McDowell's Tile & Sons

nice guys did a good job...prices ended up to be more than I expected.

We hired Jim as part of the "Big Deal" to lay a ceramic tile floor in our basement bathroom. As many projects do, a hiccup was found early, and there were extra man-hours required to level the floor (the previous owner had done some things cheaply). Once the floor was ready, it took two people nearly eight hours over two visits to cut and lay the tile. In all, we spent $1,700 on labor alone (and more than $2,000 total) to level the floor and lay the tile (no grouting or sealing of the tile). We discontinued services with Jim when we opened our Granger after the last visit to lay tile and found a LARGE amount of discarded tile - some were nearly full pieces (we used 8x10 tiles). We had purchased the tile prior to hiring Jim - he informed us that the product we had purchased was actually wall tile, but he could use it if we liked. We offered to purchase something else, but he assured us that it could work. Both my husband and I were in the house the entire time he and his assistant were working - and never was it brought to our attention that there was (according to Jim) many chipped or cracked tiles. He claims that these are flaws that are only noticable to an "experienced tile guy." In all, more than a box and a half of tile was found in our Granger. When we called this to his attention, he claimed that he had our best interest at heart, and that not using those pieces was to protect the quality of the floor and our interests. We felt that we were owed the courtesy of him calling to our attention an inordinate amount of waste (and if almost every piece of tile in a box was damaged, we could have returned it to the store!). Instead, we found this on our own in our Granger. At this point, we discontinued our association with him and have found another vendor to complete our project. We also rescued much of the tile from the Granger for use in another project, and the second vendor has told us that they are still usable. We approached Jim prior to posting our review, and he stands behind his decisions in regards to our materials. We are very disappointed that a project that escalated in cost was exacerbated by wasting our resources.

Our front porch had to be torn down and rebuilt. He did the same for a neighbor, and the result was attractive. He went with us to choose the brick, tore down the porch, hauled the material away and rebuilt the porch. He is very meticulous in his work, a trait that I had already observed when he installed marble floors for us. He is congenial, easy to work with.

It was very well done. Exceptional courtesy and respect for our home. The job was done very quickly from start to finish in approximately one 12-hour day, while we went about our business at home. Jim communicates well and lays out expectations. My only concern during the process was the lack of "final price" quote, which is equally my fault. The original quote was in "man hours", not dollars. We had the option to purchase materials, which we did with a list provided by Jim McDowell.

Jim and his brother (Scott) did an outstanding job. They were timely, usually here about 9 AM and worked until they achieved a good stopping point which often kept them here later than the typical 5 PM. Occasionally the stopping point was earlier in the day, they never started something unless they knew they could finish to a good stopping point. During the entire project, about 2 weeks to complete, they treated our home, and 2 dogs, with a great deal of respect and courtesy. They laid protective material over the floor every day before starting any work, including walk ways to the door. The enclosure they built to to contain the dust from demolition was top notch and performed very well in keeping dust from surrounding areas. They cleaned up every day when they were done including mopping/wiping up the floor. Jim and Scott are very detailed in their work. They will do it right and don't cut any corners. In one case where a portion of the damage floor (wood) had to be removed when Jim looked at it again the next day he decided that an additional square foot should be removed to do the job right. We lost a day due to that but it was the right thing to do. That's the way they work. The completed job is outstanding!! We love being able to use the shower. The re-built bench drains appropriately and the floor is sloped perfectly to drain quickly. The detail used in laying/placing the tile, both wall and floor, is impeccable making sure the placement is balanced and attractive. I should note that Jim works on a time and material basis so my final cost was not known until the job was complete (we bought the tile ourselves) Jim did come to the house to look at the job first and did provide an estimate but the level of effort was more than I think he anticipated; probably because he had to be soooo careful in demolishing the old stuff without damaging surrounding walls etc (which he did a great job in protecting everything). Remember, he had to remove and re-install the four paneled glass enclosure which is anchored at the top AND the bottom. Re-construction dimensions had to be exact. Our final cost was about 20% above the original estimate. I will also say that when they were on the job they were ALWAYS very busy and active. They never were standing around or moving slow, it was go go go from the time they got here until they left for the day. I will definitely use McDowell again and have another project for them since the original builder of the showers apparently did not know what they were doing. I will attempt to post photos of the work in progress and the completed job. It came out very well and we're quite pleased. I highly recommend McDowell Tile. It may not be the lowest quote you get but I assure you it will be the best job in the end.

