Reviews of JND Construction Ltd (Contractor)

David Clarke

Contracted to renovate portions of an older house we bought as a retirement home, and to add an addition at the back. It all started out well, but then quickly went wrong. They overbook jobs and then don't provide the expertise, quality control, supervision, and direction required. Project management was an embarrassment; even their crew were asking every day where they will be tomorrow. Communication was dreadful. There was little respect for the owner's property and certainly no pride in doing a great job. Don't let these guys pour cement; they don't know what they are doing and you will be left with an extremely shoddy job. Some other observations: the crew had to do several components of the job at least three to five times. You can see the picture of a screen door that is so bent and warped that it is unusable (we asked if they could reuse it, and they said yes, and then proceeded to spend at least four hours trying to fit and paint it when they should have just said, buy a new screen door). One worker tried to drill the tile to install a grab rail in the bathroom, and cracked the tile. A different worker then spent four days to install three new tiles, and a full day to simply plane the top and side of a door in the old part of the house.They had the arrogance to expect us to pick up the tab for these and other jobs that took days instead of hours to complete. I've added photos below to show you a shower floor that was poured in concrete with a slope away from the drain, no calking used on the outside of windows on the storm side of the house, chips in the concrete floor which they failed to cover during the construction, the wrong blade used to cut expansion joints in the cement floor, a veranda that was not prepared properly for painting (no sanding, no primer) which is still incomplete after three attempts to get it finished. We had a list of over 60 items that needed to be rectified, and they did some but not all, and were totally incapable of suggesting solutions to their bad cement job. What you don''t see here is a wall-mounted toilet that fell off the wall with me on it, a work site that was seldom cleaned up at the end of each day, plumbing that is still not completed, exterior walls of the addition that were constructed out of line and contrary to drawings, wiring in the master bedroom that trips the breaker at night when you turn on more that two items (reading light, bed remote control), and exceptionally dangerous transitions from wood floor to cement where we trip and/or cut our feet. Further, JND has now ceased all work on the house until we pay their final exorbitant bill We have now hired our own sub-contractors to fix JND's shoddy work. They have no shame. If you don't trust the pictures, come inspect for yourselves. Just let me know. Nov 1, 2019 update Yet another sample of incompetence revealed today - this one presenting an exceptionally dangerous threat to workers and owners. When JND dug the trench to bury our propane line, the trench was inspected by West Nova Propane and approved. Propane team left, and the propane line at one junction was only three inches below the surface of the garden bed. We discovered this when the landscaper was working on moving some stone and they punctured the line. THIS IS NOT UP TO CODE, and was partially buried so that nobody would notice. Yet another example: We had a different plumber come to review the toilet installation upstairs. By cutting a hole through the bedroom closet wall, they discovered that the toilet bracket had very little support and was installed badly. Furthermore, one of the workers had sent a nail through the closet wall and punctured the water supply line. It's been leaking inside the wall since April 2019. Yet another example: We asked JND to have the basement wall and floor plate sprayed with foam for insulation. The job was done, but not done within code. The foam is open cell and it is clearly stipulated that it must be covered in a fire retardant paint. FAIL AGAIN.

Born to Build

JND Construction were excellent to work with. They have done many remodels to my home and the work has been excellent quality. They were responsive to my changes and suggestions and did the work within budget. I would highly recommend them.

Jill Amery

Couldn't be happier we hired JND Construction for a major addition to our farmhouse. Due to Covid, I wasn't able to visit the province, and all decisions were being made through text, phone and so many photos. Jonathan sent me pictures almost daily and I was been able to make changes and adjustments because I had so much communication. I interviewed two sets of builders, and right off the bat Jonathan impressed me immensely. He was highly professional, upfront, and super honest about numbers and what were important pieces to the build. All three of my neighbours have used him for construction - they all raved about him. To me this is a great sign, as he left everyone smiling about their renovation jobs. In terms of costing, JND has been really upfront the whole time about expenses. We ran into several surprises (asbestos, a roof that had been burned to a crisp in a fire, the old septic was installed at the wrong angle) and he was able to call right away, explain things in layman’s terms, give options and costs. I often asked his opinion, and he knew the building codes and construction so intimately, I usually did what he suggested. His team also dealt with things right away and without complaints when I added a window or changed a roof line. He also was able to save me cost by offering cheaper options, like doing a standard white for the cabinets that looked almost identical to the custom white I’d chosen. He was really receptive with my questions about balancing labour and materials, such as going with a more costly shingle that is less labour intensive, so cheaper in the long run. When the project became more extensive, he carefully moved my china and crystal to a storage unit after verifying with me if this was acceptable, and what was of high value. He has a great rapport, and quick wit as well, which has made the stress of not being able to get there (no place to quarantine) more bearable. He took a week’s vacation, but still kept reaching out and double checking on the final kitchen plan. Amazing work ethic. He even offered to pick us up at the airport. What is shocking, is that despite Covid and the many extras that we did (all new windows and shingles, in addition to the new roof), the project wasn’t too far off when it was supposed to be finished. Covid caused a big delay with the kitchen cabinets, but other than that we were about on schedule. Would work with them again in a heartbeat.

Melanie MacFarlane

JND Construction built our home in 2013/2014 over an 8 month period (which included a very messy winter period). He and his team have been back several times since then to complete smaller jobs here and at my partner’s place of business. Jonathan is our go-to construction company. We like him and his work. His team members are excellent. Jonathan is easy to talk to, makes suggestions, comes with solutions instead of problems and is an all-around nice person. We highly recommend JND Construction!

Steven B

From the initial conversation about my job to its completion, Jonathan Davidson and his team have been an absolute delight to work with. My project had a lot of architectural tricks and surprises, but JND always rose to the challenge, enjoying both the difficulties of the plan and the inventive solutions. Their work is precise and perfected, their knowledge of product and technique is first-rate, and their sense of professionalism and builder/client-respect is without peer. Jonathan works closely with you at all times to stay on budget and has numberless creative ways to realize your vision cost-effectively. I would hire this company again in a heartbeat, and I’m sure I will!

Ron Kend

We simply can’t recommend JND Construction highly enough. Jonathan and his crew have consistently provided top quality workmanship, honest professionalism and taken a keen interest in both the hands-on work and the overall project at hand. Jonathan has a wide range of knowledge and experience and has given us only sage advice at each turn. JND built our beautiful new home, are working on a farmhouse renovation, and are in process of planning and ordering supplies for a tractor/greenhouse building for us. Jonathan and his team dealt with multiple curves during our house construction and handled all issues with knowledge, grace and skill. The end result is a beautiful, solid, safe home that has exceeded our expectations. We have come to rely on JND, for good reason – honesty, integrity, experience and superior workmanship.

Wayne Crawley

We have had the pleasure of using JND Construction for many years. Their work is excellent. They are professional, reliable and deliver high quality work for great value. They are a "go to" for us and we have recommended them all the time.

Jim K

"We have built new homes and extensively renovated many times, and we can say that no other contractor has matched JND's combination of quality of workmanship, timeliness of completion, reasonable pricing and responsiveness to our needs. As importantly, Jonathan was always dependable, trustworthy and ethical in all of our interactions. We would never hesitate to recommend Jonathan and JND to our closest friends, and would use JND for any future project we might have here.”