Katchmark Construction Inc

Giving us the middle of three wide ranging estimates, and given our relatively new budget conscious "retired" status, the decision was made difficult until... We reflected on our experience with Katchmark ten years earlier, when they clad our house in siding and installed new shutters. We remembered how efficient they were while interacting with us throughout the project to be sure we were happy as they progressed. We especially liked their respect for the property and landscape, taking care not to produce any collateral damage. We decided to bring them in again, this time to replace the roof, which had developed two minor and one major leak. Their estimate had the same hidden damage caveat as the others, which is always a little unnerving. They suggested a (low cost) improvement to mitigate future ice dam damage, and we made a deal. The hidden damage was more extensive that we would have thought. They took close up digital photos to show us before proceeding. The cost of the new sheathing was actually insignificant. When they were done, we felt confident it was a quality job. Almost a year and two wind storms later, their work has been proven. We had expressed concern for our new plantings, a recent landscape make-over. We were surprised, even a little embarrassed, at the extreme measures that the crew took to protect the yard. We're confident that anyone who chooses Katchmark will not be disappointed in them.

Thyey did a perfect job. They were fast and did everything right the first time. They offered competitive pricing.

Finally having my day in “court”. It only took 9 years so I’m going to make the most of it. It was August 2004 and a Katchmark Comfort Consultant came to my house to give me an estimate for new shingles. I was ordering the best so when the workers arrived I was surprised at what happened next. That morning while I waited for them to arrive I fell asleep on the couch and awoke suddenly to the sound of hammering and banging. I looked out the window and “eight” workers where putting up and taking down the siding. I was shocked that they didn’t have the courtesy to knock on the door and introduce themselves. Well that was because when I went outside none of them spoke English. When I looked at the work - they had finished the job….surprise it was the wrong roof. I ordered thick gray colored and this was brown slates! They couldn’t understand me and I couldn’t make them understand they did the wrong job. Suddenly one of them said something and four of them ran away quickly without getting into the vehicle. The other four called someone and they left. When I contacted the “comfort consultant” about the botched job he send another crew to fix it. Enter Doug Painter – arrogant/idiot. Rude, disrespectful and bigoted. He claimed the 4 day-laborers messed up and we had to wait to get the correct siding from the warehouse – all the way in Chantilly…I live in Prince William County. During the wait he didn’t do anything to get good will and made the situation worse by his arrogance. When the siding arrived it was dusty and looked like it had been in the warehouse exposed to the elements. I am convinced to this day they were not the correct siding. After this debacle I spoke with the President to try and get my money returned. You see in the process they destroyed the wood dormers and I had to hire another company to fix their mess. I attempted to take them to small claims court but in PWC the option to go to general district court would have been out of my league. So I tried to get help from my politicians, state licensing boards but no one could do anything. They even lied to the Better Business Bureau. Wish I had an Angie’s List back then. But good things come to those who patiently wait. Even though I sold the house and moved to a more expensive one, I certainly will need their kind of service….not only will I never use them….I still bad mouth them every chance I get. Thank you Angie’s List! What a way to start the new year.

Everything went very well indeed. Katchmark being an exception thus far, I would say that Northern Virginia home repair contractors need to watched like a hawk - they are very fast in praising the fantastic job they do and that they would never do anything that was not right. Unfortunately, many of the contractors are just flat ignorant of what is right.. They know how to swing a hammer but they are fast to hire third world labor who have little training, lousy or non-existent tools and told to make-do. The quality of the work shows it. You will almost never see a management guy coming to the job site and doing any quality assurance. It is up to you to see the problem and raise h*** about it. Katchmark is not one of these companies. The crew cleaned everything up each day, and left the job site pristine. They even did some small additional things gratis. I have a lot of my own carpentry skills and have worked with a number of contractors as I have taken care of the facilities of a Church for a number of years. I was also a Home Inspector for 5 years.

Great. We had one attic vent blown out /damaged in summer storm. Because we still have aluminum siding, and weren't ready to replace the siding, we had difficulty finding anyone to do the work, which involved removing and reinstalling the siding to replace the vents. Katchmark was recommended to us by another company, and they were great! Got a prompt and accurate estimate (we decided to replace all 3 vents on our house at that time). Work was performed as promised.

