. And somehow, a box containing $500 of Denby stoneware managed to disappear from our home during this renovation.

In the end, our cabinets are attractive and of good quality but the counter obviously differs in height by 1/8” on either side of our range. The refrigerator barely fits into its surround and the dishwasher could not be properly attached as it did not initially fit into its enclosure. The grout in the backsplash was never sealed so now I am struggling to remove grease stains from behind my stove and will have to seal it myself. And finally, the leftover paint I used to do my own touch-ups somehow does not match the wall.

I believe CGC has grown too fast and taken on more than it can handle. Our job site manager was juggling 17 renovations at once. Until they hire more people, I would not recommend this company.