Schaefer Improvements

I was contacted by the service provider on July 25, 2013 after purchasing the Angie's List Big Deal for $99.00 for four hours of work. I purchased 2 for $198.00. I provided a detailed list in an email and sent photos as well for 2 window installs in dormers on my home. After speaking with Steve, we agreed the dormer install would need to be performed as a separate job. The appointment was set for August 20th at 10:00 am. I was contacted on July 19th to confirm the appointment with arrival between 9 and 10 am.. After speaking with the owner, there was another issue to install a chandelier over the stairway, which was clearly indicated on my email along with verbal communication about the location over the stairway. He clearly said there was no discussion of it's location. I have each email with the list provided and the email that was submitted with my purchase. He still denied any discussion of the installation. I gave this company 30 days and invited them into my home to review the projects I needed performed. I never heard back from them until the day before the scheduled appointment resulting in "we can do that, we can't do that and you never told us that". I have been in the service industry for 30 years and this type of service is unacceptable. Below is the email sent to Schaefer Home Improvements, July 25th clearly stating the chandelier placement over the stairway. Hi Steve, I've attached a PDF with 3 photos to show you the dormers in my home. I tried to give you some perspective so you could see the height. I look forward to working with you and the honeydew list is just gonna grow. Listed below are my projects: (Angies List was down for maintenance, so I hope I didn't forget anything!) Dormer Window Installation 42" TV Wall Mount Garage Door Installation Chandelier Installation (over stairway) Hanging Lamp over Kitchen Table Advise on Security Lamp Post (will purchase hardware needed to reschedule) Please touch base with any questions you may have. Thank you! I was so irritated, I told him to forget it. I want to hire a company with a follow-up plan and obviously one that has a memory of a formal invite into my home to review the work. I don't want to hire a company that simply has a date book and runs his business out of an apartment. And he was so professional, he hung up on me vs. trying to resolve some issues. I was not rude to him, I simply told him I was irritated and wanted my money refunded. All I got was a "good luck" and he hung up on me. Sorry, this is not how you conduct business in my book. This youngster has to grow up!

Mr. Schaefer contacted me shortly after my purchase and schedule an appointment for my services. I asked if the services I needed could be performed for the big deal price. He said that it could but that I may need additional brackets which would be an additional $25. When Dustin and the other worker arrived they did the work quickly and efficiently and were very professional throughout. Once the job was complete on the garage door opener they had us try it out several times prior to their departure. He also mentioned that they were able to use the brackets I already had so there would be no additional $25 charge. I was very impressed with the honesty because I would have never known if they used different brackets or not!! Thanks to Schaefer Improvements for a job well done in an honest and professional manner!! N. Bradley

Dustin and Joe did a great job of prepping and clean up and everything in between was excellent. Really detailed work. Fast too. Got a lot done in the given time. Very impressed with them and I will call for ANY improvements that need to be done around our house.

very well we bought another Big Deal for them to return

The owner, Mr. Steve Schaefer, called to talk with me one business day after I called him. I explained what I needed, and we set a date of August 13, only two weeks away--excellent, I believe, because summer is such a busy period for contractors. He was kind enough to agree to buy the caulk for me and let me reimburse him. He called the day before the work to confirm everything, and told me the names of the staff who would be coming out. My appointment was for "9:00-10:00 a.m.," and I was pleased to get a call from Dustin, one of the two men who did the work for me, asking if it would be okay to be there right at 9:00. What's not to love? He and Joe arrived promptly at 9:00, professionally-dressed (in work clothes), clean, enthusiastic, and--well, just plain nice! I took them around and showed them the various areas needing work, and they went right to it, kindly taking their shoes off inside the house without my even asking. I was impressed and happy when, after we discovered that my five-gallon can of paint had dried out over the years, they recommended a place for me to get paint (while they continued with the work), and told me that a gallon would be more than enough (saving me money by not buying five gallons). As they worked, they spotted additional areas needing caulking, painting, or (for nail pops) fixing, told me about it, and happily did it (especially noteworthy in that this was a fixed price contract). I pretty much stayed out of their way, making myself available for questions, and they worked diligently the whole time, giving me the full eight man-hours I'd paid for. Both men had wonderful personalities, were very talented, were positive and upbeat, and made me feel like they truly cared about my home and me. The work was truly excellent. I couldn't even see where the areas touched up with paint had been done, nor the fixings of the nail pops (which involved pulling out the nails and using some spackle to cover the hole). The two doors now open and shut perfectly. The caulking was beautifully done, with thin, even applications. My kitchen and downstairs bathroom were really attractive with the new, bright white caulk, and I could hardly believe I was in the same house! The outside window caulking was done with clear caulk, and that work, too, was of excellent quality. I have some real peace of mind now that those windows are re-fortified against the elements. To get such good people and such wonderful work for $198 is something of the proverbial "dream come true." Based on my experience, I highly recommend them, and I intend to use the firm for additional work (separate and apart from the scope of work described here). This Angie's List "big deal" truly WAS a big deal, and I was fortunate indeed to be able to have it!

