Minneapolis Sunroom Contractors

Buyer Beware! My wife and I have renovated several homes in Minneapolis and wanted to subcontract a large addition on our property to relieve the stress of property renovations. Our attention was directed to Champion windows. The process started Aug 1, 2016 when a kind elderly gentleman came to our house by appointment. He spent 5 hours at our house and planned out options to build one of the largest sunrooms sold by the local Minneapolis office. He was very knowledgeable and convinced us we were purchasing the best product on the market backed by a solid worry free guarantee. We had investigated the company and discovered Champion had been in business for 65 years. Jimmy Ray won our trust and described the lifetime warranty in detail and we were convinced this would be a positive and relatively stress free experience. Unfortunately, the evening with Jimmy Ray and the signing of the contract was the most positive experience we have had with Champion windows. After the contract was signed we were never in contact with Jimmy Ray again. We had several issues during the build and repeatedly tried to contact Jimmy Ray for assistance and eventually after several repeated requests for contact we were told he was no longer with the company. The build was stressful and the build crew was temperamental and visibly angry in the mornings. I never spoke with the build crew until at least noon when there mood was more friendly and they would look us in the eye. After several delays and permit issues with the city our project was completed and we were hopeful that despite our reservations we had a solid product as Jimmy Ray had promised backed by a lifetime guarantee. That is until the 2017 spring rains arrived. The sunroom leaked profusely during every rain in the months of March 2017 onward. We called Champion windows several times because the interior of our property was damaged and the insulation was most likely waterlogged with possible mold. You could visibly see the underside of the sunroom and the wood was severely stained rotting with holes. We requested a service call and two weeks later a Champion repairman arrived. He spent the afternoon with a caulk gun doing several repairs. However, the leaks continued during the next rain. The repairman arrived again with his caulk gun and continued to caulk the sunroom for hours. This continued for approximately six months with several visits from the Champion repairman and his caulk gun. The repairman told us the company is to busy and doesn't have sufficient manpower to do repairs. We still continue to have leaks in the sunroom and they have not repaired the damaged materials. Unfortunately, the repairman has also been a no-show and this has added to our frustration. This past week I called the Minneapolis Champion front desk for another service visit and I expressed my concern that our $70,000 sunroom continues to leak and the interior of our house is damaged. We even have 4 x 8 boards hanging down ready to fall and hurt us. (See Pictures) The girl at the front desk accused me of "customer harassment" and twice hung up the phone on my wife and I. My wife called back and requested the phone number of their corporate headquarters. She gave us a false phone number. I waited a couple of hours and called again and spoke with another representative and finally was given an accurate number to the corporate offices. I called and spoke with a "Summer" and she was kind and respectful forwarding my concerns to the CEO of Champion windows. At this point we feel obligated to warn Minneapolis residents about Champion windows because they oversell the product with elderly gentlemen who you are inclined to trust. Once you sign the contract your experience will significantly change and they do not intend to honor their contract. Note: We scheduled a visit from Champion on 8/24 and they were a no show. I emailed the pictures of the sunroom to Summer at the corporate office because if we get a storm we might have 4/8 sheets of plywood blowing off the sunroom. See pictures. UPDATE 10-9-17 This is a follow-up review to the defective $70,000 sunroom built by Champion Windows. We have had extensive damage to our sunroom since it's install last year due to water issues. Every time it rains we have water invading the interior of our property. Champion has sent out a repairman over 10 times to add ugly and messy caulk beads in an attempt to wear us out. We finally contacted the Attorney General and Better Business Bureau to force champion into honoring the warranty they sold us with the sunroom. Unfortunately, every time Champion repairmen arrive at our property they stay for 8 or more hours and damage our property. We have pictures of white caulk smeared on our new decking, smeared on our windows, and even white caulk on the bottom of their shoes. They are so sloppy with the caulk they will walk around our house and get white silicone caulk smeared on our floors. This past week they send in a representative from the corporate offices to assure us they will respect our property and rebuild the sunroom correctly. After 4 days and four or more Champion trucks on our street they still have not stopped the leaking. We have been home every day to carefully watch our property and make sure they do not do additional damage. On Saturdays my wife and I perform volunteer work for survivors of the hurricanes in Florida and Texas and we could not be home to watch them this Saturday. Guess what? They used our brand new hot tub cover as scaffolding! The hot tub cover is covered with grimy mud and now has a huge sag in it due to the workers walking on our hot tub. Unfortunately, this saga is far from over because next we have to deal with Champion Windows insurance company to pay for all of their damages to our property. Will keep you posted. Check the additional pictures.

Visited showroom and TEMO showed us what they would build for us. They had the stamped concrete put in and then the sunroom build over the winter. In order for the current product to meet code it needs a step from the sunroom that is part of the stamped concrete they put in. Owner refuses to complete product to code and what would be a nice looking product--stamped concrete step as part of the concretet put in by them. Contractor has never even been out to the site to see the unfinished product (concrete portion is not finished).

THRESHOLD OF DOOR WASN'T THE WAY I WANTED IT TO LOOK. EVERYTHING WAS SUPPOSE TO BE INCLUDED IN PRICE. THEY WERE SUPPOSE TO PAY FOR ELECTRIC AND NOW THE ELECTRIC COMPANY IS SAYING THAT I OWE MONEY.

FINISHED PRODUCT STILL LEAKS. WOOD IS ROTTING. BLAMED RESULT ON MANUFACTURER, BUT SAID HE PURCHASED ONE AND INSTALLED IT AT HIS OWN HOME. TAKES WEEKS TO RETURN PHONE CALLS. LEFT OAK EXPOSED TO RAIN FOR 10 DAYS WHILE HE WAS ON VACATION. COULDN'T DO REPAIR WORK ALL WINTER BECAUSE IT WAS TOO COLD. NOW WON'T RETURN CALLS ALL SUMMER.

