Prime Home Improvement

Terrible experience. On 10/24/11, I received a violation from the NYC Department of Buildings for "failure to maintain building in a code compliant manner". Specifically the gutters from the roof (left and right sides) were "diverting water through 4" piping onto the street. I contracted with Prime Home Improvements to remedy the problem. Rather quickly they sent Vincent out to do the job. He connected the leaders on the right side and left side of the house to the main sewer line. When I went to the NYC Department of Buildings to file a Certificate of Correction they would not accept it. They said that diverting the water into the main sewer line needed a building permit or needed to be completed by a Master Plumber. What follows is a log of my attempts to reach Prime Improvements to discuss this matter: 2/29/12 - left phone message with receptionist: no return call 3/1/12 - left "urgent" phone message: no return call 3/5/12 - I called and spoke to Mel. He informed me that Vincent's father had died and that he was away for about a week (he said 5 days). Mel said he would get back to me when Vincent returned 3/14/12 - Mel never called me back. I called 0n 3/14 and left a phone message for Mel. He did not return my call 3/19/12 - called and left a phone message for Mel stating that unless he returned my call, I would make a complaint to Angie's List. To date he has not called back. Ironically, it was Prime Home Improvements who several years ago installed the gutters and leaders that piped my roof water directly the street . It was only when I received the violation that I realized that Prime was responsible for the original code violation.

Our experience with Prime Home Improvements was absolutely top-notch and stress-free. On the initial visit Gino provided us with a very thorough inspection of our existing roof and a practical explanation of how a proper roofing / roof-ventilation system works. We spoke at length about the step-by-step process Prime uses in performing a roof-replacement, touching on specifics such as what precautions are taken to prevent damage to the home and landscape, how the old roofing materials are removed and disposed of, deck inspection and replacement, application of ice-shield, felt paper, drip edge, right down to the type and number of nails used per shingle. We also went through the warranty on the products as well as on the craftsmanship, which compared equally with other contractors we interviewed. In addition, Gino did an excellent job of orientating us to the specific products that are used in the Owens Corning Roofing System, including their WeatherLock ice and water barrier, Fiberglass Reinforced felt underlayment, Starter Strip Plus shingles, VentSure Ridge Vents, ProEdge hip and ridge shingles, along with the TruDefinition Duration Shingles with SureNail Technology. Using his iPad, Gino showed us a gallery of beautiful pictures of several jobsites before, during, and after their work was completed, along with various examples of their participation in continuing education / certification programs required by OSHA. At the conclusion of our consultation Gino furnished us with a handy book of product samples to assist us in making our color selection and provided us with three addresses of jobs they’d completed (a) within the last week (b) within the last year, and (c) from over a year ago. Within two business days we were provided a detailed quote from Mel that included all of the details that were discussed with Gino. We signed up and within a week the crew began their work. Our crew consisted of four men, David, Charlie, Marcus, and Cicero. They arrived on time each morning clad in a clean Prime Home Improvements uniform and wasted no time in staging and executing the job plan exactly as it was written; working in a very professional and efficient manner from morning until dusk. During the course of the project Mel kept in constant contact with us and visited the job-site three times to ensure that the job was being performed up to expectations. The crew was very contentious about making sure the job site was thoroughly cleaned at the end of each day. Upon the conclusion of the project (3 days) the site was fully restored to the exact condition it was prior to their arrival and the roof looked like it grew there, it is simply stunning. Prior to issuing a final invoice, Ron voluntarily came by the home and did a final walk-through with us to ensure that we were completely satisfied with the quality of the job. We highly recommend Prime Home Improvements to anyone looking for a professional, high-quality, honest, and fairly priced roof replacement.

It was a very cordial and warm experience. A very caring person Melvin Prelliano did a few important repair in rain drain and tile status.

