Stories of Demolition Companies in Los Angeles
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Commercial Warehouse Demolition Services 

We take on any kind of demolition job – residential, industrial, or commercial demolition. We continually update our skills and equipments to offer a diverse range of demolition services to our customers satisfaction. Making our customers happy and content with our services is what we strive to do with Deconstruction Demolition and Disposal Inc. Call us today to geta quote or if you have any questions on our services.

Our commercial demolition services include:

 

  • Retail Locations
  • Concrete Demolition
  • Asphalt Demolition
  • Office Buildings
  • Warehouse Demolition
  • Mall Demolition
  • Shopping Center Demolition
  • Strip Malls Demolition
  • Restaurant Demolition
  • Hospital Demolition
  • School Demolition
  • Selective Demolition
  • Complete Takedowns
  • Parking Lot Demolition
  • Concrete Work
  • All Types of Rigging
  • Bobcat Work

 

We Understand Our Customers

We value your time and we provide our commercial demolition services with YOU in mind. We know that any kind of construction, renovation or demolition is important to you. That is why we have the best estimators to deal with any of your demolition issues. We are reachable by phone, web or e-mail. We are fully accredited to provide demolition services as a licensed and insured demolition contractor, ensuring that we protect both you and our employees at every demolition job we undertake. We observe the highest standards of safety and cleanliness in all our commercial demolition projects. We clean up after every job and leave your property neat and tidy upon job completion.

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

 

Demolition and demolition contractors are surrounded by misconceptions. People tend to think of demolition as a business of brute force and big bangs. When in reality being a demolition contractor requires a knowledge of the law, technology, and best workplace practices. 

1. Demolition Contractors Just Blow Things Up.

Implosion (and technically buildings are imploded, not blown up) account for less than 2% of all demolitions. Actually most commercial demolition contractors do not do implosion demolitions. And residential implosion demolition is almost unheard of.

2. Demolition Contractors Just Dump Everything in a Landfill

This used to be true but more and more demolition contractors recycle at least some percentage of construction debris recovered from a demolition project. Depending on the project that number can creep as high as 90%. Demolition contractors recycle because recycling saves them money and preserves the environment.

3. Demolition Contractors are All the Same

Demolition is a skill. A demolition contractor who is inexperienced can cause massive and sometimes unrepairable damage to a home. So no, not all demolition contractors are alike. 

4. Demolition is Dangerous.

A good demolition contractor knows how to limit the dangers of a given demolition project and control the risks. While demolition is never 100% safe, most demolition contracts spend a lot of time and a lot of effort minimizing the dangers of demolition.

5. Demolition Contractors Don’t Pay Attention to the Law

Demolition contractors actually need a very thorough knowledge of the law to do their jobs. From work place laws to basic contractor laws. A good demolition contractor is one who is a student of the law.

Deconstruction is a type of demolition that has gained more and more traction across the country. More and more demolition contractors are opting to use deconstruction methods instead of full on demolition.  But what exact is deconstruction?

Deconstruction is  a demolition service where parts of a building (or all of a building) is un-constructed or deconstructed. A demolition contractor looks at a building and says, OK, how can we slowly and methodically un-construct this building? Then asks, how many of the building materials can be reused? Then a demolition contractor begins a slow process of recovering materials from a home.

An experience demolition contractor removes fixtures from a home. A demolition contractor may also remove tile and flooring to be reused elsewhere. Beams and lumber can be recovered as well. So can copper piping and even wiring. Anything that isn’t damaged (and even a few things that are) can be recovered from a building or home under deconstruction.

Deconstruction is a slower process than traditional demolition. But demolition contractors often realize substantial savings from deconstruction because they can oftentimes reuse or resell items in other projects. Deconstruction is also more environmentally friendly than traditional demolition techniques that dump huge amounts of construction debris in landfills. Some cities (the city of Los Angeles for instance) are even offering expedited permitting for those who choose deconstruction over demolition. 

Is deconstruction for you? It’s hard to say. You should consult with your demolition contractor. Not every building or house demolition is a candidate for deconstruction. Your demolition contractor can advise you further about the advantages and disadvantages of deconstruction.

 

When it comes to demolition there are a lot of demolition services you can’t or shouldn’t do yourself. For instance you probably won’t want to do your own house demolitions. But there are plenty of demolition services you can do yourself. These are the top 5 demolition services you can do yourself.

5. Small structure demolition — Often times small structures like sheds and free standing garages outlive their usefulness and become broken down beyond repair. Luckily these structures are often fairly easy and straight forward to teardown. Save yourself money and tear down a shed yourself.

