traviswinter in Ottawa

UPDATE: After posting this review I was contacted by Verdun in the hopes I would consider giving them a second chance, to make up for the terrible experience we had before. We were hesitant at first but ultimately decided to try again. The experience this time has been better so far, though Covid-19 has caused the installation to be delayed. We are rescheduled and I will update the review after it is complete. Before getting into my review, I will state that it has been about 7 months since our last dealings with Verdun. We were also dealing with them during the GreenON debacle they went through, so things may have changed; though looking at other reviews it does not seem so. We started the process in March, 2018 after getting quotes and eventually signed on for 10 windows (the GreenOn rebate applied to 10) plus an outside front door. By the time all of the work was done it was June, 2019. The crux of the issue was the fact that they would not install the door until after the GreenOn cut-off date was ironed out. Then it simply was a comedy of errors from first ordering the wrong window, then the correct window cracking during the install, and eventually a door squeak due to an improperly installed door. So, rather than get into the details, here are the highlights: Sales: 6/10 The salesperson we dealt with was nice and seemed very responsive to any requests we had. He even gave us some discounts that we were not expecting. The issue was that he barely ever responded to calls or e-mails. It would take several calls to get him and that was if you didn’t go above his head first. Installation Coordination: 1/10 The installation manager seemed to have her own fluid calendar outside normal space-time. She would give dates, then after we would call she would have different dates. She would tell us that we were getting the most experienced installers only to have people 2 weeks on the job (fresh out of their training course). She wouldn’t even give us a time for the actual door install until we reached out to Alec (the Service Director) directly. Installation: 10/10 Installation process was rock solid. Installers, though junior, did a great job and the best part was a manager would come out and verify that everything was done correctly. The only issues we had was when the installation coordinators would forget to get the right stuff assigned for the job (eg. correct flashing). Even the installers that came for the repairs did an amazing job. Product: 10/10 We got the new Revocell windows after a lot of research and we really enjoy them. They don’t seem to keep much more noise out than a regular 2-pane window but they definitely keep the heat in and feel like quality. Customer Support/Repairs:9/10 They were great except I called in once with two issues and they only sent someone to repair one issue. After a phone call they arranged another time and everything was fixed super professionally. Management (Alec): 7/10 After a lot of arguing eventually I settled on speaking directly with Alec though he is quite busy. He did get things moving along and addressed a number of concerns initially. He straight up admitted they stretched themselves too thin for the GreenOn rebate and they would not be out from under the backlog until June, 2019. Eventually I feel he kind of gave up on us as there were just too many problems with the door and told us that “it will be done at the end of the day”. It took 5 months but the end of the day did happen as he said, we were just not happy with the wait. Overall I would give Verdun a 7/10. I have spoken with some neighbours that have had work done with them and it seems they have hit their stride again. It was very disappointing for us, as we were looking forward to the “Verdun Experience” we had heard about but it was just agony dealing with the office. It's a shame too since we have an additional set of seven windows to do this year and a large patio door but are now forced to look elsewhere. We had such a difficult time dealing with them that we will not use them again.

We had a series of incredibly bad squeaks in one of our bedrooms (the nursery of course) that had existed since we moved in. We had another contractor in to repair the issue who cut into the floor and determined the squeak was caused by a gap above a steel beam allowing for the floor to move. He shimmed it up and replaced the area with a sheet of plywood. Unfortunately, the squeak returned and caused havoc when we tried to sneak out at night (our daughter would wake up often). We looked around and Scott Heatherington was willing to come in with limited notice and give us a very basic quote. Once he opened the floor we found that the issue was caused by an incorrect joist hanger, letting the joist move slightly causing the noiser squeaks. He repaired the joist hanger, added some blocking, corrected the shimming, and replaced the plywood sheet. The squeaking by the door is completely eliminated and greatly reduced in other areas - and Scott was able to do it in half a day! He was honest, genuine, and extremely knowledgeable. We plan on getting Scott back to do several other jobs for us including replacing some porch columns in the near future.

Our 16 year old furnace was slowly giving out and our 16 year old central air was close to end of life as well, so we decided to shop around. We received 3 quotes and decided to go with Reliable since they were willing to match the other lowest quote and were the most genuine. It also did not hurt that they were Costco certified installers. Besides the replacement we wanted to move our air conditioner from our back yard to the side of our house (to save on noise), have a humidifier installed, have a return installed in the basement, and make some adjustments to the duct work in our furnace room. They included all of our requests to the invoice at no extra charge. On the day of the installation (with snow still on the ground), they worked diligently getting the new furnace installed, the new AC installed on the side of the house (with a new sound dampening platform), the old AC removed, the return installed, a new smart thermostat installed, and the duct work fixed quickly and professionally. They were extremely friendly and were not afraid to answer questions. The new units are also incredible - the furnace is whisper quiet, and the 2-stage air conditioner runs extremely quiet (though is quite large!). I would strongly suggest them (and Lennox!) to anyone looking for new home heating and cooling solutions.

I decided to give Excel a call after seeing the signs advertising that houses throughout the neighbourhood had all had their roofs done by them. After receiving a number of quotes Excel was decided the most economical and professional option. Alex managed to walk me through the roofing process and help me decide on materials as well as design choices. I found him and his crew to be very friendly and causal while remaining polite and professional. I got a chance to be home for both days of work and they did their jobs very quickly despite the summer heat. They even found that one of the boards had started to rot and repaired it for no additional charge.