Stories of Demolition Companies in Los Angeles
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There is always a temptation to do it yourself, especially when it comes to demolition. After all demolition is fairly straightforward and it appears, on first blush, to be easy. Maybe you’ve done some reading about swimming pool demolition and are saying to yourself, Hey, that doesn’t sound so bad. I don’t need to hire a pool demolition contractor. I can do it myself!”

But should you do your own pool demolition? Or should you hire a pool demolition contractor? Here are some questions to ask yourself to help you make that decision.

1. Can You Use Heavy Machinery Safely and Effectively?

Unless you have a very very small pool you are going to need to use either a bobcat with a break attachment or a backhoe with a hydraulic jackhammer attached to the arm. Are you familiar with how to safely use heavy machinery? If the answer is no than you should hire a pool demolition contractor.

2. Can You File for a Proper Demolition Permit?

Permitting is fairly straightforward. It usually involves filing out a application and paying a fee. You may be required to submit various plans outlining specifics of your demolition project, including how construction materials is going to be removed. If you aren’t comfortable with filing for a proper demolition permit then you should hire a demolition contractor.

3. Are You Familiar with Best Demolition Practices, including Safety

Swimming pool demolition can be dangerous if you are inexperienced or aren’t familiar with the best safety practices in demolition. If you are not familiar with proper demolition safety procedures you are better off leaving your demolition to the professional.

In most cases, despite the savings, you are better off leaving swimming pool removal in the hands of a qualified swimming pool demolition contractor. 

Before you hire a demolition company you should get three estimates. How many times have you heard this advice. But how exactly do you request an estimate from a demolition company? In reality the process for getting an estimate from a demolition company is fairly straightforward (most of the time).

1. Call a Demolition Company 

When you call a demolition company have a fairly good idea of what kind of demolition project you need done. Don’t just call and say, Well I need … a thing demolished. What type of demolition do you need? How much square feet? If you have a project that requires heavy machinery do you have access for heavy machinery? You may need to write some fairly extensive notes. Give all the information to the demolition company and request an estimate.

2. Schedule a Time for Your Estimator

Remember you want an in person estimation. Don’t fall for a “internet estimate” or a phone estimate. 

3. Meet with Your Estimator

Meet with the estimator. Walk through the entire area that the demolition is to be performed in. Ask a lot of questions and take this time to express any concerns you might have. Also make notes about any concerns the demolition company’s estimator might have. Use this time to get a feel for how the demolition company that is doing the estimate works. Do they seem experienced? Do they seem knowledgeable? Are they professional and did they show up on time?

4. Request a Written Estimate

Remember you don’t want an oral estimate or a phone estimate. Sure, an estimator for a demolition company may say, Oh I think this will cost X.” But you want that in writing or it means absolutely nothing.

5. Review the Written Estimate

A written estimate should be thorough and contain a complete outline of costs. Don’t consider written estimates that are only a single figure. “This pool demolition will cost $10,000.” Well that may be the cast but how do those costs break out? The quality and detail put into a written estimate says a lot about a demolition company.

Remember for large or complicated  demolition projects you may need to solicit more than just three estimates. You may to get five or more before finding a demolition company you are happy with. 

 

One of the things we’ve harangued on constantly is the need to really closely examine your demolition contractor‘s reputation. There is a lot of competition for demolition jobs right now. And there are also a lot of small time scam artists operating as demolition contractors out there. One thing way you can check on a demolition contractor’s reputation is via internet review sites. But, whether you know it or not, internet reviews are not always accurate and sometimes are downright fakes.

Demolition contractors wh are desperate for business often will hire writers (either in the U.S. or overseas, mostly from India) to pump out hundreds of fake reviews to be posted on various review sites. Many demolition contractors will also ask their employees (or retain an employee full time) to write reviews for their company. 

So how do you separate out the fake reviews from the real reviews?

1. Generalities

People who have had a specific experience generally speaking have very specific memories to go along with that experience. Think back to losing your virginity. How would you describe it if your life depended on it. Would all you have to say is, “Well I lost my virginity and it was great. Highly recommend!”? Probably not.

Generalities and brevity are your first clues when it comes to spotting fake demolition contractor reviews. Regardless of whether someone had a great experience or a terrible experience, they’ll probably go into some fairly deep and sharp specifics relating to their experience with that particular demo contractors. A person who just had their pool removed and had a good enough experience to warrant taking the time to write a review will have more to say than just a single sentence.

A lot of unspecific, one or two line reviews is a pretty decent tell that you are dealing with a lot of fake reviews.

2. The combative good review

This scenario generally plays out something like this. A demolition contractor is hired by a homeowner to remove some concrete. He pulls a classic bait and switch, and charges her a lot more than what he estimated. That person, rightfully, goes to the internet to warn others off that particular contractor.

A day or a week later a new review pops up. And its from a guy who also had some concrete removal done and had a completely opposite experience of the last reviewer. Even to the point of calling that reviewer out specifically.

