PRINCIOTTA DECK SERVICES

Very smoothly. They gave us a quote over the phone based on the dimensions and my description. They advised us to use a clear sealer rather than a tinted stain; the latter may look good initially but won't hold up well over time. This seemed like good advice and we followed it. The deck had been painted by the previous owners (if you're thinking of doing this, don't!), and Princiotta made it clear that the sanding could never remove all traces of paint, especially from the edges of the planks and the indentations around the nails. We were not expecting perfection, but they did a very thorough sanding job; the remaining traces of paint are minor and will eventually flake off or blend in. Overall our deck looks much better than before, and is also better protected. They were very careful about not damaging the paint on the wooden siding of the house that abuts the deck. They arrived on time and finished on schedule. Cleanup was very thorough (a potential concern if the pressure-treated pine wood contains arsenic). They were also very easy to deal with. Overall everything went smoothly. They may not be the cheapest; we did not try to shop around for the cheapest quote, but instead went with Princiotta based on their reputation and obvious experience. Happy we did; decks are expensive and it's worth paying to have them properly maintained.

They were all around a great company. I think they took pride in this job. It was a little bigger project than I thought. It did cost a little extra for the repair than what they told us up front, but that was OK as they did it right and that's what counts.

The work was well done and I'm glad I had it done but I think it was overpriced even after I negotiated this $900 price down from a previous estimate of $1500. The work was done using a standard, low pressure, hand pump type insecticide/weed killer sprayer plus a lot of brush work around the edges. The spayer was effective and a throw away item for easy cleanup. I had supplied all the stain and the three men involved didn't put in more than about 3 hours each including transit time. They did a good job but $100/hour for semi-skilled labor is a pretty good rate. I'd do the spraying myself the same way next time.