Vinny arrived on time to give the quote. He was professional and friendly at the site and provided different options that he was to quote. Unfortunately, I never received the quote and tried to contact Vinny to get the quote but never received a response. Based on my initial experience with Vinny, I was leaning towards using Ktchmark, but because ot the non-responsiveness, I would not consider using them in the future.

Vendor was the lowest priced quote by far (10k) for the amount of work performed. They also were much more flexible when it came to selection of materials. I was able to select both roofing shingles and siding that they do not normally work with at no extra cost. Install team arrived on time to do the work and completed the entire project in 1 week. Only issue was a minor water leak around the wood stove vent pipe which their service team addressed responsively.

The gentlemen did a great job . The work was clean, brisk, and very well done. I recommend Katchmark Highly on my List!!!!!

From start to finish, Katchmark did a great job for us. Eric was on time for every meeting, was highly responsive to questions/concerns, and followed up on everything to make sure the job was done right. His team was also on time, and were extremely competent and thorough all the way through to cleanup. The job was done on-schedule and on-budget with a high degree of professionalism, attention to detail, and concern for customer satisfaction.

The estimator was very professional, punctual and patient in explaining what needed to be done. He presented options and approximate pricing for all products and materials for the project. He was willing to speak with the insurance company. This was important to us since what we were interested in doing varied from tasks delineated in our claim estimate. The project estimate was sent and followed up on promptly. The only reason we did not select this company was a lower estimate from another company.

Katchmark did not respond to my request to inspect my roof for damage.

For this project, my husband prepared a detailed spreadsheet of the replacement windows, transoms, sliding glass door, and installation of one new storm door to the entrance. We received several quotations from vendors. Katchmark?s quotation was within a small price range of the quotations we received. We signed a contract with Katchmark at the end of July 2012. On the same day the contract was signed, I noticed that the contract stated replacing 17 windows; however, there are actually 19 windows in the house and the spreadsheet also included 19 windows. I am willing to acknowledge that this was a mutual mistake; however, this mistake cost the homeowner (me) another $1,300. I am very glad it was identified and resolved early and not when the installation occurred. This project also included installation of new aluminum cover to existing wood trim around the windows. Three years before, we had similar aluminum cover installed on the back of the house along with installation of a storm door onto the deck. Because of the homeowner's association mandated tim colors, matching the tim color was very important. We spent a lot of time with the Katchmark representative idenfying a matching trim color to the existing aluminum cover/homeowner's association color. My expectation was that the new aluminum cover would be textured just like the cover installed three years prior. At the end of August, we were notified that the trim selected came in flat only. This was disappointing as I might have selected a slightly different color in July had I known that what we selected was available in flat only. The project was scheduled and then delayed by Katchmark because of the lack of all of the materials. In fact, we repeatedly requested that Katchmark ensure all of the supplies and materials were obtained before mobilizing to the jobsite. Unfortunately, as soon as the crew arrived, Katchmark?s job supervisor advised of the fact that they had the wrong storm door for front door to the residence. The storm door was installed approximately three weeks after the windows and sliding glass door were installed. My expectation for the front storm door was that it would be exactly like the storm door to the deck that was installed three years before. The door that was installed is a better quality door than the door to the deck; however, there are some significant differences. The front storm door came with two removable glass panels separated with a 3-inch horizontal aluminum bar in the middle of the door in lieu of one solid panel that I was expecting. There was only one screen provided for the door. When we asked about the second screen since the door has two removable panels, we were told that the door only came with one screen. What? The door also came with polished brass hardware and the back storm door is finished in black. While the door is close to matching the homeowner?s association trim color, it is not an exact match. The color difference is not horrible; however, it is noticeable. I am concerned the homeowner?s association may require correction. Had I know it was different before the installation, I would have requested a homeowner?s association variance. We identified one window screen that was warped and required replacement. To get a replacement ordered, we had to push Katchmark. Two months after the original window installation, this screen has yet to be replaced. The site installation was very good. The crew maintained a clean jobsite while they were working and left the site with little construction debris at the end of each day. Though my husband was displeased to see a dent in the air condition fan where is appears a tool was dropped on it. To the best of our knowledge, the ding was not there before this project began. Overall, my husband and I are very pleased with the new windows, storm door, and sliding glass door. We are happy with the quality of the products installed as well as the workmanship. I am disappointed with the ability of the personnel to manage my expectations of this project?especially associated with the aluminum cover as well as the storm door look and features.

