Sal's Home Improvement Solutions LLC

They were prompt and very professional. They took their time and gave me a very reasonable and professional estimate. I also wanted a couple things things done that they told me would not work well for this home and explained why. They could have taken me to the cleaners with my ideas... because I would not have known any better. They drove a long way to do the estimate..and they did it for FREE!!!!! I would hire this company in a minute...They are honest and seem to truly care for their customers!!! Note: I cannot fairly rate their quality as I ended up not buying the house...but from what I have seen of their work...Fabulous!! (The form makes you check each box)

Sal is an unlicensed contractor (legal in NC) who really doesn't know much about remodeling or construction. He hires subs to do the work but does not appear to have any knowledge of the trades, relying mostly on his subs for guidance. His gutter person was excellent His concrete guy also did the gate. Even after he got another sub to fix it, it still doesn't work at all well. The concrete was a mess. I hired for 6" with 3/4" rebar. I got 3/8" rebar and most of the pour was about 5". The bottom end was excessively high and had to be built up just to drive on it. The main power line runs underneath the slap. I found out that the Electrical Code requires at least 12" between the concrete and the cable. They poured right on top of the cable. As the concrete settled, it pulled the pipe connecting the underground cable with the main electrical box nearly an inch out of the box. The concrete is very uneven, sloping to the left near the top of the pad and to the right near the bottom. Water doesn't stand but the unevenness is disconcerting. The same crew also did the drains (attached to the downspouts to carry water away from the house). One was ok, the other terminated in a sump hole which has since become a sink with standing water in the depression. Given the soil, the drain probably should have been run an additional 40 feet and simply spilled out onto the down slope (the sump hole then would not have been needed). Sal is a very easy going, friendly sort of a chap. I can understand why he has so many good reviews. Heck, if he had worked for Bernie Madoff, I'm sure he would have been one of "Mr. Ponzi" top sales people. Unfortunately, his knowledge of construction appears to be highly dependent on his sub-contractors. I should have done a better job of "due diligence" but this is my first home here in North Carolina and his prices were reasonable by New York City standards (Which is to say that several trades people who have visited here subsequently were appalled at the price I paid, not to mention the workmanship. I have waited nearly a year to submit this review because I wanted the work to have a chance to settle in. It has. After nearly a year, I have the following conclusions about the work: The gutters were and are good. The French drains in front of the house work; the drains in the rear have gotten worse with the winter rains and will have to be extended without a sump(hole). The concrete pad was grossly overpriced as was the gate, which has to be replaced as soon as I can find the money to do that. Hopefully, the pad will not settle any more. If it does, I'll have major electrical work to repair the box and buried power lines. My advice: interview the subs as well as Sal. And don't sign anything until you have bids for other contractors (Sal is a retired New York City person so fellow transplants, be careful. Just because he used to work for Con Ed and has family in Queens and Brooklyn and claims to know people in the mob, doesn't mean that he knows the home repair business. He is a really, really good reason to NOT deal with an unlicensed contractor.

t. Let me start out by saying that the workmanship on my project was fantastic, My porch is solid and beautifully built. However, as time went on throughout the project, timelines were constantly changed. On July 18 I was told by Mr. Spinelli that the project would be finished by the first week in August (due to huge amounts of rain in June, the original date was delayed ). My permit was granted on June 20. According to Mr. Spinelli my sliding glass door would be delivered between 7/25-7/31. On July 23, I was told the door would arrive anytime. On July 29 I was told the door was scheduled for July 31 delivery. On August 15, with no door in sight, I was told that the original door had arrived broken and had to be reordered. The new finish date was now was by August 12. The sliding glass door finally arrived on August 22, 2 weeks after the finish date. That date appeared to be up in the air at this point.. Following that date, the inside of the porch, which included the installation of carpet was to be completed by August 28. . When I went to talk to the carpet installers on August 27, they said that they had not been contacted about the carpet installation until that day. The carpet was finally installed September 6. I understand that delays often happen on a construction job, however, I do not believe that the 2 major delays (along with many minor one or two day delays) should have caused this project to take should have taken this length of time. The sliding glass door was delivered August 22. Almost a month after the original date. Even if it had arrived broken the first time, I should have been notified before August 15 that had to be reordered The carpet installation was completed only after I discovered that it had not been scheduled until I started making inquiries. I realize that my job may not have been the most extensive or expensive, however, I feel as though I was not kept up with important information and not always told the complete truth. It makes me wonder that if I had been more assertive and trusting when these major delays were occurring, I might have been able to avoid them