People are often oddly territorial about the companies they love and hate. I’ve seen grown men get into fights about whether Canon or Nikon made a better camera, for instance. But when it comes to demolition contractors this is often a swarmy tactic used to drag down a legitimate review and make their company look better than it probably is, which leads us into …

3. The Five Star bandit

Internet reviews are never perfect. People have outsized expectations of what a business can and can’t do. And when those expectations aren’t fulfilled they often take to the internet and holler about it. So when you are reading reviews of anything, even demolition contractors, its pretty normal to find one person that had a bad experience. However, a lot of bad reviews with similar complaints probably form a pretty accurate portrait of a bad contractor.

But, wait, a minute, there is one guy who really loves this one demolition contractor! Could he be a lone wolf crying in the wilderness? 

No. Mostly likely that single good review was put their by  a demolition contractor who felt like his business was on the ropes from bad (and I would guess accurate) reviews. So he made an account (or his brother or his mother) and posted an accurate review … of himself. 

My rule of thumb is mostly good reviews mixed with some mediocre and one or two bad reviews equals accurate. A lot of bad reviews also equally accurate. One good review isn’t enough to shift the weight of the people’s gestalt.

4. Reviews Live from New Dehli!

One of the darker corners of the internet is the space where demolition contractors who want to quickly build a good reputation or combat a string of lousy reviews buy internet reviews. The going rate for skilled U.S. Based reviewers is around $25 to $50 a review, and these reviews can be hard to spot.

But bad demolition contractors typically didn’t become bad demolition contractors by spending money, so instead of opting for good old American English Majors turned Yelp Fakers, they spend $200 on an Indian content farm that promises them hundreds of internet reviews that read better than the King’s Speech.

And what they get is, “Hello good sirs of the Pages that Yellow. I hired the above nice gentlemen to demolush a pool in my bath room. His work was of a superlative nature. Would highly recommend upon the altars of Vishnu. Praise be to the four stars!”

One immediate tip off of a fake review is misspellings and tortured phrasing. Misspellings aren’t uncommon on the internet (gasp) but look for obvious 8th grade and under misspells. Then look at the phrasing.  Grammar was assassinated a long time ago by that coward known as the internet but people have a distinct way of talking about things in America. And typically this colloquial phrasing is completely lost to the reviewers in New Dehli.

5. The copy paste

The copy paste review has gotten rarer because internet review sites realized that their existence hung upon their credibility. But every so often a proton torpedo slips past and lands in the reactor shaft of life. Every so often copy and paste internet reviews get posted.

These are easy to spot.

For instance, “I love these guys! I would high recommend! Very professional pool demo!” — Gary

Followed by, “I love these guys! I would high recommend! Very professional pool demo!” — Larry 

Yeah, that’s a fake.

In conclusion, there is no real way to verify every review you read. Chances are that some of the best reviews you read may be carefully constructed bits of artifice made in the foundries of a copywriter’s forge. But if you practice a certain amount of discernment and a skeptical eye, you can keep from getting fooled 80% of the time.

Crossposted from 911Demolition

 

There is no shortage of demolition companies in Los Angeles. You can find a demolition company for nearly every job. But with the good comes the bad. How do you know when you are dealing with a bad demolition company in Los Angeles? Here are 5 Warning Signs of that frequently indicate it is time to find a new demolition company in Los Angeles.

1. A demolition company in Los Angeles that won’t give an estimate

Estimates are pretty common in both construction and demolition. Be very wary of a demolition company that won’t provide an estimate or will only provide a free “phone estimate”. Either one is completely unacceptable. You should get an estimate in writing an accept no substitute.

2. A demolition company that’s “new” or doesn’t have a lot of years of operation

While new demolition company doesn’t necessarily mean “bad” you should be wary of a demolition company that is brand new and hasn’t done any recent demolition projects. Demolition is built on years of experience.

3. A demolition company in Los Angeles that isn’t licensed.

An unlicensed demolition company puts your home, your project, and yourself in harms way. Unlicensed demolition contractors often inexperienced and do shoddy work.

4. A demolition company in Los Angeles that refuses to provide references

Providing references is a standard part of any demolition work. If a demolition company can’t or won’t produce references it is time to find a new demolition company.

5. A demolition company that demands money up front

Never pay a demolition company up front and stay away from demolition companies in Los Angeles that demand payment up front.

Whether you are doing a partial demolition or a complete pool demolition, pool demolition in Los Angeles is a fairly straightforward process. How straightforward? We’ve condensed swimming pool demolition into five easy steps just to show you how easy it is.

1. Drain the swimming pool

Before demolishing a swimming pool you’ll need to drain it. You can either open the drains and let time and gravity do their job, or pump out the water. Once a pool has been complete drained, you will need to drill an array of holes in the bottom of the pool. Holes will allow the pool to drain properly and constantly once its been filled in.

2. Demolish the Top Two Feet of Concrete

Demolish the top two layers of concrete around the pool and take the pool down to ground level. This is done usually with a Bobcat with a pneumatic drill attached to it. A bobcat can quickly demo a pool and the associated concrete.

3. Fill in the Pool 

Once the top to three layers of concrete have been demolished use the demolish concrete as fill and dump it into the bottom of the pool. 

4. Top the Concrete Fill with Fill Dirt

Fill in the pool with extra fill dirt, and then grade and compact. 

5. Landscape

After your former pool site has been compacted, call a landscaper and have sod planted.