I bought the Winter roof repair pkge via Angie's List and paid $149. The roofer did not show up for the scheduled appointment. I called later in the day and was told the tech did not show up to do the inspection and work because it was raining in the morning. It was not raining where I live, but it was cloudy and might have been raining elsewhere in the area. I made another appointment. This time it was raining slightly and again the roof tech did not show -- and again, there was no phone call. I've called twice since and both times I was told that someone would get back to me. No one has. The last time I called was on Tuesday, March 20 -- two days ago.I no longer trust this company and don't want them to do the work. What I'd like now is a refund on my credit card from Angie's List.Thank you. Michael Folie

Ron Ciuffetelli contacted us in record time and gave us an estimate that was fair. He told us that they could complete the job in about 2 days and was true to his word, even though we advised him that we may need extra work because of soft spots in the roof because of leakage. They had to replace some plywood which took an extra day, but everything was completed and all the debris and dumpster removed the last day of the job.

I found them on Angie's list and used a coupon that I purchased on the site. Our experience was wonderful. They did exactly what we wanted. They did not make any mess. They were very punctual.

Working with Ron at Prime Home Improvement has been a pleasure from start to finish. He not only is prompt, professional and an overall gentleman, he offers great advice and is responsive at every level - from initial contact and estimate to job execution,-(in our case) insurance mediation and follow-through. His workers are courteous and diligent. No lolly-gagging or interference from his crews. You hardly know they're there, an asset for any contracting work. Pricing is more than fair and Ron is attentive to working within a family budget. I highly recommend Prime to anyone with home improvement needs.

Mel showed up on time to provide estimate. Installation was delayed, but they called to let us know in advance and promptly rescheduled and completed the work as promised.

I did not feel like this was very professional.

Overall, we are disappointed with this contractor. Our agreement started back in the fall of 2011 and should have been completed by the end of October; however, we are now over six months into this, and we have yet to have closure on this project. We are still left with tiles that were cracked in our shower from the workers that blew insulation into our house in September, almost six months ago. Our bathroom faucet is still shut off because it has not been properly fixed, though they have charged us for it. The railings for the hallway stairs had to be replaced due to faulty workmanship the first time around. (They were replaced and are solid now.) Yet, the most disappointing part has been the front railings of our porch, which are still unfinished. They have had to re-do the front railing multiple times for various reasons, and they are still not complete. It was clear the the first installation was done by someone who had no idea how to install the materials. Just when we thought they were getting close to being complete, we learned that materials used on the front porch were from a discontinued line, so that the railings can never be finished because the remaining parts do not exist any longer. (We learned this on our own after having to research on-line why the wrong materials kept being sent to our house. The contractor did not volunteer this information.) To make matters worse, the contractor is no longer responsive to our calls. We initially hired this contractor because of his outstanding ratings on Angie's List, but we they have failed to live up to their reputation. We are now wondering if the job will ever be finished. On a positive note, the painter they employed was excellent, the window installation went fine, and the electrical work was completed without incident. However, I cannot in good conscious recommend this contractor for anything other than their painter. ***March 16 2012 UPDATE*** We have amicably resolved the issues with Prime. They have refunded the cost of the porch railings and installation and we agreed we would find another contractor that is more familiar with the products for that application. As Gino indicates, he has been to our house mornings, evenings and weekends to discuss / resolve the issue. He remained professional and courteous throughout that resolution.

excellent job; very punctual, very tidy

As recent first time home buyers, we were afraid and skeptical to use Prime Home Improvement because the price was too good to be true. I hope the quality is going to be the same (they just finished the roof a couple of days ago and it looks good but I think the look is not the only important criteria here) as the work organization and their patience (especially Gino's!). For that I would definitely give them A+. Very responsive and very patient! I think Gino and/or Mel came several times (I am not sure because it was my husband who was meeting with them). They answered millions of questions we had over the phone. The work was done exactly as promised: they said mason will come and he came on the specified date; the crew will come and finish in 3-4 days and they did just like that: removed old, installed new and cleaned after themselves. Of course, some small things could be done differently but overall, the job was done in a great manner and the price - nobody could beat it (just hope they are still making a profit and will continue their service). Thanks a lot Prime Home and Gino especially!