They were wonderful workers. Did the job the correct way. It looks so much more secure. The came back the next day and did the caulking for me even though I didn't have an appointment. I would certainly use Schaefer Iprovements for some future projects.

They were very accommodating about the time for the service, even offering to come out on a Saturday. They were prompt and friendly. They got the work done fast, and the results were of high quality. They cleaned up afterwards, and everything looked great. We are very pleased with their work, and would definitely have them back.

Purchased an Angie's List coupon for 4 hours (2 men for 2 hours) of general repair work and was contacted by the owner, Steven Shaefer, within 24 hours. I explained the work and he said his company could certainly complete the assignment but advised that it would more than likely take more than 4 hours - which seemed entirely reasonable to me. He advised me to purchase all the door slabs, hardware, etc. and then call him back so we could schedule a date. We were able to find an afternoon that worked within the following 2 weeks. Steven called the day before to confirm the time, location, etc. and tell me the names of his employees. Then, one of the workers, Dustin, called about 15 minute before the start time to let me know they were on their way. When they arrived - Dustin and William (both VERY hard working and experienced) - we walked through the house and I pointed out the doors needing replacement, etc. They listened carefully, confirmed the details and started right to work. Both Dustin and William were very conscientious as they removed the old doors to remove them and when bringing in the new doors. They also used drop cloths to minimize the sawdust, etc. When they were finished, they encouraged me to check out all the doors to make sure that I was completely pleased. Steven Schaefer called me within about an hour of the time they completed the job - again to be sure I was satisfied. Will definitely call Steven the next time we need work performed at our home.

Needed to build custom mount because of the configuration of the ceiling.

I am extremely satisfied with Schaefer Improvements. I was well aware Steve was probably inundated with phone calls for requests for services due to promotion of the $99.00 deal. Nevertheless he was prompt to call me back to schedule the service. He called the day before to confirm the appointment and arrival time. On the day of the service, Dustin called to advise he was on his way and arrived with his colleague at the scheduled time. It is so refreshing to meet such courteous, kind, young professionals especially in the service business. The work was done quickly and efficiently, with time to spare they asked what else needed to be done and completed a couple of other small jobs. I have scheduled Steve to come to my home to provide an estimate for more work that I need completed. This was a positive and satisfying experience, and quite a contrast to my short experience with another of Angie's List 'A' rated handyman who came to my home to discuss the work I needed done and advised me he would email the estimate to me the following week. I never did get that estimate, which was a good thing, because now I have the reliability of Schaefer Improvements!

It went exceedingly well. They arrived on time, were friendly and professional and went right to work the moment they got in the door until time was up. I will most certainly do business with this company again and can't recommend them highly enough. The owner called the night before to double check on the appointment and called me after the job was done asking for feedback and wanting to know if I was pleased with their work. I've renovated my house twice - the last time was a significant one - and only wish I had workers as friendly, competent and hard working as those representing this company. If your looking for a handyman company to do the kinds of things (replaced bathroom sinks, unclog a drain, replace faulty lighting fixtures and the like, look no further. I'm hiring them again to fix a broken laundry door and shaved a bit off the bottom of a solid core bedroom door so it it will finally close without scraping my carpet.

Excellent all around. The guys were on time, polite, and knew what they were doing. They were pleasant to have around and they got everything on our list done on time. You couldn't really ask for better service.

Great experience. All A+ services. Plus, I loved their bubbly personalities!

He did a very nice job. I have contracted with him to install a patio door.

I have never heard from them, so I'll be finding someone else to do my work.

I bought 2 $99 coupons for 3 man hours of handyman service. In just 3 hours, Steve and his associate installed a new dishwasher (after removing the old one), reinstalled crown molding on top of three kitchen cabinets, installed new quarter round and caulked that and the baseboard in the dining room, cleaned and sprayed silicone on the sliding door track, trimmed patio door so it no longer sticks, and removed an old shower door and installed a new one. These are projects that have been nagging me for a long time and it amazed me how quickly and efficiently Steve and his associate were able to tackle them. I will definitely use Steve again!

Mr. Schaefer was friendly and in our initial call asked me to detail the work that they would be providing during the purchased hour of service as to not waste time when they arrived. Mr. Schaefer called when he was on his way and when arrived again asked me to show him the specific job he was to perform. I showed him the windows and said that my priority was getting them all re-caulked and if time allowed painted, but the caulking was my priority. Mr. Schaefer and his partner went to work. After the hour, he informed me that they had completed the caulking of all of the windows but not the first coat of paint and if I wanted it completed I would need to pay their standard hourly wage as I had only purchased the deal for one hour. I chose not to at the time. I felt the work was haphazardly done with a focus on completion in an hour as opposed to quality of the work provided. For this reason I will not use this service provider again.

