Hammer & Hand

unknown

Just got a bid and decided not to do the project with them due to cost.

Hammer and Hand do impeccable work but you will pay a premium price. They were able to handle an incredibly complex job on the sound room (working off hand drawn plans from our acoustician and constructing very complex walls and ceilings). They also did a great job on the deck including diagnosing and fixing leaks caused by shoddy original construction and fabricating custom balustrades to give the look and performance we needed. They are comfortable working with premium materials and complex finishes, but of course this also goes along with long lead times. They also have access to a range of high quality subs that they work with. All of our work was done on a cost plus basis so we have no experience of working on a fixed price contract with them. They also have a rather complex administrative process with many layers of overhead, so sometimes it is not clear who is on point for a particular decision. I would strongly recommend Hammer and Hand for premium, complex or unusual jobs but for more straightforward work I am sure you can find much much cheaper options.

Great to work with. They did everything we asked and even saved newly hatched ducklings that couldn't get out of the pool!

Hammer and Hand met with our designer but we never received the estimate. We sent hammer and hand emails asking about the estimate and the emails were never answered. Cost of service listed is payment made to our designer to meet with hammer and hand; no payment was made to hammer and hand.

unknown

Flawless execution and customer service; worth the extra cost.

The contractor was prompt in answering my request for an estimate, and called when they said they would. Communication between the office and the project manager was great, and although we didn't connect the first time they tried calling me, they called back the next day and set up a time to meet. I explained the project in a fair amount of detail on the phone, and Kevin met with my partner that afternoon. I had also sent architectural plans for them to review ahead of time. When Kevin emailed his estimate (which I understood would be preliminary), it was evident that he paid little to no attention to anything I told him. I indicated that we ONLY wanted a weatherproof shell, and that I already have a permit for the project. His estimate included prices for items I specifically stated should not be included: sheetrock, electrical work, and plumbing (of which there would be NONE). In addition, his estimate included outrageous costs for materials, including a $4200 estimate for siding that I could buy at Lowe's for less than $900. In all, the estimate for a weatherproof shell for a 392 square foot addition and staircase was on the order of $300 PER SQUARE FOOT. If you are interested in paying prices like that, these are your guys. I have no problem with paying a fair price for someone's labor, and even a markup on materials, but this and quot;estimateand quot; didn't even provide room for discussion. I guess this was their and quot;we don't really need your workand quot; estimate. I'd rather they hadn't wasted my time. UPDATE: Kevin has offered to provide me with another estimate now that the structural plans are complete. I will revise my review accordingly, once I have received the estimate. Update 3/18/14 - After providing Kevin with the structural plans, he submitted a revised estimate of $115,000. This still comes out to close to $300/SF for unfinished construction, which to my mind is very pricey. This estimate was the highest by far, of any that I obtained. While I appreciate Kevin's willingness to try again, this estimate still falls far short of anything reasonable, and I won't be hiring them for this project.

Hammer and hand actually remodelled out bathroom. They did a phenomenal job. They are not the cheapest company to hire but their craftsmanship is just excellent, it's superb. I mean, their attention to detail and just their skill and precision and everything, basically sum it up as craftsmanship. I last saw them about three years ago. It was probably in May. It cost about ten to twelve thousand. They installed a shower, a basic rain shower. The faucet head comes out of the ceiling and it's just kind of gravity drawn, so there is no spray or anything.

They are more expensive than other contractors but it is completely worth it as far as their craftsmanship. They are very professional and stand behind their work. If there is a problem with their work, they come back and fix it right away. They communicate well and have a lot of expertise in carpentry. They also are environmentally friendly. The workers I have come in contact with have a great sense of design and make sure to fit the character of the home.

They did a great job. They finished the job on time. It took about 4 months, and they were ahead of schedule most of the time. They were very good about keeping us informed about how the job was progressing and about what the expenses were. They came in under budget, so we were able to add a second bath instead of the one we had originally planned for. All along the way, they made suggestions to make the job more affordable and to do things in a way that made more sense design-wise. They also helped to make the space very well insulated. They did beautiful work.

