Hear from Our Customers
When you’re gutting a kitchen in a 1950s stone colonial off Old York Road or finishing a basement that took on water from the last heavy spring rain, the last thing you need is three separate contractors who don’t talk to each other. You need someone who can assess what’s in the walls, handle it safely, and get the space ready for whatever comes next — without you having to manage the whole process yourself.
That’s where the one-stop model actually matters. We handle testing, abatement, demolition, gutting, waterproofing, and debris removal under one roof. If asbestos turns up in the floor tile or lead paint is found behind the drywall — which happens regularly in Melrose Park’s pre-1940 housing stock — there’s no delay waiting for a separate abatement crew. The same team that found it handles it, and the project keeps moving.
For homeowners near the Tookany Creek corridor where basement flooding is a recurring seasonal reality, that speed isn’t just convenient — it’s the difference between a contained problem and a mold situation that doubles your remediation cost. When the work is done, you’re not left wondering if it was done right. You have documentation, a clean space, and a contractor who was certified to do every part of the job legally.
We’re based in Glenside — which puts us squarely inside Cheltenham Township, the same municipality that governs Melrose Park. That’s not a footnote. It means we know the township’s building department, we understand the permit requirements, and we’ve worked on the same vintage of homes that line Melrose Park’s streets — stone colonials, ranch-style builds, mid-century construction that’s full of character and, occasionally, full of asbestos.
We’ve been doing this for over two decades. We hold EPA Certified Lead Inspector and Risk Assessor credentials — the federal designation that legally qualifies us to inspect, assess, and certify lead conditions, not just remove them. We’re fully licensed, bonded, and insured, and we carry HEPA filtration systems on every hazmat job. If something’s in the walls of your Melrose Park home, we’re certified to find it and handle it the right way.
We answer the phone at 2 AM. We show up. And we give you a free estimate before anything starts so you know exactly what you’re getting into.
It starts with a free estimate. We come out, walk the space with you, and give you a clear picture of what the project involves — what needs to come down, what needs to be tested first, and what the realistic scope looks like. No vague ballparks. No surprises after you sign.
Before any demolition begins in a pre-1978 home — which describes the overwhelming majority of properties in Melrose Park — we conduct environmental testing for asbestos and lead. This isn’t optional, and any contractor who skips it is putting you at legal and health risk. If hazardous materials are found, we contain the work area using negative air pressure and HEPA filtration, abate the materials according to EPA and HUD guidelines, and document everything. Cheltenham Township requires permitted work with a signed contract on file, and we handle that paperwork on your behalf.
Once the space is clear and certified clean, demolition and gutting proceed. That might mean a full interior gut, selective structural demo, basement waterproofing, or construction debris removal — whatever the project calls for. When we’re done, the space is clean, documented, and ready for the next phase of your renovation. You don’t have to chase anyone down for paperwork or wonder whether the job was done to code. It was.
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The homes in Melrose Park aren’t just old — they’re the specific vintage that requires the most careful pre-demolition work. A median construction year of 1954, with nearly a third of homes predating the 1940s, means asbestos-containing materials and lead-based paint are statistically likely in most renovation projects here. Pipe insulation, floor tiles, plaster systems, roofing materials, joint compound — these were all common carriers of asbestos in mid-century construction. Before a wall opens or a floor comes up, you need someone certified to assess what’s there.
We cover the full scope: asbestos testing and abatement, lead inspection and removal, interior demolition and gutting, basement waterproofing, furnace and boiler removal, construction debris removal, and environmental clean-out. We’re EPA and HUD compliant, which means we can legally work on pre-1978 homes and federally-assisted properties that many contractors in the area cannot touch. That matters in a community where virtually every home on the block in Melrose Park falls into that category.
We also offer emergency response for water damage situations — burst pipes, basement flooding, sewage backups — where the gutting needs to happen fast to prevent mold from taking hold. Whether it’s a planned kitchen renovation in a stone colonial near Ashbourne Road or an emergency gut job after a spring flood, the process is the same: certified, permitted, documented, and done right. Cash discounts are available, and every project starts with a free estimate.
Yes — and the permit process in Melrose Park falls under Cheltenham Township’s jurisdiction, not a separate municipal government. The township requires that all demolition permits include a signed copy of the contract between the contractor and the property owner, and it maintains a registry of contractors approved to work in the township. That means an unlicensed or unregistered contractor cannot legally pull a permit for work on your property — which leaves you exposed if anything goes wrong during the project.
