Driveway replacement recommendations

doxie_frenchie

Dec 30, 2014 at 1:04am Edited

Has anyone had a good experience with an affordable driveway replacement company?

Thanks for the advice!!

I used Mike Giordano and found him and his team to be very neat and very professional. They did the sidewalk at the same time they did the driveway; probably the easiest contractor experience I've ever had.

jeffl

Dec 30, 2014 at 2:01am

Luigi's never came back to finish the last little part of my job. Otherwise, they were good.

doxie_frenchie

Dec 30, 2014 at 2:27am

Thanks ! @case how did they price compare to others?

bog

Dec 30, 2014 at 3:01am

Has anyone tried a heated driveway as part of a driveway replacement? I always wondered how well they worked.

tais

Dec 30, 2014 at 3:12am

We used Raul Diaz and are really happy with the work. Very well priced.

case

Dec 30, 2014 at 3:14am

As I recall the pricing was well inline with 2 other bids. I have to admit that I wasn't going by price alone... 5 or 6 years ago I was redoing my backyard as part of a kitchen bump-out. I saw Mike's crew, walked down, asked if they'd be willing to bring their bobcat down and quickly distribute about 20 yards of earth.

They did it, I gave the bobcat driver some cash, went to Mike to pay him (he's the owner after all) and Mike wouldn't take a dime. In fact, the bobcat driver came running up to Mike saying, "no, no, Mike, he already paid me"... and as I recall he gave me that money back! Mike's parting comment was, "hey, we were already here and it only took 10 minutes" - pretty sweet, right?

So my message here is that Giordano is a great guy with a great crew. I'd recommend them with absolutely no reservations.

mjh

Dec 30, 2014 at 3:19am

doxie_frenchie said:
Has anyone had a good experience with an affordable driveway replacement company?

Thanks for the advice!!

You know it's too late to do this until Spring, right? You can't pave in the cold.

doxie_frenchie

Dec 30, 2014 at 4:34am

@mjh - yes ! Trying to budget spring repairs accordingly grin

ffof

Dec 30, 2014 at 4:42am

Mike G.

mwr

Dec 30, 2014 at 4:49am

I've used Luigi on a couple of jobs . His price was good and his work was very good . He's negotiable . If you have more than one job or something your thinking about doing in the future group your jobs together . Never give them what they ask for as a deposit . Give them half of what they want, after you have settled on a price.

gibbsgirl

Dec 30, 2014 at 4:37pm

Another vote for Mike Giordano!

fastpitch73

Dec 30, 2014 at 4:52pm

+1 for Mike Giordano. Reliable, work was of excellent quality and he was competitively priced.

doxie_frenchie

Jun 17, 2015 at 8:31am

Does anyone have contact info for Mike?

Also - any idea of the approximate cost of driveways these days? I know it varies, but just looking for ballpark figures

TarheelsInNj

Jun 17, 2015 at 8:33am

Michael Giordano mike@michaelgiordanocontractor.com

It really does vary so much depending on the job. Ours was around $3k I think but that included some drainage work and expanding the size a little bit.

fabulouswalls

Jun 17, 2015 at 9:01am

Of course it varies. The simple part is the square footage. Figure the price based on the number of tons of asphalt. There are calculators online to figure some of it. Then you have to add labor and any extra work. Asphalt should cost about $140 per ton. Best way to do it is rally some of your neighbors and have them go in on it. That's why some of these guys knock on doors when they're in your area. They would rather buy the asphalt by the truckload.

fabulouswalls

Jun 17, 2015 at 9:03am

If they rip out the driveway you want them to put down 2 1/2" to 3" of asphalt, compacted. And of course stone beneath it.

GGartrell

Jun 17, 2015 at 9:57am

doxie_frenchie said:
Has anyone had a good experience with an affordable driveway replacement company?

Thanks for the advice!!