We chose Hammer and Hand to insulate our 1890 Victorian house through the Clean Energy Works program. In partnership with CEW, they performed an evaluation of our house to determine how much weatherization work should be done. The pressure test pumped air into the sealed house to determine where the air leaks were and infra-red sensors were used to determine heat leakage. A team of techs examined our attic and basement spaces. The tests determined that we had about 16 complete changes of air per day. The plan was to reduce that by at least 30%. A range of options was presented to us with cost estimates for each phase. Once my wife and I decided how much we wanted to spend to weatherize the house among the many options presented to us, a work schedule was drawn up along with info on what to expect during each phase of the work. The work crews were professional and efficient, and cleaned up the work areas every day before leaving for the day. The job was scheduled to take about 7 working days to complete; however, it ended up taking roughly 10 to 12 working days to complete. Delays were caused by equipment breakdowns on at least 3 occasions beginning about the 2nd day when West Side Insulation, the subcontractor, delayed starting because of a vehicle breakdown. On two other occasions, there were delays due to malfunctioning equipment used to blow the insulation into the house walls. On every occasion, Jeremy, our project coordinator, kept us informed and up to date on developments. The insulation crew was largely Hispanic and many did not speak English well, but their coordinator, Hector, was in contact with us in person and by phone so that there On one occasion, the roofing contractor had to reschedule twice due to workload and a sick employee. This accounted for the lion's share of the delays. On every occasion, both project coordinators offered to make things right, even offering to pay for an additional night in a motel while the foam insulation was applied. When the job was completed, cleanup was thorough though the promised airing out of the upstairs of fumes of the foam application with powerful fans did not happen until I mentioned that it had not been done. The ventilation did not end until my wife decided that there were no longer any chemical odors in the house. Any area that showed heat leakage were dealt with promptly. Periodic quality control tests ensured that if an area was missed, that additional insulation was installed in the appropriate area. At the end of the project, another whole house pressure test was done, as well as infrared readings of the walls. Results were that the house was considerably tighter and air changes were reduced from 14 to about 4 per day. The furnace runs about half the time it did before insulation to maintain 67F. Thanks to Hammer and Hand we have a warm house this winter.

At least they called me back quickly to refuse me. :-(

I don't know if I would hire them again. Their work is very nice, but they have little regard for cost. Their scheduling and job site management could be improved yielding both lower costs and faster project completion. They do stand behind their work 100%, and are quite capable of tackling anything an old house can throw at them.

All of the Hand H staff were great to work with. They were creative in solving problems, always courteous and professional, and very knowledgeable. They also completed both projects in a timely manner.

We have used Hammer and Hand for at least five remodeling projects on our 100 year old house. Except for two subcontractors (a plumber and a tile setter) the work was excellent and well coordinated. They have always been sensitive to the cost constraints of the budget and are good to deal with. I would add that they were also open to feedback on those two subcontractors and no longer use them.

Hammer and Hand was very thorough in its explanations and was very professional. We decided, however, to postpone the work due to the cost.

We are very happy with the work they have done for us. They are very responsible and responsive to the customer's needs. They are very accommodating and nice to work with.

If I could give them higher marks than excellent I would. While I have had a few things done in my house in the past, no company did as good a job as Hammer and Hand. They were on time, always let me know what was going on in the project and came up with ways to get around the many quirks of my 1904 home. Kevin or Tom contacted me every day of the project to let me know what to expect and to let me know that if I had any questions I should contact them. All the subcontractors did an excellent job. They even all looked out for my cat to make sure she didn't get outside. So I went from freezing in winter because the house had almost no insulation and expensive to run Cadet space heaters to nice and toasty. The heat pump is quiet, the exhaust fan in the bathroom turns on by motion detection (how cool is that!) and I am finally warm. Thank you Hammer and Hand.

They did a good job. I was very pleased. All of their subs were very good and cooperative. My project manager was very good. I would say that they addressed most of my needs. I understand that sometimes things come up and no one has any control over, but I figured that was par for any project. It all turned out very nicely.

Their work turned out fabulously. They showed real professional and very good customer care. They had a project manager being a liaison between the company itself and the contractors. I found that to be a very positive part of the experience. They offered weekly or biweekly meetings. They provided a constant flow of information between us as the clients and the business end of getting it done at Hammer and Hand.

They are very good to work with and allowed me to do some of the demolition for the project to save money. Always timely and the clean up after themselves every day.

After interviewing and receiving numerous etimates from other contractors, we chose Hammer and Hand to do our kitchen remodel. The estimate they provided us was $24,000. We are aware that this is just an estimate, planned the avg. 10-15% over and along the way we added a few things. Not accounting for what we added, the total remodel cost us over $37,000!!! How can a company say they have been doing this work for as long as they have, and not be able to provide a more accurate and realistic estimate. We used up all of our savings as well as having to use credit to pay the rest. It is unexcusible to place people in this kind of financial strain. I would not recommend or use this company again.

Horrible. They set up camp, and proceeded at a snail's pace. The lead on the project, Coop, was usually on the phone, and not for our project. After spending over $200k, and only getting a few windows done, we asked for a final bill. It was $120k. We paid it, then sent them away. After almost a year, they are now suing us for over $50k. I would NEVER use these fools again, and I would NEVER even recommend you call them. They are a complete rip-off. Daniel Thomas has no morals, no business sense, and no idea how to run his company. Apparently, there is a silent partner, who invested money, who makes all the real decisions. My advise is not to hire them or you'll get a Hammer and Hand job, which is to say half done, at extremely high prices.

He was the most efficient and the most thorough of all the contractors that gave me estimates.