Repairman was prompt, knowledgable and courteous. I was very satisfied with his work.

The quoting experience was good. They were very competitive with other top tier roofers and ether materials and approach were what I'd consider a best practice. They were a little spotty on communicating the work date but it worked out fine. On the start date they arrived on time and got right to work. They were quick and efficient through the process and finished that day. The one area I'd have wanted a little more focus would be on cleanup. There were a few nails that must have been on the roof or in the gutters that ended up on the driveway apron. Overall good company, good price, good people. Most importantly, they were always honest and professional.

The estimator was knowledgable and made several suggestions for improving the design of the trouble spot. The work crew arrived on time and completed the work quickly and professionally. I would definitely hire this company again.

We were disappointed in the service we received from Katchmark: we called on September 28 for an estimate to fix our leaking slate roof. The salesman, Vinnie, came out on Oct. 1 and provided a reasonable estimate. We signed and emailed the agreement back the next day, Oct. 2. That's when the trouble started: despite 3 or 4 phone calls to the company, the work was not scheduled. It turns out that Vinnie did not pass along the agreement and payment info to the scheduler for 10 days! Meanwhile, our roof continued to leak, causing more damage -- BUT by then, we had already paid a substantial deposit to Katchmark. The scheduler was apologetic but could not get us in until Oct. 17, since no one had ordered the slate tiles. On Oct. 17, the crew arrived so late in the day (after 4:30 pm) that they could not finish the work. Instead, they left saying that they would return another day. The crew finally returned on Saturday, Oct. 20 to finish the work. Had we known that Katchmark would take 3 weeks to fix an active leak, we would have gone elsewhere. We feel strongly that the manager should speak with the salesman Vinnie so that this doesn't happen to anyone else.

In mid August 2012, Eric Templeton of Katchmark Construction came to my home to provide an estimate. He was very helpful in explaining the process and how the construction would take place. His estimate was unique among all that I received, since it included satellite photos of my roof and pre-determined dimensions, slopes, etc. This showed that Katchmark does its homework well. Once I decided to accept his offer from among 6 others, he was very good in negotiating several changes that I desired. He also kept in communication with me up until the time that the job was scheduled, at which time Eric Katchmark was my contact person. From October 10-13, 2012, Katchmark's crew headed by Phillipe and consisting of Luis and Douglas removed and replaced my pitched roof and flat roof. All three are very hard workers, take pride in their work, and clearly have all the skills and experience needed to bring projects to successful completion. They did an excellent job on my house. Everyday, they arrived early and worked until sunset. They cleaned up every evening and neatly stacked their equipment and supplies to be available for the next day. Phillipe and Luis answered all of my questions as the job proceeded. On the final day of construction, October 13, 2012, Luis and Douglas finished the job in the early afternoon and thoroughly cleaned up after themselves. While they reinstalled my gutter guards, they explained how the TPO on the flat roof was installed and how it would provide a thoroughly waterproof covering. They left my patio spotless and the front yard completely free of debris and nails. Virtually no evidence was left behind showing that major construction had just taken place. On October 12, 2012, another crew headed by Song did an equally excellent job in removing and replacing 3 sets of rakes and trim, installing Hardee board siding on the second floor dormers, and drilling vent holes and installing covers. The rakes look perfect as do the dormers. This hard working crew also knew what it was doing and performed professionally. Wayne Smith, the field supervisor, contacted me by phone at the beginning of the job to offer his assistance and to explain his role. He also came to the site on October 11, 2012 to oversee the work and to meet me in person. A few issues came up which he promptly and satisfactorily resolved. Eric Katchmark, the owner's brother, did an excellent job in keeping me informed as to when the work would begin. His calls were timely and he scheduled the work to ensure that I would be home during the construction period.

