PETE HESLER - WINDOWS & CARPENTRY

unknown

Excellent. Quality work.

.ption

They never returned my phone call.

I showed him my problem and he had suggested that we address the way the windows were draining. He said he wanted to try this first before we tried more expensive options. When he was fixing my window he damaged my wall. He came back promptly and fixed it. I respected him for being helpful for me.

Pete is very easy to deal with and quite capable. He installed a window, I purchased, by himself on the second story of my house. He was concerned with what I purchased and measurements and offered to came out to measure. Wasn't necessary and everything worked out fine. To my point; he is very careful, detailed and clean. He also shaved down a door and fixed a door hinge for me as well. So I can also speak to his general carpentry skills and misc services. I wasn't sure about pricing, I must be getting old becasue everything seems expensive these days. His price seemed reasonable for the time he took and the result. He took the better part of the day and did the exterior flashing and came back for a follow up to install new trim. Pete is definately recommended with high marks, I doubt you'll go wrong with his services.

well

After initial contact, contractor gave detailed estimate on repairing broken window and storm. His estimate was very thorough, detailing each step of the process that he would undertake on my behalf. The cost of hourly labor seemed high, so I did not select this contractor.

Pete was extremely professional and showed a passion for his craft. Pete provided a competitive price for the new windows, but I decided to go with another company that offered similar quality windows at a lesser price. However, I will definitely call Pete again for other projects in my home. While he was measuring my windows for the estimate, he would give friendly advice on areas he noticed where I could improve energy efficiency and various other areas that needed cosmetic improvements. He showed an eye for detail and a thorough knowledge of home construction.

He offered to come out the same day as the phone call to give the estimate; and he did. Because I couldn't be there I spent about 15 mintues on the phone with him telling him exactly what I wanted done which was to do a "clean" drywall job (hanging drywall over existing plaster walls). He went to my home and surveyed the job, told my husband he would call me with the estimate. The call never came. Two days later I got an email saying he suggests gutting the kitchen for a few different reason and asked if I wanted to proceed with the estimate (other contractors didn't find these "reasons" to be an issue so I am sketchy on his motive for this suggestion). I immediately responded yes and within seconds got a return email asking if I wanted the quote to include insulation (odd question I thought being that a total gut is a total gut if insulation is neccessary it should go without saying). I responded "yes". I have yet to hear back. It has been 1 week and 2 days since his visit. I have since had 2 other contractors come and provide me with same day quotes.

He is excellent. I liked him. He was a nice, personable person. He came on time and everything. I would hire him again.

I am somewhat conflicted about detailing my experience but think it necessary nonetheless. A project that should have taken a day and a half, plus the time to get the door after the order, took over three months. I wanted a good patio door (directly to the outside, not to a covered patio) so was willing to go with Andersen,, knowing that it would be expensive. Because the door to be installed was not covered by additional structural overhang, I was told that I could not get the door that I wanted - a French door - because Andersen would not guarantee it would be water tight, so I settled for the door that I could get. I did not want a slider, so my options were essentially the same style door I was replacing. (The ordering was done via catalog, not in person) My next choice was outside color. I wanted white. When the door finally arrived (the first door) it was clearly not white. Not just off-white, but a sandy taupe multiple grades of color from white. The response to this was that in fact this was white; that "Andersen only makes one white." Which is swell, except why on earth would the company represent sand as white. I chose brass for the locking mechanism, not knowing or being informed of what the locking mechanism of the door actually entailed (although I did not ask, either.) So, a month goes by before the door arrives and Pete can find the helper that he needs to do the actual install (I had informed him when we first ordered the product that I would be out of state on business during certain periods and that although I did not feel it necessary to be home when he installed the door, I did want to be in the state, so this delayed things after the delay in just getting the door.) It was when the (first) door was installed that I noticed for the first time that the door was not white. Pete was gone by the time I got hime from work, so imagine my frustration when it took me ten minutes just to figure out the locking mechanism, and then to discover that the locks did not in fact engage. The reason for this problem was simple: the door was warped so badly that it was significantly off the plane of the lock in the frame. Those of you who have purchased Andersen products know that their doors are VERY expensive, so I felt that for what I ws paying, I should have had a door that responded to voice commands. When I interacted wtih Pete, he did not comment on the problems he had experienced with the lock, nor did he mention the warp. However, when I (enthusiastically, to say the least) pointed out the warp, adn that I had a GREAT deal of difficulty with the lock, he said that he had experienced some difficulty with the lock as well and had tried to adjust it during the original install. So here's my real problem. An experienced installer puts in a bad door and either doesn't notice (!!) or thinks that I won't notice, especially since the door won't complete the locking cycle because it is so off plane. Whatever the case, I had to point out the problem to him. It would have been one thing had he said to me that he found structural problems with the door and it needed to be replaced and Andersen is SO good with things like this, but that is not the way it happened. Needless to say, it was a frustrating disappointment. It took antoher nearly 7 weeks to get the Andersen rep to agree that yup, the door was warped and I should get a new one, so it was over three months before what should have been a two day job was finally finished. A bit about the locking mechanism. There is a bolt-like structure at the top and the bottom, as well as the actual deadbolt at the handle. In order to actually lock the door, you have to pull up the handle and only then can you turn the bolt to engage the locks. You need both hands to pull the handle up, whether you are inside or outside. If you are a litlte kid you could not do it; if you are a person with arthritic hands you couldn't do it either. Had I known this was the mechanism I was purchasing (I am not certain that there are other options) I would never have gotten it. In an emergency this lock will be a problem. And, as I mentioned, the door is an appallingly expensive near-duplicate of the door I replaced. I made some finishing choices that left me with an extremely disappointing result, overall. I can't blame Pete for the wood finish choices I made, and ultimately I think the door is OK, although the lock is still a sluggish nuisance. I just hope it is not dangerous. Not nearly worth the time and money; not nearly worth it. Lessons to be learned here, surely are to never purchase something this costly without seeing it first ("this is the only white Andersen makes..!!!) and unless it is an old reliable worker, never not be around for the major portion of the work, as inconvenient as that is. I hope that the damaged door was not Andersen attempting to just pass off a bad product (I know that major home stores commonly sell as new inside doors that have been cut wrong and returned). I previously felt that I couldn't afford to skimp on something as energy important as a door, but this was overall just an expensive negative experience. That I don't like the door is not Pete's fault; I do believe that he did want me to be...satisfied, but remember that I wanted French doors that might have provided some architectural appeal. This door is boring and it is incomprehensible to me that it was as costly as it was.

