Impressions Concrete And Stone

Great group of hard working guys. The where very polite and completed our driveway with time to spare

Sugar Valley home’s Inc
We are a construction company located in Toronto. We have used mike and his crue for a few years. Some of our projects are: concrete Pool. Concert driveway and lots of concrete foundations. The work was done in a very professional way and very close to 100% perfection. I was in the business for 19 years now and I would recommend mike and his company to anyone who can’t take nothing but perfect.

Impressions Concrete and Stone were recommended by a neighbour that had used them for the decorative concrete landscaping. I met with Mike from Impressions, he was pleasant to deal with and easy to work with for putting together a landscape design. They designed the front and backyard in decorative concrete and stone. We were very happy with quality of the work, the work was done on time and everyone is wowed by look! If you're in the market for landscaping, I would highly recommend checking out Mike from Impressions Concrete and Stone. Quality people, quality work, and done on time.

When Mike came out to quote the stamped concrete patio and BBQ Island surrounding our pool, he seemed very courteous and professional, but more importantly agreed to have the job completed in 4 weeks, allowing us to get the most out of our summer, which led me to choosing him over the other contractors I had vetted.
The job started on time, and the crews were showing up as promised, but that didn't last long. About 2-3 weeks in Mike and his crew mysteriously disappeared for about 4 weeks. All my calls, emails and text messages went unanswered, leaving me with a partially finished backyard and thousands in lost deposits. I started to seek out new contractors to complete the job, however, it was far too late in the season, as everyone I spoke to said they were committed to completing other jobs.
Then, uncharacteristically, Mike finally responded to my endless text messages and phone calls, agreeing to come back out to complete the job. What followed were streams of broken promises to show up, arguments about pricing, as Mike felt compelled to charge more than quoted, sighting unexpected costs, and countless strife's to get this job completed once and for all. Needless to say, the job finally got completed, however, it was well after the date promised, and was significantly over budget, but alas, we got our backyard back, or so I thought.
After weeks of water loss in our pool, I hired Canadian Leak Detection in North York, awesome company, to assess the cause of the water loss. After a couple of visits, the company quickly identified two leaks in our pool pipes, see picture attached, that were caused by Mike and his team when they laid out and fastened the wire meshing for the concrete pour. It appears that the fasteners they used punctured the pipes causing the leaks. Canadian Leak Detection identified the exact location of both leaks, however the repair required them to open up the freshly cured concrete patio in order to get at the pipes and replace the punctured sections; all additional costs I would have to absorb. I wasted no time in contacting Mike to make him aware of the incident, asking him to bear the cost of the leak and concrete repair. I was even willing to absorb half of the cost, a desperate measure on my part, as I just wanted the concrete repaired and to match the rest of the patio.
Mike reluctantly agreed to reimburse me for half of the repair cost from Canadian Leak Detection, and further agreed to come back and patch up the concrete.
After countless follow up calls, Mike finally showed up for the fix, but the concrete repair was a quick and careless reconstruct that didn’t even come close to matching the rest of the patio. Mike also failed to deliver on the Canadian Leak Detection reimbursement, leaving me footing the bill for the entire fix.
Dealing with Mike and Impressions Concrete & Stone was a tireless and costly experience that I regret with my every being. I would discourage any level of engagement with Mike and his organization, unless of course you have time and money to waste. Move on to a more reputable and reliable firm!!

Overall the drive looks lovely. However, the project had some shortcomings. Mike's communication skills leave something to be desired. Days when he said he would show up, he did not - other days, he would show up unannounced. With Mike, you must absolutely have a written plan or blueprint. We had some "wants" that did not materialize. Despite a reminder of what we wanted the day before the pour, it did not materialize. Also items that we thought would be part of the cost (eg bullnose on steps) suddenly added a significant cost of over 10%.
Despite the frustration we are happy with the overall quality of the work.

We had our concrete done by Impression Concrete last year 2016. The advice is, “BUYER BEWARE" and you will save yourself from lots of troubles”. If you have already signed the contract, “DO” not pay the full amount until the work is completed to your satisfaction. Mike will promise to fix the problems (if any) in the following year (without mentioning that it will be subject to warranty deductible).
 