They were definitely not hard to sell. They did a very good job explaining every option. They did a good job. We have had no problems with the work. They handled incorporating a complicated roof line well. They suggested different things that would make maintenance easier for us. They were pleasant people to work with. Their estimate included more features and was lower than the other companies. They also cleaned up really well. They had to crush some plants but were careful not to crush the ones I really cared about.

Although the product that was installed appears to be of good quality, Champion was unresponsive during the project. When they did respond to our inquiries, they said all the right things to calm our concerns. Unfortunately, they did not follow through with those promises. For example, Champion stated the sunroom would be completed in 1-2 days after the windows arrived from the manufacturer. The windows were installed on one day, but none of the finishing work was completed. In fact, more than a week later, the project sits unfinished. The installer hired by Champion stated that Champion had called him off the project despite the exterior of the sunroom being partially finished and one entire window not being installed at all. The whole process has been incredibly disappointing and frustrating.

Very attentive to my budget. Renaissance Builders always kept me in the loop regarding scheduling. Job completed on time, on budget. They offered several creative options before the remodel started. I have used them for 3 different remodels and each time they have exceeded my expectations. I highly recommend Renaissance Builders ... you can't go wrong.

JB and his team were delightful to work with. We were extremely pleased with the quality of the work they performed and the professionalism they displayed while working on our project. Their trouble shooting and communication skills were top notch as challenges arose thought the process, which they often do with an older home. We are very pleased with the final product, and will use APEX again in the future.

They started the job a little later than scheduled but actually completed it in less time than projected. The crew was courteous and neat and exacting in their work. The finished product was excellent and complemented the sunroom that they had constructed for me approximately four years earlier.

Pricing was reasonable but they did not bring in any sub contractors for the bid. In order to get an accurate bid, they required a $3000 down payment. No other contractor required a down payment for a bid. I did not use them.

I first saw this company at the Green Expo in St.Paul in May 2010. The salesperson visited with me twice at my home. On the second visit he brought samples of their windows. I did not hire this company because in the end I wanted a more personal design and I also prefer double-hung to sliding windows. However, the design looked good for a sunroom type addition with lots of windows and lots of light. If I had wanted the design they offered, as far as I could tell they would be a decent company to do the work. I would recommend asking for addresses where they have completed work to go and look at before hiring them (or any other company).

The design that they showed me was exactly how the room turned out. Our basic problem with this company was the subcontractors. The roof leaked for about a year and half. They finally had to have someone come out and totally redo the roof. There subcontractor came out about three times to fix the roof unsuccessfully. When they finally got a different subcontractor the problem was resolved. We had some little irritants such as cigarette butts all over the walk. There was a footing where they had to break through the concrete on the patio. After they did the repairs to the footing, they left the patio concrete broken. I had to go back and patch it up.It wasn't that big a deal but they should have done it.Although this company is not a fly by night and they are honest I would probably try someone else in the future.

TEMO was chosen because of the quality of the product and the lifetime warranty. Bob Maietta was more than helpful on the showroom floor in showing us our options and helping decide what features we would need for our new room. He told us that most of his jobs take about 4-6 weeks for completion. TEMO requires 1/4 of cost down at contract signing, 1/2 more when the job begins (about one week later) and the final 1/4 upon "significant completion" of the job. After signing the contract and showing up a week later, they had collected 3/4 of the cash due them. Work was slow and spotty all summer long. Seems there was always some missing part they were waiting for, or the inspectors were taking too long, or it had just rained, etc. Our approximate completion time was 14 weeks, after being told 4-6 weeks. While TEMO folks were not hard to reach on the phone, once you got them on the phone, they just told you someone would be out "very soon" and then nobody showed up as expected. In addition, they sent the invoice for the final 1/4 before the room was anywhere near completion ... and Bob himself came over demanding that final payment before the electric had been turned on or the ceiling fixtures installed. He actually yelled at my mother, who told him we would pay him the very moment our room was completed but not one day sooner. He stormed out of the house and it was another three business days before the work was completed. Bob's actions are the reason I scored them so low in the professionalism category. The rest of the group was not hard to work with, and the men who did the actual construction work seemed very professional and thorough when they did finally arrive. We will never use them again and hope that if we do need help with anything under warranty, that we can deal with someone other than Bob.

Legacy Building Company did a wonderful job! The craftsmen were top-notch and everything ran very smoothly. There weren't any delays or unnecessary disruptions to our home. They came in, put up dust barriers, got the job done, were here at reasonable hours, were extremely respectful of my family (including two rambunctious kids) and were very communicative about what was happening next. The bid was extremely thorough and left nothing to surprise. Thus, we knew the cost going into the project, which was nice. My husband works with contractors all day, so we expected professional and exceptional service, and that's exactly what we got! We would highly recommend Craig and all the folks at Legacy Building Company for your next home remodel.

They gave me a quote in November, hoping to be able to start work. Then we had a huge snowstorm and winter began. They started in March. First they had to remove all the snow from on and around the work area and create a wooden path to the backyard. Once that was done, they removed the old porch, then thawed the ground for the footings. Everything went smoothly as they pored the footings, built the floor and took delivery of the prefab walls. The rest also went smoothly. Once the porch was done and the rains came, we found the skylights leaked. A call to Joel and there was someone out right away to calk. Joel checked back after the next rain to be sure everything was okay. Everything was cleaned up and my fence put back up. The team headed by Arnie was very professional and kept me informed of each step so I knew when they would be there and what they would be doing. So far I love using this room and would highly recommend this company.