Maui's Handyman Service

I previously posted a review about this contractor. He responded that he did not have me in his customer database and did not know who I was and never did the master bedroom closet job. He lived in our newly purchased house for 2 months while doing the work. We were new to the island and paid checks to Steve Zuwala (the contact for this business). I'm sure he remembers the whole debacle. I have email confirmation of the job and cancelled checks.

Steve showed up exactly on time. He very efficiently put clips on all the window screens on our house and our rental unit, and that was a very large number of screens. He even secured the 2nd-story screens, which nobody else would agree to do. Now there are no little spaces for mosquitos or other bugs to pass through to the inside of the house. Yeah! He brought with him a selection of 3 different door sweeps, so we could choose the one we liked best. He attached that and trimmed it so no bugs could get into the house. I would definitely hire him again, and for several different projects we need to do. The cost included materials and was only $294, and that was certainly a pleasant surprise. I unequivocally recommend the expert knowledge and workmanship of this company.

I have used this contracted several times over the years and have been completely satisfied each time.

It took a long time from original quote to start of work. They had underestimated the time of work involved and then decided that they could not complete all of the quote.

Was suppose to take out bush/tree but didn't. That was originally what the job was for.

It was installed on our second story window and very nicely finished. Rather than covering the rest of the window with plywood, as many would do, he filled in the space with plexiglass so it still lets light in and looks great. He also left us the undamaged glass and as much of the window hardware in place as possible in case we ever want to remove the A/C and restore the window to its original form. I can certainly understand why the business is so highly rated, it was a pleasure working with both him and Star and we look forward to working with them in the future. I would highly recommend Maui's Handyman.

Steve is outstanding. He is professional for even the most demanding clients and we found his workmanship to be excellent. A class act. We recommend Steve for any projects you might have.

Steve was great--he brought extra supplies and did a very professional job of installing my AC. I was thrilled that he brought a piece of plexiglass and fit it into the space above the AC so that the light came in and it looked like a window instead of using a dark piece of plywood. It looked so good when he was done! And he installed the AC without making any holes in the walls. Star is the one on their team who makes the appointments and then helps out on the jobs, like she did at my house. She is very warm and friendly and always tries to fit me in, though their schedule is packed. Steve is the kind of person you like having around. He's funny and very professional at the same time. He really knows what he is doing. I'll have them back the next time I have a job to do.

Maui Handyman probably does great service in other areas, but we do not recommend them for any custom cabinetry or finish carpentry. We contracted for a custom tv cabinet/closet in my master bedroom. The work was not done properly and the planks do not line up. The door hinges are cheap (old kitchen cabinet style) and ugly. The wood is too thick and is a barn-quality raw knotty pine. The closet is too deep (not standard depth) and takes up too much of the room - a lot of wasted space. The drawers on the bottom section do not line up. The handyman wrote notes on my imperial plaster walls that are still visible today. We agreed to pay for time and materials and we paid for all charges, however, when I reviewed the material receipts, many of the receipts pre-dated the work by a couple of months. Additionally, the cable outlets never worked and I had the cable company come out to try to fix them, but they were not able to connect the cable to the outlets, so the TV cabinet cannot be used for a TV.

He was very busy but fit us into his schedule

I had requested Steve to come perform handyman services twice in the past. The first time my husband and I requested a service was actually a year or two ago. We had asked that our garbage disposal was replaced. Steve was "not familiar" with the particular garbage disposal and needed to look over the instructions with my husband as well as borrow my husband's tools and required the help of my husband. The disposal was not installed up to code as the disposal came with a wall plug and we didn't have an outlet under the sink, Steve instead cut the plug to wire to existing plug and covered with electrical tape. At least we didn't get charged for this installation since my husband was helping, but our house is not one we would like to rig anything. The recent experience was even more aggravating as I had called in November and told that it would be three weeks until Steve would be available. I explained over the phone to a very professional sounding individual all the items on my to do list. The list included fixing a gutter on the front of my house, changing out the toilet in our powder room, hanging a door to our pantry, and finding a solution to a rusting mailbox in a rock base. The office assistant called me several times to confirm the time and date and to make sure we were aware of the prices and ensure we had supplies we needed. We were told if we didn't have the supplies then Steve could go and pick up whatever we would need. The day came that Steve showed up and I had the supplies we had bought ready for him. I showed Steve the gutter issue and all the gutter supplies. He said to show him the other projects. Next was the toilet which we had made sure to get ready. After looking at the existing toilet and the toilet we would use to replace it, Steve said that he didn't think we could use the toilet we had as there would be a "shadow" on the tile from the present toilet. He said I could buy another toilet and he would come another day to install. He did not measure the toilet, so not sure why he was so sure it would not work. He went back to the front where the gutter was, told us we could buy some type of black tube or pipe material and it would be really "easy" for us to buy and change. I guess all the actual gutters we bought were too complicated for Steve. Next came the door to be hung, Steve said it would have to be shaved down to fit as we had our floors retiled and the door would not fit. He was helpful enough to instruct my husband and I on what saw to use and how to cut the door to hang. My husband had just had surgery on his shoulder and neither he or I would be sawing anything, hence why we called Steve. Lastly came the mailbox. I admit I did not know what our options were to fix the rusting mailbox inside the rock post. Steve told us to call a mason company, never actually attempting to remove the current box but instead took the smaller mailbox we bought and placed it inside our rusting mailbox...not quite the fix we were looking for. Steve was at our home for maybe twenty minutes, said "well I guess nothing more I can do today, no charge!" and was quickly out the door and into his truck driving away, which by the was a truck with surfboards in the bed and a woman in the front seat! I am pretty sure Steve had no intention of doing any work for us that day. There was no mention of going to get any of the supplies that he mentioned or actually scheduling to come again. Apparently he has no qualms about wasting anyone's time. I am not sure how he survives never charging anyone since he doesn't seem to perform many real handyman duties. I am going to guess that a good number of the individuals that reviewed Maui's Handyman Service don't actually live on Maui and are only seeing pictures of the work. We may not have been charged anything, however he certainly wasted our time making us wait several weeks for Steve to show and essentially do nothing.

excellent work. polite.