They were super responsive in the bidding stage, and came up with a good price for the scope of the job. I will say that the major work was done quickly and well, but little things fell through the cracks. There was some demolition/ construction debris left behind (much to my tenants' disappointment) but when alerted, Prime corrected the situation quickly. It took a bit longer than anticipated for the guys to finish the small details (installation and painting of the trim area around the new storm door), and their communication was not always very good (failure to reply to phone calls/texts, etc.) Not sure if that was due to "holidays" (as was suggested) or just too much volume for this company to handle. It is very convenient to be able to pay via credit card and their interest free finance option allows me to pay a set monthly fee to have the work paid off in 12 months. Despite the snags, I would likely use Prime again, and would recommend to most homeowners. Angie's list does not offer the B+ or A- option, and that's the grade I would give, not a full A, due to the failure to keep an eye on the little things.

In short, excellent experience. Gino explained everything in detail when he provided me an estimate. Their estimates are competitive, esp after $500 Angies List discount. Given the time of year (late Dec) they were able to quickly assign a well trained crew to work on the job. The people who came to work on the roof spoke English, were well mannered, answered any question or concern I had and were able to finish a high quality job within 2 days. Tarps were installed around the walls where they worked and the area was properly cleaned when they left. I was using Prime Home Improvement for the first time, but it turned out to be a great choice and I will highly recommend them. For sure, they will be on my list for any future home improvement I need to get done.

My parent's home suffered water damage to the basement entrance. The damage was due to seepage through the tiles from the outside porch. The entire porch needed to be retiled as well as new sheet rock installed to the basement entrance. The person I dealt with was Ron and he also came to the house to do the estimate. He was prompt, friendly and actually helpful. He suggested my parents contact their insurance company, because some of the damage may be covered by their policy. He even offered to meet with the adjustor. Ron did meet with the adjustor and gave us both a copy of his estimate. My parents did receive payment from the insurance company. The amount was considerably lower than his estimate. I contacted Ron and relayed this information to him. He suggested I speak with a supervisor, verify the amount and ask other questions. Ron also said he would speak to them as well, but I needed to get a name and contact number. I called Ron and left a message with the information on November 8th and also sent him a text. I never heard from Ron again. We were thankful that he gave us the idea to submit an insurance claim and were actually considering hiring him. We are not sure what happened. I guess he didn't need our business

Prime was a great company to work with overall. Gino came and gave me an estimate the day after I called the company and they were working on the roof the very next week. They brought a large dumpster and a bunch of tarps for the scraps and old shingles. I was told that they would make sure to protect all the plants surrounding the house. Well, that didn't happen. A huge patch of plants were completely crushed along with two old wood sculptures. I didn't really care about that stuff, but for those who read this, make sure that they cover everything with tarps properly. Other than that, the job went quickly. They even finished the job while working in the rain! The roof looks great! The clean up crew wasn't very thorough and I had to ask them to pick up large chunks of shingle scraps 3 times that they were going to leave behind. I still find nails and small scraps of shingle every once in a while, but I unfortunately expected that to happen. After the clean up, there was some room in the top of the dumpster and they allowed me to throw a bunch of construction scraps from my renovations in there. It was great and save me some money! Just a couple weeks later the snow storm hit and we had a fist size hole punched in the brand new roof by a falling branch. The service guys came out right away and fixed the shingles and the plywood below it within two hours. It only cost me $150! No one is perfect, but Prime does quality work very fast for a great price.

They finished on timer, were polite and very agreeable. They went above and beyond what I asked them to do. I am very happy with their service. The men even came on the weekends to make sure it got done before it got to cold out.

I would not use this company as they cannot be trusted.