I took off from work early and was home by 11am. Sal was a No Call / No Show, and didn't answer his phone when I called him looking for an explanation. Very disappointing......especially in light of other reviews.

GREAT,FAST ,HAPPY AND WILL AWAYS CALL SAL'S

Mike arrived promptly on Friday morning, declined an offer of coffee, and got to work. He thoroughly taped and sheeted the room: the walls were wrapped about 2' up, and Mike draped plastic over the room's entryway completely to minimize the smell and mess which could overflow into the adjoining rooms. For the entirety of that Friday Mike was at work, coming back the next day to put the final coats of wax on. He completed the job about two in the afternoon that Saturday, left me with clear instructions on when the floor would be safe to put furniture on, and proceeded off. We let the floor dry Saturday night, and Sunday morning, when it was to have been ready to use again, we were not happy with the finish. Rather than the bright polish which we had been expecting. the floor had kind of an orange peel consistency. It was shiny but it looked rumpled, and we called Sal immediately to see about getting it re-done. Sal immediately responded that Mike would be out the following day to rework the finish. They both knew what had happened and how to fix it, and were unhesitatingly quick to correct the problem. Unfortunately the wax had not dried unevenly, likely due to the high humidity (it had been pouring rain all day). Mike spent another day and a half essentially re-doing the entire job to get it right. He was unfailingly polite and professional, and very apologetic for the problem. Mike made good on his word and before he left the floors were shining like mirrors. We were not too disappointed about the extra time. Mike compensated us for the overage with a couple extra layers of wax, I think, and the room now looks exactly as we'd hoped. Better, even. We would without hesitation call Sal back for our next project, and are looking forward to having Mike back out to do the other rooms in the near future.

They are coming back out to double check something which I think is great. I saw some of his work and it look professional. He has a lot of experience.

It was professional fast and courteous

After improper installation/sealing of 2 bathroom shower doors, water damage had appeared. After calling Sal, and upon his inspection it was discovered that the sealant was in one case not applied and in another improperly applied. this had caused water to seep into the walls at the junction of the shower and the drywall, thus weakening / eroding the drywall, the base board and causing discoloration of the paint.Sal took plenty of time to go over all the options for repair. Keeping not only best results but cost in mind as he did so. It was determined that a the best route of action was to:1. thoroughly clean the door guides, weep holes and remove the incorrect sealant 2. correctly apply sealant, and reseal grout in necessary areas to avoid future water damage3. repair damaged drywall4. clean and sand all affected areas5. prime and re-paint affected areas Sal came on day one and thoroughly cleaned the affected areas using forced air and other tools to clean clogged weep holes and scrub the walls, tile grout and then after allowing it all to dry he resealed everything. He came back after giving it a full week to make sure it was dry and properly sealed. In this visit he inspected the previous work and then repaired the walls and sanded the base boards. This also required time to dry and set. On his final visit Sal inspected previous work, primed and pained the walls and baseboard. Everything looks as good as it did the day we moved in, and i am VERY pleased with his work. Sal is a true gentleman, prompt, courteous and a pleasure to work with. I would not hesitate recommending him to do help with any home improvement project.

Piece of cake.

I was pleased with the results. The house came out good. It practically looks brand new. You can probably see before and after pictures on his website: Sal's home improvement solutions.