CRACKS: My concrete has 4 crack lines (as per attached pictures) even before the work was completed. Mike knew about them and promised us that he will come back this year to fix it after the concrete settled down from winter weather. Comes spring of 2017, the crack line became worse; it got longer, deeper and wider. We sent Mike the pics and asked him repeatedly to come and fix it. He now argued he will fix it subject to warranty deductible. To us this is fixing the old problems which were there before the work was completed; therefore it should not be subject to warranty deductible. As of today, he didn’t commit to the timeline of fixing it.
 
WATER PUDDLES: We have sizable two puddles on the concrete areas – first one on the steps of my front door and the second one on the back-yard patio. We have to squeegee out the water every time the rain waters get trapped in it. We also pointed out to Mike’s staff last year and were told that they need to make additional cut-lines for water to drain out. Nothing was done as of now.

PROFESSIONALISM: Mike and his crew are careless and unprofessional. When they were on my site, they left a huge pile of river rocks on the curb without any warning sign to the traffic. My neighbor wife drove over the rocks and nearly had an accident. It was reported to the city and the stones were cleared (as per attached pictures). Instead of apologizing and admitting to his negligence, Mike blamed it on us instead by saying that I should have bought some construction cones from Home Depot and put them beside the river rocks (see attached text message).
 
COLOR: The concrete color faded significantly from last year after it was completed. We mentioned it to Mike and he said we need to re-seal it as part of the yearly maintenance for the cost of $800. He threatens to void the warranty if we hire other contractors to do the job even if the exact the same brand sealer is used.
 
WARRANTY: Although the contract says 5 years warranty, it means nothing if company doesn’t honor it. We are simply asking to fix the problems, which Mike knew existed even before the work was completed. Secondly, even though the contract says the deductible is $500, Mike argued this is the typo and his words supersede the written contract (as per attached text message). My sister and I paid a good sum of money to Mike for two houses, in part, due to 5 years warranty; but it means nothing if he can’t honor it.
 
REVIEWS: I told Mike that as a last resort, I will write honest reviews in various social media forum. He threatened to sue me for defamation and slandering if I dare to give him negative reviews.
 
I do not recommend this contractor for any concrete job!!

I was struggling with a sinking backyard, water pooling near the fence line, the fence itself twisting in all directions with the concrete bases protruding out of the ground, and the disheartening reluctance that my above ground pool had to be taken down because it was no longer level. Enter Mike Tarantella and his team. It took only a couple of hours for Mike and I to work through what the backyard needed. And it only took 2 days for his team to complete the fastest, yet very professional, job. I appreciate his ability to provide solutions honestly and quickly. Moreover, I was impressed with all members of his team. Mike was able to scale from the smallest touch ups to the largest reconstructions. If I had the money, I would have him fixing all aspects of my house and surrounding land. Although I don't think he needs the praise (when you are great at what you do), I would be happy to recommend him and his team for any landscaping project. Thanks

Mike had started work in our backyard April 22 and completed the work by July 12. He had over booked himself and his team and had our project sit idol for 6weeks. The quality of work was 6 out of 10 at best. Job site cleanliness, staff courtesy and knowledge 3/10. Mike over promises and under delivers. He has poor record keeping skills and would say one price one day and then double it the next. I would never recommend Impressions concrete and stone! Be very weary!!

I found Mike to be very knowledgable and I immediately knew that I could trust him to create a magical oasis that suited our family needs. I found his crew to be friendly and respectable and Mike was there at every step of the way to ensure we got the best work. I brag about him at every opportunity, to my friends, families and colleagues.

We built a custom home , Mike purchased appliances from my company and that is how we met, I hired him for my landscaping , pool , and all outside work, stone walls, the hole nine yards. Mike was professional , always on time with his workers, the project was 8 6 weeks long and ended 1 week quicker than estimated as we had great weather, project turned out better than expected , I added more options along the way that of course added more to the budget but Mike worked well with my choices and did a lot of work at his costs for the add on work, I would rightly recommend.