The unexpected water damage found in both baths' sub-floors when the old tile was removed added to the cost and time for the job. I was glad that I had decided to totally remove the old tile rather than put new tile over the old. That meant unknown damage could be fixed rather than get worse. Jim was pleasant and very easy to work with. He managed to have a shower available for me every morning. I love the new look of both baths.

He and his brother did the work and arrived right on time when they were scheduled. They gave me an exact description of their work and completed it all in one day. Their labor rate is reasonable and in order. We will be using them again for additional tile work.

Jim was on time and worked hard and steadily. He was communicative about what the problems were, how they could be repaired, and how to prevent the problems in the future. He worked to see that the new grout would match the remaining grout and the shower looks great now.

Work quality was good, cost as described above way inflated IMO.

He did all of the above work to our satisfaction and him and his brother were really careful to make sure they keep our house clean while they worked by laying down covers to cover the steps going up to our bathroom. They made sure that everything was cleaned up and put out of the way everyday before they left. Dos and don't on them is this: We would hire them again because they really do an outstanding job. I don't have any don't for them because I am well pleased. They were really friendly and always willing to answer our questions and to make changes as they went along. They always arrived at the time they said that they would. We are pleased about their work.

I had purchased the Big Deal Offer for this service. They did not take them too long for them to come out but I think they had too many orders to catch up on. So it did take a while. They were two of them and they said that they could not do much for $99 so they only spent for an hour. They worked hard for an hour and they said that if I needed more work done at another time they would be happy to do it for me and I would be happy to hire them. I just did not want more done. My husband just came out of the hospital so it was satisfactory. There was nothing that stood out particularly. He had an unexpectedly family issue so he had to change the time that he said he would come. That was not a problem. He called and made sure that it works for us. Overall he was clearly interested in spending more time and earning more money but I explained that was all I wanted and needed at that time and he was thankful that I was being honest. He and I were both in agreement about that. Both he and his helper both worked steadily and for what they did it was worth the price.

The bathrooms are caulked, but the job looks tacky and in several areas I need to redo the work (missed a couple areas) and will need to repaint scratches.

Jim and Scott arrived right on time. They had all the materials needed and got right to work. They were neat and efficient, and cleaned up after themselves very well. They were very concerned that we were happy with their work, and we are. Our tile looks great.

He was on time and professional. It took the four hours I had prepaid. I am very happy with the results. I did not mark price as it was a deal on Angie's list and I made the assumption it was a good price so did not do any comparison on labor. I have taken advantage of other card deals and they have been very good. Had our home not needed so many other things done I might have taken his suggestion and had him do the rest of the kitchen.

He seemed very nice on the phone and I explained to him what the problem was. I told him that I needed to have the surgery done at some point and I opted to do it in the summer which means I had to stay the whole summer at home. He was very good and I liked him very much and he said, "I will extend that offer when you get home in the fall." He just seemed to bend over backwards to make me happy because I thought it was very sweet of him to extend the offer. I have the feeling that he will be a very fine man to work with.

Jim and his brother Scott did a great job, exceeded all my expectations. They were very professional, arrived promptly and were respectful of my home, covered flooring, etc. wherever they were working. Jim is a perfectionist and pays close attention to all the details. They had good suggestions on how the tile should be installed and were easy to work with. At the end of the day, they cleaned up and left the project area easy to work around. I would definitely recommend them. I love my house again!

Jim McDowell Handyman did a quality job. He's pretty much an artist when it comes to tile work. He did repair work and we didn't have enough tiles so he was really creative and the work looked really nice. He was able to work his hours around mine.

Jim is a real craftsman, with high quality standards. He knows his craft. He is timely, thorough, cleans up and is professional. Highly recommend Jim.

Very well. He found some damage on the floor and quickly repaired it, laid the tile and was done! A day and a half from start to finish.