4. Kitchen demolition — Kitchen remodeling is actually fairly straightforward do-it-yourself project. The key to kitchen demolition is a Go slow approach and a patient hand when removing cabinets, counters, and fixtures.

3. Bathroom demolition — bathroom demolition is much the same as kitchen demolition. Bathroom demolition requires a bit more knowledge of plumbing but can be easily accomplished by a do it yourselfer 

2. Concrete demolition — concrete removal is easy and hard work. 

1. Swimming pool demolition — At first glance you wouldn’t think you’d be able to do your own swimming pool removal but with the right equipment swimming pool demolition becomes an elaborate concrete removal job.

 

There are a lot of demolition contractors in Los Angeles. Choosing the right demolition contractor can seem daunting. Here are a few warning signs of demolition contractors. 

1. A demolition contractor in Los Angeles that does want to give an estimate, will only give a phone estimate, or charges money for an estimate. Doing an estimate is a standard part of demolition contracting. Be wary of a demolition contractor that won’t give you a written estimate, or will only do an estimate over the phone. Also be wary of demolition contractors that charge for estimates. Charging for an estimate may not be out of line for particularly large demolition job, but in most cases a estimate ought to be free.

2. A demolition contractor in Los Angeles that doesn’t have or will not provide his contractor’s license. Every contractor is required to have a license to operate in Los Angeles. There also required to keep it updated every X number of years. So if your demolition contractor does not have a license, walk away. If a demolition contractor’s license is expired, walk away. Using an unlicensed demolition contractor puts your demolition project at risk and exposes you to legal risks.

3. A demolition contractor doesn’t have insurance, or doesn’t have appropriate insurance. Some insurance policies limit the type of demolition services a demolition contractor can do. Some demolition contractors may offer these services even when they aren’t supposed to.

4. A demolition contractor that has bad credit. Demolition contractors who do not pay their employees or their subcontractors can leave you liable 

Most of these warning signs are easily detectable. A few require a bit of detective work, but doing your homework early will save you money in the long run.

Demolishing a swimming pool and filling it in is a relatively simple and straightforward demolition job. Demolishing a swimming pool is time and labor intensive however. If you plan on doing your own swimming pool demolition plan on renting some heavy equipment and recruiting some friends to help.

Step 1. Formulate a plan. Swimming pool demolition isn’t something you want to do on a whim. You should spend a couple weeks planning exactly how you are going to demolish and fill in your pool.

Some things to think about — Will I need a permit? Most cities will require some sort of permit to demo a pool. How will I haul away construction debris? Even if you are doing a partial pool demolition you will generate a bit of construction debris that you will need to dispose of. What kind of heavy equipment will I need to rent? Do I have enough space to bring in a bobcat with a hydraulic breaker or will I need to do it with jackhammers?

Step 2. Clear and drain your pool. Clear away all pool accessories from the pool, including toys, filters, and removable ladders or diving boards. Drain your pool. You will eventually drill a set of holes in the bottom of the pool to ensure proper drainage, but be sure you drain your pool normally before beginning any swimming pool demolition.

Step 3. Demolish your swimming pool. You are most likely doing a partial swimming pool demolition so this involves drilling holes in the bottom of the pool and then cutting away the top two to three feet of concrete. The concrete is then used as fill in the bottom of the pool. 

Step 4. Fill in the pool with more fill dirt and start compaction. After you’ve properly compacted the pool area begin landscaping.

If this all sounds too daunting there are many swimming pool demolition contractors that specialize in swimming pool removal. 

 

 

House demolition is not a process that is for the faint of heart or the light in the wallet. House demolition can cost upwards of $50,000 and the process of obtaining a permit for demolishing a house can take weeks or months depending upon your municipalities regulations.

But there are some alternatives to house demolition. Or rather some alternative ways to demolish a house that won’t cost you an arm and a leg.

Fire Department Training

Local fire departments frequently use dilapidated structures, both houses and commercial properties, for live training. These firefighting exercises include interior smoke training and live burning events. In some cases a fire department may complete burn a house or structure to the ground. You will probably be required to obtain an open burn permit and make sure that certain hazardous materials like asbestos shingling are removed prior to the training exercise. The fire department does most of the demolition for you. You may be responsible for disposal of the materials afterwards however.

Habitat for Humanity 

Habit for Humanity sometimes will demolish dilapidated structures in a community. Habit for Humanity salvages and reuses items taken from the home for other projects. Not all Habit for Humanity affiliates do house demolition. Call your local Habitat for Humanity affiliate for more details.