Elbert Construction Inc

After being very happy with the new windows, gutters, downspouts and siding EHIMP had installed last Fall, I was anxious for the weather to warm up enough for them to return and paint. I was very pleased overall with the painters, their professionalism, their punctuality and materials used. My project manager, Matt Waters, is very responsive and always addressed my questions and concerns promptly.

Called for an estimate and Matt came out right away w/a professional quote & explained their process thoroughly. I had two other companies come and chose Exterior because of their friendliness & prompt service along w/ their knowledge. They were fantastic. Would recommend highly.

Entire project was painful and lengthy. Contract was signed 10/07/14 and work was not completed until March '15. Roof was replaced first & I was not advised until 11/24 when I made an inquiry that siding was on back order. Staging of the project was incorrect; siding, fascia, rake, and gutter boards should have been replaced prior to roof. Receiving the roof first resulted in problems with the drip edge. When I inquired about a potential concern of placing the gutter board under the drip edge my question was not addressed. When the siding was replaced/applied approximately 50% of the drip edge was cut away for placement of gutter boards leaving no edge/flashing to drip into the gutter. External flood light was broken and satellite TV cable was not returned to original position upon completion of project. Understand/appreciate the weather delays that occurred. However, numerous contacts by me; 30+ e-mails with additional telephone calls to sales associate and project manager through out process to rectify errors and/or obtain status updates for work. Roof installation was completed in the dark. Workers had no working lights until I provided them with flashlights. Had to send the project manager and sales associate a picture so they could understand configuration required for a rain barrel prior to installation of the gutters and downspouts. Workers were limited English proficiency without adequate supervision. When I inquired about a bi-lingual supervisor I was told one was not needed, the workers did speak English, but were told not to speak with the customer. I met/saw the supervisor once. Upon completion of the roof there were areas where shingles were not attached and freely raised up with curled edges. Areas of curled edges remain. The company did provide remediation/replace the drip edge, installed a new flood light, and returned TV cable to correct position. Per their report, I was "given" new downspouts @ no charge I.e. a $375 value. Now there is a major problem with the gutter and/or downspout in the front of my home. I was required to provide 50% down payment. Final invoice included $1200 of material not listed on the contract. I was not advised via work order change, e-mail, or telephone re: additional material. At one point I was told company did not order enough Hardy siding, then there was Hardy siding remaining. That material was not indicated as a credit on the final invoice. Requested clarification of the extra material with charge with payment of remaining 50% from original contract. I did not anticipate these many problems when I spoke with the sales associate and was promised Elbert would guide this process efficiently avoiding any need for me to worry. Unfortunately, that has not been my experience.

The owner was great to work with, the windows are very nice. We had some challenges with the manufacturer but we were able to overcome them. I highly recommend them.

We ended up getting Pella windows and they are fantastic. Many people comment on them and how lovely they look from an aesthetic standpoint and also how much they open up each room in our home where they are located. The installation crew was great - working hard each day while protecting our carpeting, hardwoods, etc. During the quote process - we were not sure what the installers would find when they pulled out the old windows and Ben prepared us for every contingency, which were also included in the contract so everyone understood up front what the added costs might be. Unfortunately, the original construction of our home required that they do some additional support work before installing the new windows, but since Ben knew enough about houses and construction to anticipate this - we all already knew what would have to happen and the cost. We were so happy to have the new windows installed and looking good for the cold winter we had - kudos to EHI for a job well done!

They did a good job. It was fine. I've used them in the past. They do a very detailed, extensive quote on what they're going to do. Like for any large job, there were problems and they resolved every issue well. They'll take care of anything outside of your house. Their price was fair but not the lowest. I got bids and their prices were higher than some, but we worked through that.

I've used Exterior Home Improvement for two separate projects, windows and siding. I believe I've submitted reviews on those projects in the past. My point in reviewing today is to comment on the service you'll receive from Steve Smalley. Steve provides a superior level of service to any other contractor I've worked with between my home and rental property. This review is being prompted as a small siding issue came up recently while another 'A' rated contractor is in my home doing a kitchen remodel. Steve was out quickly with the manufacturer's people to get the siding issue solved, without my being there and without push-back. The 'A' rated contractor doing my kitchen isn't providing the service that Steve is when they are actively collecting checks. Steve, whose last check was cashed a few years ago, is far more responsive than those currently in my home. While the work being done by this other contractor is good, they could learn a lot from Steve on how to address a customer's concerns. Point being, not all 'A' rated contractors are the same. Thank you Steve for years of superior service.