I'm about a couple steps ahead of where you are in the process I guess. I'm dreading the expense but our driveway is in such bad shape we cant put it off any longer. Got bids from Anthony's, Luigi, Essex and Avellino. All except Avellino were within $750 or so of each other. I tried Mike Giordano several times but he never came out. I don't have the exact dimensions of our driveway but I would say its slightly above average for a South Orange home. Not sure if the helps but its 1.5 car widths wide for about 50 feet and 2.5 car widths for 20 feet. Its gonna run us right around $5500 to replace.

doxie_frenchie

Jun 17, 2015 at 10:03am

@GGartrell - thanks for the tip! Ours is in pretty awful shape as well, and I'm currently shelling out for a roof, but I know the driveway is next on my list. I'll definitely follow in your foot steps and get quotes from the same folks (do you know if you have to be home when they come give the quote?)..

keep us posted on your progress, and who you end up hiring. Our driveway is 1 car wide, but about 3 cars long.

pdg

Jun 17, 2015 at 10:21am

FYI, if you're going to get a quote from Anthony's and several others, get it from Anthony's first. He can't do better than one of the competitors mentioned above. (And that competitor will sub the work anyway.) My neighbor hired Anthony's and had a gorgeous job done start to finish (included Belgian lined drive completely redone, landscaping and sprinkler system. We badly wished we'd called Anthony's first.

3 years later and we still haven't been able to afford to pull the trigger on a driveway redo, although asphalt prices have come down a LOT -

http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/business/trnsport/PriceIndex.shtm

GGartrell

Jun 17, 2015 at 10:23am

doxie_frenchie said:
@GGartrell - thanks for the tip! Ours is in pretty awful shape as well, and I'm currently shelling out for a roof, but I know the driveway is next on my list. I'll definitely follow in your foot steps and get quotes from the same folks (do you know if you have to be home when they come give the quote?)..

keep us posted on your progress, and who you end up hiring. Our driveway is 1 car wide, but about 3 cars long.

Every one of them has required that someone be home and they like it to be the owner or the decision maker at least. Originally I thought it was so they could try and up sell you or gauge the extent to which they can rip you off but in hindsight I think its so they can be crystal clear on the scope of work. Having to come back out to look at something they missed is a waste of everyone's time. Probably not a good Idea for them to be walking around somones property when they are not home anyway.

GGartrell

Jun 17, 2015 at 10:35am

pdg said:
FYI, if you're going to get a quote from Anthony's and several others, get it from Anthony's first. He can't do better than one of the competitors mentioned above. (And that competitor will sub the work anyway.) My neighbor hired Anthony's and had a gorgeous job done start to finish (included Belgian lined drive completely redone, landscaping and sprinkler system. We badly wished we'd called Anthony's first.
3 years later and we still haven't been able to afford to pull the trigger on a driveway redo, although asphalt prices have come down a LOT -
http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/business/trnsport/PriceIndex.shtm

Anthony was smack in the middle for us for just the driveway but with everything we need done included his price is reasonable. He was also the most responsive and by far the most professional during the estimate. We used to use him for Mow&Blow but our current guy killed him price-wise. We were never disappointed with his service though. We could save a few bucks if we split the work up but its not worth the effort to me. Anthony is 5 weeks out on driveways but I'll definitly post once its finished.

doxie_frenchie

Jun 17, 2015 at 4:29pm

Can someone give me Anthony's contact info? Want to make sure I have the right one. Thanks to everyone for your feedback and guidance! Very much appreciated

GGartrell

Jun 17, 2015 at 5:27pm

doxie_frenchie said:
Can someone give me Anthony's contact info? Want to make sure I have the right one. Thanks to everyone for your feedback and guidance! Very much appreciated

http://www.anthonyslandscapingnj.com/

GGartrell

Oct 23, 2015 at 7:00am

pdg said:
FYI, if you're going to get a quote from Anthony's and several others, get it from Anthony's first. He can't do better than one of the competitors mentioned above. (And that competitor will sub the work anyway.) My neighbor hired Anthony's and had a gorgeous job done start to finish (included Belgian lined drive completely redone, landscaping and sprinkler system. We badly wished we'd called Anthony's first.
3 years later and we still haven't been able to afford to pull the trigger on a driveway redo, although asphalt prices have come down a LOT -
http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/business/trnsport/PriceIndex.shtm

You were so right. I should have listened to you (and my gut) and went with Anthony's. Half way through the work now and the last time I saw anyone from my actual contractor was when they sent the guy out to bid. Could have saved myself at least a grand by calling the subcontractor directly.