It was a pleasure working with TLC Outdoor Living and Jessica Harkin. She is an absolute pleasure to work with. She turned a would-be shipping logistics issue and took charge of it to ensure complete customer satisfaction. The grill works great and the support from TLC is amazing.
I will be recommending TLC for all outdoor construction. Jessica Harkin will ensure maximum customer satisfaction.
Wanted a pool, a grill, a fireplace and two covered areas with sound and tv’s. The project started off just fine, design looked good and price was reasonable (felt high but he had won a GHBA award so expected quality and value) but immediately began to go down hill because everything is a delay and an excuse. The owner has no concept of communication and even when you get in his face about issues he has no sense of urgency. He has NO employees – everyone is a contractor and you would be better served doing the job yourself after getting plans from him; assuming you even go that far. It took him 8 weeks to go from contract signing to digging a whole for the pool (he said it was the engineers fault, the weather, etc) but I had to push him. He bought my appliances in December of 2015 and in June of 2016 he can not get the fridge fixed; it was not built properly. He says he contacted the company (via email) and can not get the part to fix the fridge. So, tired of his excuses, I called the company (they are available 24/7) and the fridge was not registered but I got the parts to fix the fridge in one phone call. His staff, family, use your pool and patio like it is there own home; working in a bikini and playing Pandora through your sound system. His pool technician let my pool turn green with mustard algae and the owner of TLC blamed the situation on rain… It has rained a tad this year… But he made no personal effort to get the pool cleaned… He just said I will try and call my pool tech and see if he will come out… I would have just called the pool tech and fired him… It is his job and he let the pool go to an unsightly mess.. We cleaned the pool for 2 days, not his tech… And the best part was Michael Harkins was not going to do anything himself except increase the chlorination or call his tech… He destroyed my washer when he cut the water line, he spilled gunite all over my driveway and did not clean it… He spent more time making the neighbors happy after the pool company crews knocked down the fence between our properties and letting the dog run away… Michael Harkins tells you he wants to do a walk through and then tells you he knows about the issues you point out but will get around to fixing the problem later or he is scheduling someone…. The real issue is he did not manage the job, issues occurred and he now wants to control his costs because no one works for him and he probably has to pay them to come back to fix there mistakes… As an example, his carpenter will be redoing a storage door for the third time, which is too funny on two accounts… The first that he can not do it right the first time and the second is the fact the designer, Michael Harkins, failed to make the cabinet deep enough to hold the sound equipment unless it is stood up.. Oh and Michael Harkins did explain he researched the fact it was ok for the receiver to be standing up and I just said maybe if you knew the size of it you could have made the cabinet the right size in the first place and he ignored my obvious observation but did offer to get a different unit even though HE knew from the outset the equipment being used as he was doing a turn key job; everything was under his control… Overall, the project might be done by Labor Day and it will look OK but we are scared to death what it might look like next year… Oh and he did enjoy opening his store more than working on our project… Finally, even on my last walk through I had to make him check the specially ordered glass tile and guess what, he needs to replace at least 20 pieces- the issue – the tile has been installed for three months, he does not check his work unless you make him do it… Good luck if you choose to use Michael Harkins and TLC Outdoor!
Love this store! We purchased a Bullfrog Jaccuzzi after much research and shopping around, we purchased from here. They gave us so much personal attention , great info and price. Jessica went above and beyond to make sure we purchased exactly what was suited to us. We even did a private wet test at their store. They had an excellent electrician they recommended, which we used, and then their professional installation.
We use our hot tub at least once a day (most days I’m in it twice)
Service was above and beyond, highly recommend !
We hired TLC in 2013 to construct our new backyard. The project involved building three new patio areas, a rock stream, a 24′ cedar pergola and a fire pit. The rest of the yard involved the construction of extensive raised beds and grass areas.
Much attention was given to details such as drainage systems and color matching of the stonework. The best quality materials were used and everything was warrantied. The final product matched the initial drawings and plans down to the last inch.
The whole team was consistently courteous and professional and I would not hesitate to recommend TLC to anyone in the Houston area that is considering putting thoughts of a dream back yard into reality.
They took much longer than the promised time to complete. There was no oversight and consequently, the final product was a mess. When contacted to repair the problems we were told they would return in a couple of weeks and wanted us to be happy but they never did. We just hired another contractor and spent an additional $5000 to redo and correct the unsightly and shoddy work of TLC
I was referred to TLC Outdoor Living and Michael Harkins because multiple people I know talked about his personal attention to the client and project, the incredible quality of the work his team does and the fact that he’s award winning.
Before engaging in the construction of our own custom pool and backyard… That delivers on having a luxury feel, I wanted to see what other work they had done. I was impressed to see that some of their work had been acknowledged and received awards on a national level.
As I’ve gotten to know Michael Harkins, I can say with confidence that he is a man of his word and I always feel he is doing what is best for my family every step of the way.
I want to give a big thank you to Michael Harkins and TLC Outdoor Living as our own custom pool builder and contractor for our very own luxurious back yard. You guys rock and I highly recommend them to anyone wanting something above and beyond “cookie cutter” backyard solutions. Give them a ring and see what they can do for you!
Do NOT do business with TLC Outdoor Living. They promised me one thing prior to my making a purchase with them, and then refused to honor the agreement afterward or refund my money.
After refusing to process the return and refund, they then said that they would, but only if I agreed to take down my negative reviews. When I unhappily agreed, they changed their minds and still wouldn’t do the return. Michael Harkins also told me they had gone out of business and no longer sold hot tubs, so my taking legal action would be useless—nearly a year later, they are still in business and selling hot tubs. Moral of story: Don’t believe anything they say.
I was looking for dealer for Pitts and Spitts grill when I found TLC, the initial questions were all answered. When I decided to make the purchase, because I was told by Jessica they had one in stk and would only take a few days to get delivered but needed to pay up front to secure. I did and a few days went by no call, no gril, so I had to call only to be told it would be the next week for delivery. That week passed, no call, no grill, again I called only to be told it would take a couple more weeks. This time has come, and again I had to call and was told it could be deliver mind next week or could pick it up my self at warehouse. So I picked it up only to find no cover. So I called again. And told the cover would be and additional week, but she would personally deliver. Yes its been two weeks now, no cover and will not return anymy text or phone calls.
Uppdate, Thursday Jessica personally delivered the cover with additional items 3 pellet containers, and 60lbs of Hickory pellets. She apologized, and explained she had taken illness, I understand, I was sick also did not feel like calling. I also understand she had to deal with factory delays, Would have been nice to receive a return call, but at the end I recieved all plus additional for yhe inconvenience.