Prompt service on providing estimate and through follow-up on questions. Very Professional. We choose another provider which did not include siding.

Workers were efficient and answered all my questions. Very good clean up afterward.

Took too long to complete - original completion was 2-4 weeks. We suggested they start in the spring of 2015, but they insisted on starting early.

Weather wise things were stop and go, as they couldn't install until the temperature was above freezing. The workers were courteous and answered all of my questions. I had put X's on the areas I had questions or concerns about, and they went back through and adjusted and exlained everything to me. The people they contracted out for the gutters were also very helpful and did a good job.

Sales person was on time & explained the services to be performed thoroughly. Installation was performed without us even needing to be at home which worked well for us & our work schedule.

Came on time - both for 1st inspection and quote. Completed work required independently and professionally.

Overall everything went well. We chose shingles w/lifetime warranty from reparable company. Tiled started on time, left premises clean and were polite.

Well, it went awful. I have NEVER had an experience like this talking to someone on the phone from a well-reputed company on Angie's List, and I found it disappointing and surprising considering the reviews on here and the awards they have received. I've never written a review on here and I have no ulterior motive for doing so (I don't know her, have never worked with her company, and will never work with her company), except to report that her behavior was completely unacceptable when it comes to standards of customer service, or just decent, polite human interaction. I just couldn't let it blow over without reporting it, considering this site is where I found her well-rated company. I wasn't able to document this immediately after it happened this morning, so some of the verbiage isn't exact. But this is a very close representation of what occurred: Kim called me back this morning and after introducing herself, immediately began asking what the work was to be done. I explained that there were three different minor siding repairs (I may have initially said four and quickly clarified that two of the repairs were of the same kind) and that it would be hard to explain them all over the phone since it was a little complicated, but that instead of having someone spend the time coming out to look at the work, or go into detail about it, I initially wanted to know if her company had a minimum charge for doing work (for example, if they won't do less than $350 worth of work, so that way I know if I work with them it would cost "at least" that much or that they are beyond what I should probably reasonably pay for such work considering the minor nature of the repairs - not to blame them at all, but to understand their business model). I said that I had some companies out and the prices were significantly beyond what I wanted to pay, or what the repairs should cost, and I found that is because they have minimums that I didn't know about (they are reputable construction companies), and these minimums weren't initially communicated. I am actually pretty flexible on price but there are limits of course to what you know you should spend on a project. I don't think it is unreasonable to want to know if there is a minimum labor charge, or minimum total work charge, for a project to evaluate your options. She was very eager to talk and would not initially answer the question, and instead began telling me that they needed to review the work to develop an accurate price; that it depended on the work. I replied that I really wanted to know if they had some form of minimum labor charge since it could be beyond what I want to pay right off the bat and that way they wouldn't waste their time coming out, etc. I was direct in wanting to know that information, but I was not rude, yelling, confrontational, or anything of the sort. It didn't come across to her that way apparently, because that was about the last full sentence I could get in, literally. She began lecturing me about how long she had been in business and that it isn't the way business works (not her business, business in general, as if I am just completely ignorant). Needless to say, I've had scores of various contractors and companies out to bid and perform work for many years, but she wouldn't have cared nor would she have heard me because she, intentionally IMO so that she didn't have to listen to me, never stopped talking the rest of the call. She reiterated that they needed to see the work. She accused me of being very "confrontational" and that I would not be a good fit for their company to work with. She said I should contact a handyman or something and they may be able to do it (needless to say I had already done so, but I couldn't