The project went well. We were not able to be at the house when the work was done. Steve provided pictures of the work and sent them to us. There were no issues or bait and switch tactics which I appreciated.

When I originally called and said I was getting estimates for a small kitchen job, Steve was all bravado: "Why are you even calling calling anyone else? I do it all and I'm the best!" Then he came over to check out the project, which involved cutting down a stainless steel pole, and Steve said, "No, can't do that." Please don't boast about your expertise in all things renovation and then chastise me for shopping around when you clearly don't do it all. Then I asked for an estimate to just replace ceiling fans and a chandelier, and after having difficulty getting someone on the phone for an estimate, I eventually got an estimate for the job. But I was told by Steve's office manager that Steve would be too busy in the coming months to do the job, and I could be put on a waiting list. I found another handyman.

He installed fans in the two bathrooms. My brother had a "to do" list that Steve is doing. They seem to get along well. He installed an air conditioner too and that was three months ago. He is still doing stuff off and on. He is competitively priced.

This is our second experience with this company. We were very pleased with the first job. This project had to be postponed for a couple of weeks due to a destructive storm in our area. We were contacted and informed of the delay and the expected new date. We were called again the morning he was coming. The workman is prompt, friendly, courteous, and aims to please. He'd told us that he would do another small job at no additional charge, which he did after the big job was completed. He seems very experienced, completing the post replacement in a few hours, much faster than I'd expected. He cleaned up the area before telling me he was leaving, and pointed out the extra job he'd done. His office has been in frequent contact up to the time he came to do the job. We will be calling him for future work.

Steve, Star, and Gary are wonderful. We recently purchased a vacation/retirement home on Maui and bought a "fixer-upper" because of its great location and view. I was really worried about attempting to do renovations from afar and after having other friends and family on-island warn me about a lot of bad experiences, I arrived in Maui hoping that we made a good decision in choosing Steve and his team. I can't say enough good things about my experience and now consider them all an extension of our family! Steve, Star, and Gary went above and beyond to help me complete everything on our list, and then some(!), in the month I was on Maui. From working on weekends, staying late to help me prep for the next day's photographer, to dealing with donating furniture & appliances, and advising me on other good subs for materials and services best left to "experts" --i.e. granite & windows, I truly couldn't have completed so much without Maui's Handyman Service. As for the so-called island time--I can say that Steve, Gary, and Star, put to shame every other handyman and contractor I've worked with on the mainland. They are fair, hardworking, and responsive. As such, they are rightfully in-demand, so for any remodeling assistance, call in advance, book more time than you think you need (always surprises in every home), and take care of the people who take care of you! While we are off-island, I know that I can count on them to respond to anything we need and that it will be done right and as quickly as needed. Don't hesitate to use them for your handyman (and remodeling) needs.

Service person was very cooperative and went about and beyond work required.

What can I say. He pulled out a very old, large AC. Removed the frame both inside and outside the house. Rebuilt a frame to insert the small A/C and built a frame around the new both inside and out. Will be back to do finish work to resemble a picture frame.

Steve wasn't able to fix our rain gutter problem on the days that we originally scheduled because another job he was doing went longer than anticipated. He felt bad about this so he ended up coming out on a Sunday. And then, since it only took him about 10 minutes (much less than he originally thought) and because of the delay, he said we wasn't going to charge us anything. We will be paying him, however, because he did such a great job and may be saving us a huge plumbing bill. It is always a relief to know that there is a person we can call when we need help who is so capable and has such honesty and integrity!

Steve came out (early in the morning at my request) to give me an estimate. Not having any idea of what it could cost I had underestimated by quite a bit. He was very helpful in explaining why it cost what it would, and even gave me some tips on how I could do it myself for a lot less. I subsequently confirmed from another source that his estimate was very fair. I could tell by his demeanor that he took pride in his company and I am sure that if I had used him that I would have been very satisfied. His office assistant was very helpful and attentive over the phone. I would absolutely use him in the future.

Mike has been our handyman for at least 10 years. I can't say enough good things about him. He really knows his trade and the best way to do it. He explains what, why and how very clearly. Love him!

Went well. Two guys showed up quickly and got it done well.

I received my property back from a long term tenant and the house was in very poor condition. Steve helped me remodel the property over a 3 month period and he acted as one of my major subcontractors. Steve nearly does it all and he know reputable people that will assist in the projects when he elects not to get involved in certain areas. After 3 months, we listed the property for sale and it sold in 6 weeks. We could not have completed the sale without Steve there to assist with follow-up items during the inspection process. Thanks a million Steve!

Went to Angie's List looking for handymen. Found Maui's Handyman Service. Called for appointment - two days wait. Installation was very quick. Hung new fans, removed old & disposed. Very efficient.