Torrison Stone & Garden - Durham, Connecticut

Larry P.

Torrison provide both a top quality end product and an exceptional customer experience. The owner, project managers, administrative professionals, and field team are open, honest, pleasant, and most of all fair. The project team takes the time to listen to your requests/questions and respond in a timely manner. Torrison does beautiful work and we plan to have them back in the future without question. Thank you Torrison!

Jack S.

I would not recommend picking Torrison for any major projects such as a patio unless you have infinite money, and I would certainly advise you get every tiny detail in writing from them.

They said they would put gutters and irrigation under our patio to mitigate moisture issues and they didn’t. Lo and behold we are asked to spend $1,500 to power wash moss and then replace grout because we have excess moisture. When we asked how long the grout should hold up they said “5 years” and then we mentioned the moss on our patio and they backtracked. When they did come to power wash, they ran our well dry and then had to cut the job short for the day, and left us with no water until our well replenished itself. I’d expect a company so expensive would account for this prior to committing to a project.

They said they’d show us 3D models of the patio and didn’t. Also said they’d leave surplus grout/sand bags at our house and didn’t. And the lowball quotes always underestimate grout quantities needed (Torrison should know how much grout they’ll need for a job).

The patio itself is fine, but they built it flush to our yard and attempted to fill in lawn to butt up against the patio surface. Since installation, the lawn has worn away, exposing this black plastic liner (photo attached) which is an eyesore and yet another unfortunate shortcoming. If the patio as an end product was fantastic I’d be able to look past most of the mismanagement by Torrison but that is not the case here.

Judith M.

The staff of Torrison is fabulous. They listen to what I want, and follow through on my desires to the letter, plus some! They have worked out here in the woods of Killingworth for many years, and have created a beautiful garden of native plants and pollinator plants. Every year, they move and split plants, and also mulch everything beautifully. I love yah, Torrison, and I am happy to share photos upon request!

Ron M.

From the very beginning they were a pleasure to work with. The office staff, the onsite consultation from Lee, the scheduling, and the crew were superb. The project began on time with the crew coming in the morning and leaving in the early evening finishing amazingly in 2.5 days. The whole business was in constant communication about our project with us and their work is truly artistic. We never imagined our walk to look so GRAND! Thanks for such a great job. Look no place else for stone/masonry work...Torrison Stone & Garden are #1.

Debbie M.

From the start of the designing process to the completion of the project Colleen was an absolute pleasure to work with. She is very knowledgeable about plants! Her team are very hard workers and did a wonderful job. I highly recommend Colleen and Torrison Gardens!

Kathi S.

From design of our backyard landscaping to completion , Torrinson was fabulous .& executed our vision . Colleen & her team were organized & thorough . Colleen & the crew realized some of the trees needed to be relocated due to our leeching fields and adjusted the plan accordingly. The crew worked tirelessly & meticulously on the stonework as well as the landscaping . We are extremely pleased with the outcome of our backyard project . We will not hesitate to call them for any future outdoor plans .

Peter

Torrison reset several bluestone paths in our back yard. The work they did was terrific. We were most impressed the way a supervisor kept checking in on the job and even more impressed with how neatly they went about doing the work. The crews were very friendly and you could tell they respected our property. We will have them back at first opportunity.

Jack C.

We quoted out a few places for a new walkway plus front stoop restoration and Torrison was by far the most professional (although not least expensive) during the bidding process. We put down a 25% deposit to “lock in our price” and reserve the materials in Nov. ‘21 with the project set to start in spring of ‘22. This was after a home visit and meeting to look at materials at their store with a project manager.

On 3/3/22 we were asked for the next 20% of the cost. We paid that immediately and were told the project would start as soon as 3/16/22, but they would only call us the day before the work began to confirm the start date. Then about two weeks later and after I followed up a couple times, the project manager told us they couldn’t procure the materials that we’d already signed a contract and paid for and we’d need to set up an appointment to look at alternatives.

We made an appointment for 4/5/22 based on his availability and drove out to their store. Upon arriving for our appointment, we were told our project manager was unavailable and we’d need to meet with someone else. The new guy we met with was unaware of our situation and was trying to be helpful, but couldn’t speak to the fact we’d already paid several thousand dollars and signed a contract for materials they didn’t have. It wasn’t his fault, but it was frustrating we set up an appointment with our project manager, only to be told we’d have to meet with someone brand new.

Upon looking at more options and walking back into the store, we saw our previous project manager. He gave no apology and acted like he hadn’t missed an appointment with us. After choosing a new material, the project was again slated to start. Then the next morning, our project manager called us and said we’d be able to get the original materials we wanted.

After a few exchanged messages, the materials were dropped off at our house. After exchanging messages with the project manager, we finally figured out our start date for mid-April. The outline of the project was a paragraph of text in the contract, but we were assured throughout the process that the PM would be at the job and he’d make sure to get exactly what we wanted.

Once the crew arrived, they just had the paragraph in the contract to go off of and we had to talk them through what had previously been discussed with the PM. We checked in with the crew, provided drinks to be hospitable, and tried our best to make sure we were on the same page.

The crew did a pretty good job with the walkway, but I called the PM on a Wednesday with a question and never got a call back. We had previously talked with our PM about the stoop landing, but it didn’t turn out they way we thought and it was the last thing the crew laid in. The coloring laid in was sort of two tone, which wasn’t expected. When I asked the crew foreman about it, he said he did the best he could with the materials he had, but we’d need to talk to the PM if we were unsatisfied. I called the PM again as the crew wrapped up on Friday, but didn’t hear back.

I followed up again early the next week and finally heard back on Wednesday. The PM told me Torrison was covered by the language in the contract that couldn’t guarantee the color of materials. I told him we were not satisfied with the outcome and he said there wasn’t anything he could do without us incurring more cost.

Overall we thought the crew did a good job, but the project manager didn’t communicate well and caused us to be unsatisfied with the project outcome.