They came out last June and the service worked out pretty well. They were here when they said they were gonna be here and they called ahead of time. They put in a door that I wanted to put in and cleaned up after themselves and more prompt with those other things. My only disappointment is that the door had a couple of scratches in it that I didn’t know about and I would have like for them to notify me ahead of time and told me about the door. They just went ahead and put it up and left and they didn’t tell me that there’s a scratch in the door. So, I don’t know if they did it or its right there so I’m a little disappointed on that that I felt like they didn’t pay attention to that detail.

Steve called me right back from an email message I left on Angies List. Steve arrived at our house to do the estimate a little late but had called to let me know he was running late. upon receiving the estimate we made an appointment for him to come back and do the work. He picked up all of the materials needed except the paint and finished the job to our satisfaction. I would use again and I would recommend to our neighbors.

It was not really good and not really bad, it was in between. He did not do a good job with the painting, they were in a hurry and there was a hole between so it didn’t look very nice, so it has to be redone. I asked him a couple of times to put in more panels because I had a quite a bit of them rotten and he was going to replace all of them, so he has to come back. Overall, the job is done so I am okay with it, I would not recommend him right away to others. They charged me $800 for the panels and about same amount for the crown on the chimney. It was not very good quality and I didn’t like how they put everything together. I have done a lot of work around my house and I have had other companies do a much better job than they did. It wasn’t very cheap or expensive. They responded pretty quickly.

It took a while because they were really backed up. The owner himself was on the job, which doesn't happen all the time, and I appreciated that. It was fine.

In general, everything went great. They were timely and friendly. I had some frustration, since we had spoken multiple times by phone and planned for him to bring all needed supplies (including fan/light for bathroom). He started the clock (3hr big deal) when he left to go to Lowe's, but did not get needed fan/light and I had to get it. Other than that, all services were well done and professional.

First off I gave them a B on price because Steve was not the cheapest bid we received, but we felt that out of all the bids we received that Steve's was the most complete and thorough. We also felt that Steve seemed to be the most knowledgeable out of all our bids. Steve and his crew started the projects on Friday, which was a very hot day. They started with building the platform for the new shed. They did a fantastic job and used great materials. With the concrete and type of wood they used, I suspect that the platform will last longer than the shed! After that was built they started on the shed. The directions for the shed were not real clear and with that in mind they did that very quickly. I am so happy I had Steve and his crew do this part. There is no way I could have done that on my own! Next they moved into the attic. Now keep in mind that it was about 95 outside, so my attic was about 120 +. They helped me move all my boxes out of the attic, which was much appreciated and not expected! They put risers on the floor so it would not interfere with the electrical wires up there, something I would not have thought of. I am not sure how they did that in the heat, but they did. They also help me put all the boxes back in the attic when they were done. Again, much appreciated and not expected! They called it quits for the day at this point. The heat of the attic completely wore them out, and I do not blame them for wanting to call it a day. Steve and Jason came back on Saturday late morning to do the drywall in the garage. It looks great and I feel like I have a new garage! Overall Steve and his crew was great to work with. They were respectful of our time and space. Steve and his crew also did all the work without a single complaint of the heat of the difficulty of the work. They made sure everything was clean and put back where it was when they were done! We have more projects in the future that we will be calling Steve to help us with!

They put up paneling in a spare bathroom for me and they did a great job. I would recommend to others

Overall, it was an awful experience. Steve was hired to demo a kitchen countertop and sink, install three ceiling light fixtures, one of which was to go in a two-story entry way in a home I was to move into. When he showed up, he said he didn't know anything about the demo work, and thought he was just to install the lights. (However, in our prior phone conversation, he said he would bring a helper who could begin work on the demo at the new home, and he and I would go to my then home and remove one of the fixtures to be brought to my new home. ) He decided he and the helper would first demo the countertop. I asked him if perhaps he should pull out the range (newly installed glass top slide-in), but he said the counter would "just pull out". Well, it didn't just pull out. The next sound I heard was the shattering of the glass cook top! Steve did apologize and said he was insured and would pay for a new top or a new range. I phoned the appliance store, reported what had happened and ordered a new top--Steve put the price plus install cost on his credit card. After we cleaned up the mess, time allowed had expired and he offered to return the next Monday to complete the job of installing the lights, even measuring the foyer for needed scaffolding. He didn't show on Monday and did not return any of my calls. I have not heard back from him--he has my $99. I have nothing from him for my expenditure of $99. I have had the new top installed, which took three hours. I have to pay another workman to install my lights.