We handle the permit process on your behalf. We’re fully licensed and registered to work in Cheltenham Township, so you don’t have to navigate the building department on your own. We submit the documentation, meet the township’s requirements, and make sure everything is on record before the first wall comes down. If your project also involves hazardous materials — which is likely given Melrose Park’s pre-1978 housing stock — the abatement work carries its own regulatory requirements that we handle simultaneously. One contractor, all the paperwork, no gaps.
The honest answer is: you don’t, until you test. If your home was built before 1980 — which covers nearly every property in Melrose Park, given the median construction year of 1954 — there’s a meaningful probability that asbestos-containing materials are present somewhere in the structure. Common locations include floor tiles, pipe and duct insulation, roofing shingles, textured ceiling coatings, and the plaster systems found in older stone colonials and ranch-style homes throughout Melrose Park.
The only way to know for certain is a professional inspection by a certified contractor. We hold EPA Certified Lead Inspector and Risk Assessor credentials, which qualifies us to conduct that assessment legally and document the findings. If asbestos is found, we handle the abatement before any demolition begins — using HEPA filtration and negative air pressure containment to prevent fibers from spreading through your home during the process. If nothing hazardous is found, you have written documentation that confirms the space is clear. Either way, you’re not guessing, and you’re not liable for skipping a step that federal and state regulations require.
Water damage and demolition work often go hand in hand in Melrose Park’s older housing stock — especially in basements and lower-level spaces near the Tookany Creek corridor where seasonal flooding is a recurring issue. When water intrusion has been present for any length of time, there’s a real possibility of mold behind walls or under flooring that isn’t visible until the gutting begins. If that happens mid-project, the scope needs to expand quickly, because mold spreads fast once it’s exposed to air.
We’re equipped to handle that transition without stopping the job and calling in a separate crew. We do mold sampling and remediation as part of our service model, so if it turns up during a gut renovation, we assess it, contain it, and remove it in the same engagement. For emergency situations — a burst pipe in a 1950s home, a basement that flooded overnight — we’re available 24/7 and respond fast, because the window between water intrusion and active mold growth is narrow. Getting the space gutted and dried out quickly is the single most effective way to keep a manageable water damage event from becoming a much larger remediation project.
Most can’t — at least not legally. Asbestos abatement and lead paint removal each carry their own federal and state certification requirements, and many contractors are licensed for one but not both. Some are licensed for neither and handle hazardous materials informally, which creates serious legal and health exposure for the homeowner. In a pre-1978 home in Melrose Park, where both asbestos and lead paint are statistically probable, hiring two separate specialists or an uncertified operator creates gaps in the process and gaps in your documentation.
We’re certified for both. We hold EPA Certified Lead Inspector and Risk Assessor credentials for lead-based paint assessment and removal, and we’re fully certified for asbestos testing and abatement as well. That means a single inspection can assess both hazards, a single abatement scope covers both if needed, and a single set of documentation covers your project from start to finish. For homeowners preparing to sell a pre-1978 home in Melrose Park — where buyers are increasingly requesting hazmat clearance reports before closing — having one contractor who can certify both is a significant practical advantage.
Timeline depends heavily on two factors: the scope of the work and whether hazardous materials are present. A straightforward interior gut of a single room in a home with no hazmat findings can often be completed in one to two days. A full basement gut that involves asbestos abatement, mold remediation, and waterproofing in a mid-century Melrose Park home is a longer engagement — typically several days to a week or more depending on what’s found and how much needs to be addressed.
The variable that catches most homeowners off guard is the abatement phase. When asbestos or lead is found, federal regulations require that the area be properly contained, the materials removed under controlled conditions, and the space cleared by air testing before demolition resumes. That process has a minimum timeline built in — it can’t be rushed without cutting corners that create liability. We walk you through realistic timing during the free estimate so you’re not surprised. If you’re working toward a renovation deadline or a listing date, knowing the actual timeline upfront lets you plan around it rather than scramble when the process takes longer than expected.
Yes — and it’s worth asking about when you call for your estimate. Cash discounts are available on demolition and abatement projects, and for homeowners managing a renovation budget in Melrose Park where project costs can add up quickly — especially once hazmat testing and abatement are factored in — that’s a real line-item difference, not a token gesture.
Melrose Park homeowners undertaking major renovations in pre-1978 homes are often dealing with costs that weren’t fully anticipated when the project started. Asbestos abatement, lead removal, permit fees, debris hauling — these are legitimate expenses that come with working on older construction, and they add up. The cash discount is one straightforward way to reduce the total without cutting corners on the work itself. Everything else stays the same: the certifications, the HEPA filtration, the permits, the documentation. You just pay less for it. When you call for your free estimate, let us know you’re interested in the cash option and we’ll factor it into the quote.
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