Jim rebuilt a shower that was damaged from leakage and improper initial instillation. He did a great job and was very knowledgeable, courteous and had great attention for detail. He was on time from the first appointment to the last. He always let me know when he would be arriving and how long the job would take that day. He knew the stages and appropriate drying times for project. Jim didn't try to cut corners. He wanted to do it correctly so that it would be the last remodel that we would have to do with the shower. The tile is beautiful and he blended the new work with the existing very nicely. He recommended a company to install glass work, and checked to make sure it was done properly, even making sure that they provided a squeegee. He also cleaned up any messes each day.

The service was excellent he did a wonderful job on my upstairs bathroom. He was creative when he was faced with a problem. His work is excellent and I would recommend him to anyone. I was very impressed

If every contractor was like Jim there would be no reason to have Angies List.. You will not go wrong with JIM MCDOWELL Jim Mcdowell is an artist. He does a flawless job... every cut was just very important to him. He was extremely professional all the way around. He was a perfectionist, he was polite, he was trustworthy, and he was on time. There wasn't one complaint I had with him. I would recommend him to anybody.He left the job every day completely immaculate. Jim gives you estimates and stays with the estimate. He's just totally reliable and does excellent work." Jim explained everything very well when he came. And not only that, but he?s probably one of the neatest contractors I've ever seen in my life. He left the job every day completely immaculate. He?s an absolute perfectionist. It was amazing.? He?s very good at working out tile patterns?even complicated ones?and understanding where he should start with them and how he should finish. OK about my floors this should say it all > I am in love with my tile floors they could not be more perfect in every room that was done. I have the most beautiful tile floors that I ever could have pictured. Every guest that comes into my home wants to know who my contractor was. Our total job with labor and tile was Approx 5000.00 Jim Thank You for such a wonderful job. Jeff & Alisha Regan You can use us as a referral Jim

After having granite counter tops installed, we decided to tile the kitchen back splash. We found the field tile we wanted to use and had to special order it. While waiting for the tile to arrive we started looking for an installer. The tile we selected was an expensive glass and stainless mix. Given the difficult material and the focal point installation we knew we needed a pro. I searched Angie's List and came up with a few leads. I looked into McDowell Tile as it's a local installer and even though Angie's List only had one review, they had many other customer comments and photos on their website. I contacted Jim and asked him to stop and look at our kitchen. We were seeking options on how the tile would be trimmed and guidance for selecting accent tile. He came and answered our questions as well as making several excellent suggestions for adding a few small areas to be tiled. These additions really added to the final look of the project. He gave me a written estimate and told us to contact him when we had all of our tile in hand. His bid was in line with my expectations. We contacted him a couple of weeks later and he was able to work us into his schedule. When he arrived on the job site I had prepped the kitchen by removing the electrical fixtures and taking down a light that would block access to part of a wall. He set up his saw in our garage as we expected. He had all the necessary materials to protect our new granite and our kitchen floor. We discussed one design change we wanted and settled on a price for the extra work. He brought a couple of different stainless steel trim pieces as we had discussed. We finalized our choice and he started setting the tile. He was professional and very courteous at all times. He took two half days to set the tile. He was working us in around some other commitments which we had no issue with. He was meticulous during the installation, often making small adjustments as he set the tile. He integrated our field and accent tile seamlessly. At the end of each day he asked if he could leave some materials on the job site. This is standard practice, but it was still nice that he asked. He was very efficient in using the tile, especially given the amount of cuts that were required. This really helped from a cost standpoint. He grouted the tile on the third day and the job was complete. He spent some time explaining care and cleaning options with us. He also had good suggestions about sealing options if we chose to do that. We haven't yet, but are considering it. The end result was everything we could have hoped for. We would not hesitate to use Jim again. (TIP) If we had contacted Jim prior to ordering our tile he could have gotten us an additional discount as he had an account with the Tile Shop in Grand Rapids. The Tile Shop was great to do business with as well.

McDowell will attempt to charge you as much as he can for a job you can get done more reasonably by a reputable handyman. Don't trust this service provider.

He was concerned about the esthetic appearance of his work so he was very careful in terms of the tiles that he selected from the ones that we had purchased. He offered ideas that we hadn't thought of. Ultimately the room that we had tiled ended up looking nicer than we had even anticipated. The price ended up being less than we anticipated but we haven't had tile work done before. We would absolutely use them again.