JoAnne Negrin on Angi 12 years ago
11/06/2011, 04:28 AM
When you choose a contractor for a major renovation, you must take into consideration that you will have major involvement with this person and crew over several months, and there will inevitably be some more difficult moments in what can be a stressful process for a homeowner. I interviewed several contractors and chose Joe because I felt that he not only understood what I wanted to accomplish, but he was also someone with whom I could problem solve under pressure. Joe has excellent communication skills and an easygoing personality. I never felt uneasy about either leaving him alone in the house or about being alone in the house with him. He is also great with dogs (I have two large and occasionally obnoxious dogs, so this is a big deal). Whenever something came up in the renovation process, we were able to solve it easily and cordially. There were never arguments about the price or quality of the work that was being done. I would recommend him without reservation to anyone who is planning major renovation work.
Joe remodeled the two upstairs bathrooms and master closet in my 1968 house. In the guest bathroom, he removed a plastic tub surround and replaced it with slate tiles. The floor also got slate tiles, and he put in new electrical, including an exhaust fan vented to the outside, and a new toilet, vanity, lighting, plumbing fixtures, and paint. Little did I know when I chose the tub surround tile that it would need to be painstakingly sorted by size in order to look good because it is rustic and, therefore, irregular. Joe took it in stride, and even though it cost him a couple of days to do it right, the end result is amazing and well worth his efforts!
The second bathroom was a complete gut job. It was a tiny monument to aging white plastic when Joe came on the scene. Joe took the bathroom and closet down to the studs. He removed a load-bearing wall and replaced it with iron beams. One of Joe's talents happens to be welding, so he did not need to contract out to do this. Opening up the wall gave us an additional four feet of space in the bathroom and closet, and I wanted to put a tub in the new section of the bathroom (there was only a stand up shower before). Joe reinforced the floor to ensure that it would support the tub. He used subcontractors for plumbing, HVAC, electrical, and cabinetry, and I found all of his subcontractors to be just as professional as Joe is. Joe tiled the shower in glass subway tile and the back wall in a marble/glass mosaic, none of which is particularly easy to work with, but it all looks amazing. Not only are my new bathrooms beautiful, if there were ever a major weather event I think the bathroom/closet addition is probably the safest spot in the house thanks to Joe's thorough craftsmanship.