Ron Ciuffetelli, salesman (?), was a pleasure to deal with. He went over the insurance company estimate point by point and gave me an estimate for the same amount of money the insurance company would cover for the repairs and replacement. The work was scheduled for Saturday, November 26th. Nobody ever showed up on Saturday. I called the office and Ron's cell and did not receive a reply until Monday morning when I once again called Ron. The reason he gave me for the no-show was "I guess nobody wanted to work on the holiday weekend". The roofing materials were delivered Tuesday and the work was done Wednesday, November 30th. The roofers were well aware that we have many dogs. There is a dog run next to the house and not under the area where the roof was being replaced. I had intended on letting the dogs out in the dog run when they needed to go out while the men were working, but the roofers had dropped old shingles, as well as nails, in the dog run. Very inconsiderate of them. At the end of the job, I went outside to check on their clean up efforts. It was already dark and I couldn't see the unlit areas of the yard. I asked if they did a thorough job of picking up those nasty roofing nails, with the sharp perpendicular barbs, and they said they had. I found at least a dozen nails on the concrete next to the house. I asked if they could do another pick up with the magnetic gizmo and they told me the magnetic gizmo was no longer there. During daylight hours, we picked up over 100 of those barbed and unbarbed nails from the yard, as well as a bunch of old and partial shingles on the grass and the roof. That, in and of itself, is unacceptable and unprofessional. On the plus side, during the recent heavy rains our roof did not leak so I am giving them an "A" for quality. They met the insurance company estimate, so they get an "A" for price. Punctuality was horrible, as they did not show up when first scheduled. I suspect they never intended to do the work on Saturday as the roofing materials were not delivered until Tuesday. Professionalism received a "D" because of the nails and shingles left for us to comb the yard to find.

I had purchased the big deal for $999 that promised to paint 4 rooms. Although I was contacted by phone promptly after I purchased the deal, thereafter it wasn't as professional. The appointment to see my apt and discuss what needed to be done (as I did not have 4 rooms to paint, but less and needed some extras done in lieu of the less rooms) was scheduled for the following Sat, at 9 am. I had plans to go away that weekend, which I had to cancel. On Sat, at 7:45 am I receive an email from Mel saying that he has an emergency and we have to reschedule. The new appointment was set for the next Monday, at 1PM, for which I had to ask my mother to come over, as I was working and wanted to get the ball rolling. On the set Monday, my mom waited for them until 2PM, and they did not show up, nor did they call, as I had left her cell phone # with Mel. Instead, at 2 PM, Mel called my phone and left a message that he is a "bit" late, and he can't find my building! One hour without calling it's hardly a "bit" late- it's plane unprofessional!!! In the world of business and proper etiquette, one should call before or at least at the appt time to say that person is running late.Ultimately, he made it to my building at 2:15 pm. In the evening when I contacted Mel, he started back pedaling that he doesn't know why I needed the estimate if I purchased the Big Deal, and that he could've just sent his painters over, to avoid all the misunderstanding. How can you send painters over when they don't even know what job they have to do, and without the materials being available to them? The conversation went in circles, where Mel tried to twist the story, at which I felt he was really insulting my intelligence with his cheap excuses. Therefore, I want my refund and don't want anything to do with this company! I am pressed by time, as I want to sell my apt, and this company cannot be trusted as they are not reliable or professional.

We saw their promo, 4 rooms painted for 999.00. The guys showed up on time and got right to work. They did a great job, painted everything by hand, and did a super clean up job upon leaving. The workers were very polite and friendly and I would recommend them to anybody.

The sales person and the workers were great. They did a great job cleaning up the project before they left. I would highly recommend them.

I was surprised at how quickly it went and we are pleased with the results.

two men arrived at 7am in a van ready to work.i speak spanish so we understood each other . but . . their should be someone who speaks english. with them just in case. both men appeared to know their job very well. so it was smooth sailing. the old roof was removed and the new roof was being laid down, some time after a few packs of shingles were laid down i noticed that the shingles werent the ones i pick totally the wrong color. i called the salesman and said the the work could be stopped and we can correct the problem ,we ll just have to stop now and reorder the right shingles. i dont think i wanted to have a blue tarp on my roof for a week or so.s So i settled for what was here already. by 4pm the roof was completed and it looks very good i am satified with the finish product . no dumpster was dropped at the location so the debris is set to be picked up tomorrow hopefully.

Incredible experience!!! This company was extremely professional. From the beginning estimate to the 4 days of work to complete the job the crew was most courteous. When the work was completed the crew cleaned everything and moved our deck furniture and barbecue back exactly the way it was before they began. I took advantage of the "Big Deal" on Angies list and it was a great savings for the size roof we have. I highly recommned this company. They are spectacular!