even get in a word), and insinuated in the conversation that she was trying to help me in telling me that. I tried to interject with, 'Kim, all I am wanting to know is if...' [cut-off by her talking] I was quick and loud enough to try to break-in at her pause, but it wasn't rude. She continued lecturing me (and I am not unknowingly using the word "lecturing", it was a demeaning, sharp, emotional tone) that they needed to know the type of work they were going to be doing and that I was being very rude in how I was coming across and in wanting to name my price (I never even mentioned a price or a ballpark, simply asked if they had a minimum charge) and thinking that I knew specifically how the work needed to be done and what it should entail (I didn't even explain the work, but she thought I was thinking I knew exactly how much it should cost me for what I needed done). I tried to interject 'That isn't what I'm saying, ...' [rudely interrupted again as she goes on lecturing me]. She reiterated that isn't how business is done and that they don't even specialize in siding or siding repairs anyway. Finally at some point in the middle of the conversation she answered my initial question as she went on that they didn't have a minimum charge, but that the amount depended on the type of work, etc. She continued saying it would be better for me to contact a handyman. I tried to interject again to explain things to calm her down. 'Kim, I am not trying to be confrontational. I understand, all I was asking for was whether you had a minimum. I just...' [cut-off again by her] She continued to go on about the same things, continuing to judge my actions as confrontational and rude, without pausing now and without me being able to get in a full sentence. I knew at this point she was really upset that I had been insistent on knowing a minimum, or that I had been direct about it, and I just wanted to calm her down in explaining myself and to let her know it wasn't appropriate all she was telling me. She was having none of that though and was very emotionally riled-up. I knew she was intentionally going to keep lecturing me, that there is no way she was going to let me talk, and that for all intents and purposes, the conversation was over. In a loud enough voice that I hoped she could hear me over herself I said something like, "Have a nice day, goodbye." and hung up the phone. She was still talking until the last second from what I could tell, I can't be sure she heard me. I don't know how long the call lasted exactly. Again, the exact order of the interaction and verbiage may not have been what was above, but I am confident it is fairly close. There is no reason a customer should have to endure this, none. I wasn't asking anything unreasonable. This was not how I needed to waste part of my day, and my plan to shortcut peoples' involvement (and mine) by asking if they charged a minimum for work had backfired severely. Kim could have initially simply said, "I understand what you are saying, we don't have a minimum charge but of course we would need to review your work to provide you an accurate bid for the work." That's it. That would have been totally fine and I would have scheduled someone to come out to bid it! Instead, she chose to rudely lecture me, or misunderstand me and fail to here me out (I don't know if she misunderstood me or intentionally, for some personal reason, did not want to understand me). So here I am with a lengthy, negative review. I would not trust working with such a person, or their company, after having a conversation like that. It sounds like many people have had positive experiences with the company and maybe this was an odd occurrence due to some miscommunication or someone having a bad day, but there it is nonetheless. UPDATE 4/4/15: In response to this provider's feedback, you ma'am are lying. How dare you intentionally deceive people and say the "opposite" occurred? You wouldn't listen (you weren't even acknowledging my question at the time and proceeded with your own agenda), you were the one aggressive with me (apparently because I asked a direct question and you were offended), and furthermore you didn't end the conversation - you incessantly kept talking over me, failing to even let me explain myself multiple times, and lecturing me until I had no choice but to interrupt you to give you a "good day" and hang up on you. Shame on you, you "should" feel bad because of your own behavior. Especially since you've been in business so long. You should really evaluate your own behavior and be more respectful toward prospective customers, and instead of lecturing them and talking over them simply politely provide them the information they are seeking. I would never have provided this much detail if this wasn't a close representation of what occurred. I had no ulterior motive for this review, none. If you are customer reading this, be warned this person is not truthful.