Excellent. We have used Pete for a number of household projects, and he always does an exemplary job. He is professional, neat and fair. We highly recommend Pete Hesler.

Great!

Time he said it would take was right on target as well as the price. A note on his intergrity. We were interested in energy star/gov. rebate windows. After ordering the larger of the 2 windows, Pete contacted us and said they had already started production on the window when he learned it was energy effecient but not eligible for gov. rebate. He offered us the chance to cancel (he would be out the money, not us) OR, if we ok'd the window, he would credit us the amt the govt would've rebated us. VERY FAIR AND HONEST! Something rare for anyone nowadays, let alone a contractor we had never used before. We learned of him off of Angie's List and he promptly gave us MANY references, which I checked out 5 which had nothing but positive to say. Again, we would not hesitate to use him again!

This was the second time that we had Pete work on our house. He is completely professional, very knowledgeable, and knows how to handle any situation that comes up. We had an issue with the baseboards not lining up from 1 room to the next. Pete cut pieces of wood and attached them to the baseboards to make them custom so that they would line up and look right. They look fantastic! Our last job was quoted for the job, this one was by the hour.

Pete is extremely professional and experienced. After coming to give us an estimate on several projects, he quickly emailed a quote that was easy to understand and broken down by job. He advised us on what kind of door to purchase and picked up the door for us at Home Depot. The job took 2 days. He worked with 1 assistant, and was clean and efficient. The new wall, door and siding are perfect! While Pete was in the house, we asked him to do a few small odd jobs (install a stabilizing bolt on our front door, install a closet door, and cut our powder room door which was too tall after tile installation). He said "no problem" and charged us $60/hr for these small things. We plan on having him come back to install baseboards and a few other small finishing projects in our new family room.

Pete is a total professional. He arrived on time, did the work well, cleaned up the work area, and kept me informed of his progress. This particular "job" involved a number of different skills, and Pete did everything quickly and in a very professional manner. When faced with having to unload all of his equipment from his truck and park at a distance due to unexpected work on my condo's access road, he never missed a beat or complained about the considerable inconvenience. The quality of the work was excellent, and the entire job was completed much more quickly than expected.

Pete is the best. He always returned calls, arrived on time, completed the job, cleaned up, and even put our furniture back. I highly recommend him.

Excellent work. On time. Cleaned up after working each day and at the end of the job including cleaning the windows. Professional, pleasant, efficient and provided lots of good advice for other problem areas.

EXCELLENT WORK AND VERY PROFESSIONAL! MOLDING/SURROUNDING FINISH IN INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR IS BEAUTIFUL, PRESENTING WITH A FINISHED AND TAILORED LOOK. PETE (OWNER) AND CONNIE (ASSISTANT)WERE EXTREMELY FRIENDLY, AND WERE VERY PATIENT WITH MY THREE DOGS. CONNIE EVEN RETURNED THE FOLLOWING MONDAY TO CLEAN THE WINDOWS! WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND TO ALL. THANKS PETE AND CONNIE!

VERY FRIENDLY AND PROFESSIONAL, ON-TIME, CLEANED UP AFTER JOB.