When we collected estimates from companies one of the main things we asked was whether they ran their own jobs and had their own workers or whether they used subcontractors. Katchmark assured us that they only used their own guys. We weren't even aware when the workers showed up that they were subcontractors and basically found out when we got an email from Angie's list asking us to review some construction company we hadn't heard of. So our major gripe with Katchmark was that they misrepresented themselves. My husband previously worked as a carpenter and was more than capable of performing the work himself but without a crew, he elected to hire Katchmark as they seemed to be able to do the work requested to my husbands rigorous standards. We ended up talking to one person who provided the estimate (Adrian) , another person who walked through the job with my husband before any work began (Eric Katchmark) and another person who was on site while the work was performed. These 3 people did not communicate with one another which caused Katchmark('s subcontractor) to return to our house 3 times before they performed a satisfactory job on the work agreed upon from the start. Below I outlined the major issues after the 2nd visit which resulted in a 3rd visit because Katchmark wasn't even capable of fixing the issues described on the first go around. 1 - The repair was not completed as discussed for a piece of siding that was installed warped by the Katchmark subcontractor. Adrian and my husband found that the warped edge of siding did not have a stud behind it. The STAPLES that were used during the original install were shot in at an angle to hit the stud behind the next peice. - The solution was to REMOVE the buckled siding, install another stud and re- install the siding with CODE COMPLIANT #8 galvanized nails. This was not done. The subcontractor jus used trim screws at a sharp angle to hit the stud and suck the siding back tight. 2- The original install of the siding was completed using staples, not #8 nails. This is not code compliant, nor is it industry standard. Structural siding needs to be nailed with #8 galvenized nails. Staples have not been allowed by code for at least 10 years. The solution was to go through all (3) area's of the house where the siding was replaced by Katchmark and re-nail everything using #8 Galvanized nails. This was not done, not even on the (1) side of the house that work was done. It was discussed this with Adrian that we did not want some joker with a nail gun to run through all the new siding either turning it into swiss cheese. We requested for this to be nailed by someone who will not splinter all the edges. 3- The original install was supposed to have caulked all the seams of the siding, not just the trim. This was discussed confirmed to be in the scope as discussed with Eric prior to release. This was written into the signed contract as well. We thought this was done until my husband had a closer look at the buckled siding. None of the seams were caulked. - The solution was to have all the seams caulked at all (3) areas while the warranty repairs were being done. This did not happen, not even at all the seams on the side where work was done today. Only a few seams were caulked and it was very poor work. There are alot of gaps in each seam, the caulk is useless the way this was done. In the original walk through for this work we asked every contractor if they use their own carpenters or subcontract this work. Katchmark said they use their own guys, which was not true. The use of staples over nails, missing framing, not caulking the seams and incomplete repairs might have been avoided if this was done or at least supervised by Katchmark. We hired Katchmark not as the low bidder, but as the preffered subcontractor. We did not try to negotiate the price since we thought it would result in better quality work. To say that we were dissapointed is an understatment.

Went well. Very professional; cleaned up with very minor exceptons. Only one problem in contract; was quickly corrected by Eric with no poblem.

They did an excellent job. They were courteous, worked quickly, and cleaned up after themselves.

OUTSTANDING!!! I called and requested an estimate for what I hoped would be a small roof repair. I was told that Tina was in a meeting but would return my call when she got out, which she did. I explained the roof issue and she said that she couldn't get anyone out until the following Monday and that there was a $475 minimum charge, which I agreed to (it wan't an emergency but I'm not getting on the roof). Stephan showed up on Monday right on time and took a look at the roof. He said the straight line winds we had probably lifted up the shingles and he might be able to fix it right then. It ended up that he just needed to drive a couple of nails back in and caulk under the shingles to help hold them in place. When I asked how much it was, he said not to worry about it and give them a call if we needed something more. I highly recommend Katchmark. I had called several other Angie's List companies and they did not even have the decency to return my call. Everyone I dealt with at Katchmark was very pleasant and professional and I could not have asked for a better experience. I will call them again if I need any of the services they provide!

Unlike our neighbors who had multiple requests to various other companies and were either put on a waiting list for an estimate or given a very high estimate, Katchmark came right out the next day and repaired the roof two days later. Their quote was reasonable and they were so responsive that most of our neighbors decided to use them too. They said they would have been out the next day, but they didn't have the correct shingle color on hand, so we had to wait one more day.

I went into great detail above and that ashould suffice,

I called and asked for an estimate. He returned my call and scheduled it. He called me from the site to discuss it. He emailed me an estimate the next day. He followed up two weeks later.

Katchmark was timely in setting up an appointment for an estimate (and gave it to us on the spot); their estimate was better priced than two others; and they were quick in coming to do the work. While I'm writing this prematurely since my Angie's list membership is expiring, we're happy with everything thus far.