Antosek & Associates llc

He was very thorough and professional, attention to detail.

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UPDATE: 8/12/2014 - I waited over a month as the sealer manufacturer recommended before sealing the deck. As I was sealing it this past weekend, I noticed a lot more issues with the deck, so I lowered my original rating. The main new issues were that I found about 5-6 more split boards/spindles due to the screws or nails. I also found that some of the facial boards started warping due to the rain and the fact that it didn't have screws properly placed in certain spots to avoid this, one main one being the one on the stairs. I would have preferred him to use a thicker facial board to keep this from happening. Also, if you choose to hire Sean, please do not let him talk you into using the 3" Galvanized Steel Nails for the boards. I found that over the past month, the nails not only started discoloring the wood black at the nail holes, but also that they loosened due the the weathering and now about half of the boards squeak when walked on, and some are even lifting up spots leaving an uneven floor surface. (This is why decks should be assembled with decking screws,). Additionally, there were a few pieces of the post skirts that fell off when lightly bumped, others were loose. It appears that maybe the nails weren't long enough to hold them into the posts. Finally, I had discussed with Sean about putting in a support frame behind the lattice before installed, which he agreed to, but he did not do this. Now in spots, the lattice is not connected to anything and just wobbles. Luckily the mahogany lattice is thick and retains it's form, but hopefully won't crack if bumped. 7/6/2014 - Sean was punctual and communicative of attendance and if he would not be here due to rain. The project took 3 weeks to complete plus 2 extra days due to the lattice being on back-order. He worked from 7:30 to 3pm every day except Saturdays or Sundays, although Angie's list states that the operating hours are 7am-7pm. He also hired a neighbor as his help for the project. He had all of the appropriate tools for the job. All the work - spindles, railngs, boards (with exception to the stairs) are even, parallel and line up well. Overall, the deck looks nice. One bothersome point is that he continually brought up the fact that I was getting such a great deal and that he wasn't making much money from this project. This being said, the project was really a chore. It was stressful dealing with Sean on a daily basis due to the quality of the work. Although Sean was very personable, all around, he was difficult to work with when it came to fixing errors or making adjustments. In the mornings, when I would discuss issues that needed to being fixed, Sean would argue all of the points that I brought up. Most of which were basic quality issues or errors (mis-cut boards, cracked boards, gaps, etc.) I literally lost sleep over this project knowing that any issue (error) I saw that needed to be addressed would have to be argued the following morning with Sean. In the mornings when I would show Sean the errors that needed to be fixed, he was very quick to say he would not fix or replace it, or "that's how it's done", or "I'm not perfect". It would usually take about 3-4 times of me explaining the error, that it wasn't up to my standards, and telling him that I wanted it replaced or fixed. He would then say that I would need to pay for more material, which I explained that I wouldn't because it was an error of quality which was not my fault. Other issues we had with the craftsmanship were: - The concrete pad at the bottom of the steps is crooked and I explained this to Sean the following day, but he refused to redo it and stated that it was done very well. - The dirt from where the concrete pad was placed was not removed properly and only shoveled a few feet under the deck. Now when it rains, all of that dirt washed onto the new concrete pad. I guess eventually it will all wash away. - The steps are not level and angle down backward about 1/2", but he refused to redo the stringers and rebuild the steps. He did offer to shim the boards to level them out, but this would have made all of the steps different heights. So I opted to live with un-level steps. The largest issue we had with the project was the very loud argument about the spindles. One day when my wife and I came home from work, about half of the railings and spindles were installed. But the spindles looked odd, the layout very strange, and the spacing on the ends was too small. But after looking at it for a while, we figured out it was because he always finds the center of the run between posts and starts a spindle there. The math doesn't always work this way and sometimes the spindles need to be started equidistant from the center. So we explained how we wanted them layed out, which lead to a hour and a half argument because Sean insisted that his way was the only way it was done and that our method "was not done that way". He was yelling at us and refused to listen. I even took my time the night before and made a template to show him how I wanted them layed out, but he just scoffed at that. The argument got so heated that he threatened to get his decking handbook to show us this rule that the spindles must start at center, but it was not in the book. My wife also looked up the spacing method online and printed it out for him. This argument with my wife and myself was very unprofessional and childish. He eventually conceded to do it the way we wanted and later apologized. I then felt that I needed to take the day off of work and oversee the adjustment and installation of the rest of the railings. Luckily I did so, because I then needed to show Sean the proper spacing for the spindles on the stairs. The finish work was sloppy - nail heads sticking out, screw heads sticking out, boards misaligned, frayed cuts and drill holes, and large gaps between cuts. I had to put in 2-3 days of finishing work myself to complete the project before sealing. The original plan had two gates that needed to be done, but due to the way Sean installs the railing posts, I decided not to have these installed since one would be too far in front of our sliding door. Even though these were cancelled, we didn't receive any sort of discount or refund. So in essence, we ended up paying for all of Sean's mistakes anyway. In the end, I am disappointed with the craftsmanship, but all around happy with the overall result. The mahogany wood that we used is beautiful and was great recommendation by Sean. Please note that when using hardwood decking material, you will need to get a special oil-based sealer. I had to do my own research for this as Sean did not mention that we needed special sealer for hardwood.

Sean and his helper were there on time every day and finished these jobs on time and in a very professional manner.

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Punctual, courteous, and listened to my requests regarding style. Excellent execution and attention to detail. Completed work on time and was an excellent communicator throughout.

It turned out very well; it was excellent. He was honest and did excellent work. He showed up every day on time and he was very clean. He was reasonably priced. He was very efficient and very respectful. He was a very nice man. I would absolutely use him again without question.

They were excellent. They did a great job and it was very neat.