Lance Blake

I had Lance in to find/fix a leak as well as to discuss the possibility of installing a basement bathroom; he showed on time and ready to go. Overall, he was personable and communicated very well; by this I mean that when we spoke about a problem or discussed potential details of the proposed bathroom, he was very clear in his meaning and always spoke so that you could follow his train of thought to its logical conclusion. He was polite, very respectful of the house and observant. I had two problems that needed to be dealt with in my house; the first was an upstairs tub that leaked only when someone was standing in it (very strange) I had done the initial analysis to determine this and therefore save time. I also want to put in a bathroom in an unfinished basement where the builder apparently forgot his tape measure and installed the sump pit, shower drain, toilet stub, and sink stubout a foot too far over so all are out of alignment and interfere with a load bearing wall. So the floor needs to be broken and the pipes moved. I have no idea why but this concept presented big problems for several contractors and large dollar signs started floating around, until Lance looked at it. Lance saw immediately the problem as I did, and asked what I wanted to do with the space ? he then listened to my response and formed a plan within minutes to fix it, all for a very reasonable quote. He made suggestions based on my feedback in a give and take style as the plan came together and as we discussed possibilities. He broke down the quote so that I could have him do some or all of the work; and since fixing the floor needed to be done first, with him returning after the other components to the bathroom were finished(electric, floor and drywall) to install fixtures. This gave me clear guidance in preparing for cost projections as well the area some of which I will be doing myself at my pace. He offered to provide fixtures or to pick up ones of our choosing; he surprised me a bit as he had taken notice of the finish on our existing fixtures so he could match them. For the leaking tub, on his initial visit, he went as far as he could without going into a wall, which we did not want at that time- and formed a plan to find/fix the leak; again, everything he did made sense and was efficient. As the tub was in a guest room we let it go until needed; Lance came back later at our request to finish it, and again was on time to the minute. He started with the most logical place and kept the opening in the wall very clean so that a drywall patch or an access panel could be most easily applied. Unfortunately the leak was not there and we had to go to the main floor in a closet ceiling underneath the tub, again the leak was not there ? very, very strange. Within minutes Lance found the leak in the side wall of the closet. The builder had put a nail through the drain stack pipe behind the closet shelf support and since the tub flexes a bit with a person?s weight, the hole was opened when weight was on it (there was nothing readily visible to denote water damage in the area of the hole). He quickly opened this up and fixed the pipe, cleaned up after himself, and applied access panels to cover those holes so that everything was presentable. This completed the bulk of the work as I needed to purchase a deeper shelf for that closet (I also asked Lance to clear a few tub drains while there). While working, Lance was very clear about what he was doing and why; he also was very respectful of my family, furniture, and hardwood floors, always being very careful of them. I heard of Lance form my neighbor (Ken Smith) who is an electrician that I rated on Angie?s list for a sub panel he installed for me. I asked Ken for the contractors that he trusted to help him finish his basement into an apartment for his mother; Lance was on that list and I am very happy to have met him. He is a very straightforward, clear to the purpose, honest person, and he will be doing my basement project as well as any other plumbing issues that may come up.