Elm Builders LLC

While I enjoyed conversations with the owner and found he and his family fascinating, the quality of work and knowledge base for someone who is making their career out of the contracting business was not what I would have expected. I felt as though I had to micromanage each step of the work and tell him when there appeared to be a mistake or the work was unacceptable--things he should have noticed and inspected. I feel this is the contractor's job and he should be inspecting the work at least twice daily. Why would any general contractor who takes pride in his work want their client to point out shoddy work? He was rarely on the job site for the work that he wasn't personally doing and seemed willing to let shoddy work go unless I complained. The work took over 2 months and the quality still wasn't great much less perfect! The plumber, when moving the shower fixtures to the opposite wall left the hoses under the house just dangling at first and did not tack them up. I took several pictures and asked my father (who is a well-respected contractor but lives out of state). He was horrified that a "professional" would consider that acceptable work. After pointing it out to Erik, he then had the plumber come back out to fix it. The tile guy left rough cut open edges around the built in shelves and a 1/2" or more gap along the top of one wall which he merely grouted in. Even though Erik noticed this when he went to seal the shower, he waited until I said something to get the tile guy to fix it. I also said something about the downslope of the built-in shelves but he said that was purposeful so that the water would drain out. Made sense so I let it go. However, I have finally gotten around to begin my move in and the shampoo/conditioner bottles fall off the ledge or lean way out. Last but not least, the glass installed for frameless shower has micro scratches extending all the way across it in several areas and is very noticeable when wet or steamed. We'll see if he gets back to me on that (just notified him today of that issue after I took my first shower there). All in all, the new tiled shower looks nice except for the scratches on the glass which will need to be replaced but won't be surprised if it leaks or the plumbing backs up. The second screw up...the attic pull down stairs which happens to be in the garage. The door had an entire corner taken out where the previous owners were using a stick to get it to close all the way. Initially, all I wanted was to replace the panel so that the opening was completely enclosed when shutting the door. After he replaced it though, the whole door now hangs open by about 6 inches and said the ladder was probably too heavy and/or the springs were shot but didn't know how to fix it. It is hot up there and I'm sure that is putting a strain on the heating and air system and electric bill! About to ask somebody else and just have them take care of it. It wasn't all bad. The person he hired to remove the popcorn ceilings and repaint ceilings and walls did a nice job. She obviously cared about the quality of her work and I have no complaints on her. Also, the work Erik did himself on the transom window turned out nicely. So far, no leaks and it is exactly what I wanted.