elgringo said:
So RibEye,
Care to provide an update? How is it going with Kelvin?
Thanks!
Hi elgringo,
Kelvin is nearing the finish line of the renovation. We are starting week 8 of the renovation and thus far, he and his crew have completed the following:
(1) painted the entire interior (about 2,100 sq. ft.),
(2) changed out all of the recessed lights to LED lighting
(3) changed out most, if not all, of the electrical sockets and light switches)
(4) installed closet doors at 2 bedrooms
(5) replaced the tile floors at all 3 bathrooms
(6) replaced a walk-in shower with a fiberglass tub + replaced the shower fixtures
(7) installed a new vanity in the master bathroom
(8) installed new cabinets and countertops in the kitchen and has put down the backsplash, although the tiles still need to be grouted (I'd estimate that he's about 90% done w/ the cabinets)
(9) removed a bathtub from one bathroom and installed a walk-in tile shower
According to Kelvin, he'll probably need 3 or 4 more days to finish the rest of the job.
At this time, the following major items are still outstanding:
(1) Master Bathroom - still need to connect the plumbing for the dual sink vanity, still need to install the showerhead and install the frameless shower door (this was just ordered on Saturday).
(2) Downstairs Half Bath - need to install vanity, light fixture, toilet, wainscotting (this bath is basically 10% done)
(3) Kitchen - need to install the sink and all plumbing, the appliances, and finish up the cabinets
(4) Living Room - need to install the sliding glass door
(5) Dining Room - need to replace chandelier
There are also a few other miscellaneous items that he and his crew still need to finish.
My overall impression of Kelvin and his crew are as follows: they are really hard working and really try to do their best to give you a great product. Kelvin did a few extras for us without us asking him to, simply because he thought that certain things would look better and make the home look newer. Thus far, their workmanship looks pretty good, although we'll see whether that stands the test of time. He's also very accessible via phone, text or email, which is great. Also, as the house is slowly coming together, we are really liking how it is turning out; although some of that is due in part to the design choices, a big part of it is due to the work that Kelvin and his crew have put in.
My only criticism or complaint is in regards to his scheduling. I was told by his foreman that he is working on 4 other jobs in addition to ours; thus, there was a period of several weeks where very little was done on our house; however, only after I told him that we were moving in did I see substantial movement. In fact, on the day we were moving in, I was surprised to see 5 guys on site working on various areas of the house (I typically would only see 2 guys whenever I visited). Also, Kelvin would sometimes ask us to buy something at the very last minute, which could sometimes be frustrating.
However, overall, I have no hesitation recommending Kelvin. His prices are reasonable, he's an honest and hardworking guy, and the work that he's done has thus far been great.
One more anecdote - for our job, he hired a painter that he said he's never worked with before. One day, we discovered that our spa was cloudy. We could not figure out for the life of us why that was (we thought that, because we had shut off the water, the spa water had turned cloudy due to chemicals). We later learned from Kelvin that his foreman learned that this painter was cleaning his equipment in our spa! Kelvin felt so bad that he offered to pay for any damages this guy caused. I would imagine that a more dishonest contractor would have disclaimed any knowledge of this and just pretended that he had no idea why our spa had turned a cloudy white color.