Very professional. Excellent communication throughout the project. It is a beautiful door..well done in craftsmanship.

Steve Smalley, the owner, takes a very hands on approach and provides a very personalized experience. He does a great job working within the client's parameters and ensuring that the project is done to the customer's satisfaction. His crew, led by Hillary, performs high quality work and is very customer friendly. We are ready to use EHI again for the next phase of our window replacement project.

My wife and I were very impressed with Exterior Home Improvement Inc. They were very professional throughout the entire process of our window remodel. Ben was a breeze to work with and was always very responsive to all my questions. They were the only organization to initially call me back regarding a quote without the need for a follow-up call or email. You could tell that Ben has been doing this for many years and brought a lot of suggestions to our conversations when consulting about our windows. I always felt comfortable knowing exactly what work was going to be performed. The service contract was easy to follow and Ben walked us through every step to ensure everything was in order. The windows were measured perfectly and the order was timely. The installations crew was courteous, clean, and professional. They used drop clothes in the walkways and work areas and made sure to clean up after themselves. When the work was complete, there was absolutely nothing left behind. The new windows and trim are beautiful. I would highly recommend Exterior Home Improvement Inc., and I’ll be calling them soon for a roof estimate.

Ben with Exterior Home Improvement came out in April 2014 to look at the job and give an estimate. Ben gave a verbal estimate, but said the written estimate would come from the office and that it would take a few weeks to come in. Several weeks later, when the written estimate came in, it was significantly higher than the verbal estimate, but Ben made good on the verbal estimate and we signed a contract to do the work for that verbal estimate price. Ben then advised they would order the door and, once the door came in, they would set up an installation appointment. Again, several weeks go by with no word from Exterior. I called Ben to follow up and explained that I need a few days advance notice as to when installation could take place so work arrangements could be made. Ben confirmed he understood and that he would get back to me with potential dates. A few days later, received a phone call from Ben and he let me know installation was scheduled for 7/2/14. No other dates offered - just that installation was scheduled for 7/2/14. I let Ben know that I wasn't sure that date would work based on my schedule. Ben's response was that we could either take that date or go to the end of the line for scheduling behind everyone else that was waiting. My take away from the conversation was that there was no flexibility or consideration to be made by Exterior. We had already waited a considerable amount of time and given a deposit, so I re-arranged some things to accommodate the 7/2 installation date. The 2 man crew showed up on 7/2 and got to work. The removal of the existing door went smoothly, but when it came time to assemble and install the new door, they did not seem to be knowledgeable about the product or how to install. They were reading the assembly/installation instructions that came in the box. The seemed to be fumbling through it and when one part wouldn't fit right, they simply put it back in the box. One of the installers was getting progressively impatient and repeatedly barked at the other installer to hurry up so they would be able to finish up and get out of there so they wouldn't be stuck out so late on jobs that day. Apparently, their jobs for the previous few days had run long and they had put in a couple of long days. Not really appropriate conversations to have in the presence of a paying customer. The next thing I know, the impatient installer is nowhere to be found and the second installer is knocking on the new door to tell me he needs a check (for the balance due) which I gave him and he hastily gave me the keys to the new door and went back around to the front of the house. I assumed he would be back with a receipt and would go over some questions I had about the door. I should not have assumed. He got in the truck and they left. No receipt, no making sure I was satisfied, no interest in if I had questions. There were some issues with the door. The screen door would not latch properly and the lock on the sliding door didn't work. I called Ben and he came back to take a quick look. After a very quick look, Ben stated that the issues were manufacturer issues and the manufacturer rep would have to come out and address. Getting an appointment with the manufacturer rep was a whole other ordeal, but once he finally came out, he determined that the issues were installation issues, but he fixed them. A simple adjustment was needed on the screen door and the lock in the slider was not installed/aligned properly which prevented it from turning. He also had to order a new stationary panel for the sliding door. That finally came in and was installed in September 2014. It took 5 months from estimate to completion of the work. Just last week, an envelope came in the mail from Exterior Home Improvement. It was the warranty information for the door. Eight months after installation. It was not filled out/completed. Just blank forms. Along with a form letter about the labor costs charged by Exterior for warranty work. As for the door, we are happy with the final product. As for the overall experience, not so much. If you need a job completed in a timely manner and a contractor that communicates well, I would not recommend Exterior Home Improvement.

Unsatisfactory! Gutters were great, siding guys messed up gutter, roofers left mess, awning was never done completely. They asked for final payment on 8 week. Job that took over 7 months. Damage to fascia and siding due to wrong awning installation.

From the word go, the same word comes to mind. Flawless. From the first time we met with Ben to consult about choices and pricing and timeline for installing our new windows, every encounter was pure perfection. At every turn Ben McWhorter and all the staff made us feel as if we were there only customer and concern. By the end of the project, we actually felt as if we were a part of the family. When anything came up that wasn't expected, Ben and his crew were on top of it and told us about the resolution before we could even ask. They promised and delivered superior service. The installation crew took the ultimate care and respected our home as if it was their own. The project seem to go so smoothly and quickly! Again, the word the comes to mind when describing Ben McWhorter and Exterior Home Improvement Inc. is Flawless.

From the word go, the same word comes to mind. Flawless. From the first time we met with Ben to consult about choices and pricing and timeline for installing our new windows, every encounter was pure perfection. At every turn Ben McWhorter and all the staff made us feel as if we were there only customer and concern. By the end of the project, we actually felt as if we were a part of the family. When anything came up that wasn't expected, Ben and his crew were on top of it and told us about the resolution before we could even ask. They promised and delivered superior service. The installation crew took the ultimate care and respected our home as if it was their own. The project seem to go so smoothly and quickly! Again, the word the comes to mind when describing Ben McWhorter and Exterior Home Improvement Inc. is Flawless.

Very well. --Excellent crews, crew manager and job manager very good at communication. Excellent work and service. Would use again!

Responded promptly to call and got out to property quickly to give the estimate. Very professional and knowledgeable. Needed work done immediately and they were very willing to work it into their schedule which was tough in the middle of winter. However, in spite of the cold, they got all the work done in a timely fashion. Great to work with!

They were fantastic. They recognized existing problems and worked quickly and efficiently (worked thanks giving day!) to get the root on before snow.