Our trades

Ousia Architecture, John Cheng, AIBC, AIA, LEED AP.

ouisiaarchitecture@gmail.com

John Cheng has been instrumental in our project.  He has been mostly a commercial architect.  We are lucky to get John on our residential project.  He did a super job at the City Hall.  With relaxation of bylaws, we are able to build the house we want.  Thanks to John for his ongoing interior design assistance. 

MARTA MAJ,  P.Eng., M.Eng. Ousia 

Many times, Larry Clay has said our house is the most soundly engineered.   (He has built many houses.)  From a wood worker perspective, the structure appears robust and solid.  Marta keeps close tabs on the project and she works collaboratively with the Darrell Hoekstra Construction on the foundation and framing.   While we are happy that the house is well built, material and standards maybe excessive or overbuilt.  Extra cost for a peace of mind?  Thanks to Ouisia Architecture for finding Marta Maj. 

Clay Construction.  Larry Clay.

26055 5A Avenue Langley, BC V4W 2K6

https://clayconstruction.ca/

As time passes, Clay Construction maybe too busy with projects.  There is no attention to the budget; costs far exceed initial plans.  Also, we have moved in for 6 months but there is no timeline to completion and "official occupancy permit". 

Darrell Hoekstra Construction.  We give full credit to Clay Construction for finding Darrell to work on house.   You will be happy to have Darrell and his team work on your project.  One of the first trades onsite and one of the best!  

Tom Walz is our contact person at BCPHC Inc.  With 9 protected trees, 7 city trees and 20 undersized trees, our arborist work has been extensive.  Tom is super responsive...even when he is away on holiday.  These guys offer many plant related services.  I recommend their services.  However, be prepared for unexpected costs.  The city requires supervision whenever work is done in tree protection areas.  This adds significant time and cost to the project. 

https://www.bcplanthealthcare.com/

Unbuilders.  Unbuilding and recycling takes more time.  However, it is appropriate to reuse and recycle.  I hope the materials are handled as promised.  A tax receipt is provided and the cost is comparable to traditional demolition.  City of Vancouver is expected a high level of recycling. 

JR Excavation.  Excavation can be messy.  The JR crew is friendly and tidy.  The crew is always responsive to our questions.  Feeling reassured with all the clean drainage rocks under our foundation and all around the build.  Thank you JR. 

Honest and reliable work.  Super happy to have Matt's team onboard. 

Ward Electrical.  Mathew Ward.

http://www.wardelectricltd.com/

Dispatch Plumbing.  Graham McVeigh has been helpful explaining our needs.  We only have started our rough in.  Looking forward to moving along. 

8661 201 St, #200 Langley, BC V2Y 0G9 

https://www.dispatchplumbing.com/

You get a real mix of characters.  There are some experienced and careful painters.  However, there some newbies.  I am not happy to this company.  For one example,  and there are others, PLE paint the windows but does not caulk gaps.  Scaffolding was removed.  PLE goes back to caulk using ladders.  Time consuming and suboptimal work conditions.   No skin off their backs,  they just charge by the hour!  Many smoke breaks, van breaks, other breaks.  I asked for details when invoicing.  PLE agreed to provide details when invoicing but they still sent my builder hours with no explanations.  Of course my builder pays without question.  DO NOT USE PLE. 

Our Hardy Planks were done by subcontractors.  Butt joint corners were disappointing.  We source cedar, mostly clear, from Lois Lake on the Sunshine Coast.  VAPro was not efficient with material.  There were plenty of unnecessary wastage.  Initial work was good but gradually deteriorated.  Cedar cladding had large holes and gaps.  Lights were covered up.  

Most problematic with VAPro was months of delay.  VAPro was the worst trade on this project. 

Beautiful work.  Courtesy crew.  Reasonable timing and on budget.  Craig and his team were helpful and reasonable.  In particular I appreciate the time spent working around bonding wire for metal trims in our indoor pool.  Everything turned out well.  

Our staircase was well done.  The staircase was a centre piece in our house.  It is beautiful, sturdy and on budget.  Thank you.