Alternative Home Improvement

Great from initial contact to completion. The owner Sam worked with me to get my neighbors and my decks done. We are on the 2&3 rd floor. Sam also got us scheduled a lot sooner than original. His team of Josh and James are great. I would say our situation was a bit difficult because our water outlet was not convenient and I asked them to not spray/dirty the other neighbors decks. The team is professional, efficient and cleaned up afterwards. I definitely recommend this company.

Excellent communication and customer service. The work was completed on time and it looks great as well.

These guys were on it from start to finish. They got all the details, they showed up when they said they would, they were so polite and careful, the did great work. I would (and will) hire them again when it's time for a re-do.

The experience was great.  Sam was very responsive and prompt on the estimate, he was very accommodating during scheduling and kept in great contact with me.  The quality of the work was great, we had an old deck that I wasn't sure could be salvaged, but the final result looks amazing.

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Very responsive, prompt, thorough, and clean.  From first contact to finished work was one week!   Sorry I can't compare the price -- I didn't bid it out very much.

Prompt service and quotation was returned very quickly. Work was excellent.

Great work, prompt, and responds quickly to questions.

Overall a very good job.  I hired Alternative Home Improvement based on an earlier powerwashing job for my walks and limestone in 2013 .  When I requested a quote for the cedar fence, Sam remembered me and my home and very quickly provided a quote, then matched another provider who was priced slightly less.  Since I still had the can from the original staining, Sam asked for a picture to ensure he matched the product.

The team powerwashed the fence on one day and then stained the fence on a separate day.  Multiple men on site accomplished the job in about  half a day. The only glitch was that part of the fence (back yard) was far more weathered than the rest, so the single coat of stain left the heavily weathered fence looking very patchy.  Sam patiently explained the nuances of cedar fences, age, weather and stain and indicated the finished look wasn't unusual.

But as a customer, I was disappointed with the quality of the end result and asked Sam to consider a second coat (which isn't typically advisable because the second coat of stain may not penetrate the first one).  But to satisfy me, Sam personally came to the house and added the second coat on the sections needed at no additional cost.  The outcome wasn't perfect, but much better than before.

Sam suggested in the future I request two coats, but my feedback was that as a homeowner I wouldn't have known I needed two coats and that he or his team upon viewing the fence should have offered that guidance.  Nevertheless, Sam is a very responsive, conscientious and honest service provider.  I will call him in the future.

Sam Alt & team gave us a prompt quote which, when getting multiple quotes, is always appreciated.  
We signed our contract a few weeks before the service, so there was no problem scheduling our specific date. 
His team showed up on time and cleaned up the job site afterward.    They even emailed me before/after pictures at work before they left!   The finish product looks great.   Would have no problem recommending Alternative Home Solutions to friends or  using them again for future jobs.

Sam Alt and Alternative Home Services rocks.
He got back to me with an estimate in hours and then showed up in just a day or two.  Everyone else was booked for months.  Don't know why AHS wasn't. 
He and his men were punctual, clean, courteous, respectful and did a great job.  They did the whole job in a half-day.  The price wasn't the cheapest in town, but also not the most expensive.  They moved big plants and furniture without a complaint.  and then moved them again when we told them they were in the wrong place.  
We would hire them again in a heartbeat.  

I called and talked to Sam (the owner) to provide an estimate.  In order to expedite the request, he suggested I take a few pictures of the decks to give him a rough ballpark of how much work had to be done.  Because of his experience he was able to provide an estimate immediately after receiving the pictures and descriptions.  He quoted me a fair price for the work and gave a discount for taking the pictures and going through Angie's list.  We signed the agreement and his crew was able to work immediately following Memorial day weekend.  They completed all of the work in one day and to my satisfaction.  He was very responsive with my questions and did a very professional job.  Since it rained immediately after the work was completed, I was able to tell that the deck was repelling the water, versus absorbing like it had been doing previously.
I would definitely recommend using Alternative Home Improvement in the future for my deck work in the future.

I started calling and interviewing contractors over the phone.  I was looking for the best cost and maintenance solution so we don't have to replace these decks in a couple years.  Called Alternative.  Immediately you could tell Sam knew decks in Chicago.  Most of my research was through google and didn't take into account Chicago winters and the hot sun.  
Sam recommended a clear sealer.  Alternative uses Wolman's Raincoat clear sealer if you want clear.  Wolman's is the same company behind Wolmanized lumber.  <Did research and the east coast contractors with their harsh winters use Wolman's - sweet.>   They do the cleaning to kill the mold and brighten the wood <check, check> and then seal the wood.  Since it's a clear coat, they can spray it on and the price came down to $1,650.  With the harsh Chicago winters/summers, he said he comes each year for an additional fee and cleans the decks and puts a maintenance coat of sealer on to keep them sealed and looking good.  It seemed like even the more expensive semitransparent sealer wouldn't last 3 years from my research so his solution REALLY solved the problem.  
He was very knowledgeable.  Knew the area and pulled up the decks using a satellite photo and then stopped by when I wasn't around to double check the decks.  Was able to quote without a need to take off work or meet him.  Seems he really knew Chicago deck maintenance.deck sealing in the Chicago environment.
THE BEST PART: The decks changed from old gray back to the natural warm, brown wood.  They look new again.  We didn't need a stain on the decks at all.  They became the color we originally wanted.  His cleaning and brightening process did the trick.   
Go with Sam.

When he came out, he quoted me immediatly. He power washed the deck, but we had rain stroms after. He will be coming back to seal it tomorrow. Sam is absolutely wonderful. He calls me ahead of time to let me know exactly what is going on and what time his crew will be there. He is very prompt.

Sam's business is located in close proximity to my house.  He shows up promptly, works hard, and does a good job. 

They are a very good organization and they are very dependable.

We had an outstanding experience with Alternative and would hire them again and/or strongly recommend them to others.  

Our condo building's wrought iron railings were rusting and badly in need of scraping and painting.  A detailed estimate was provided quickly and any questions regarding the work to be performed were answered in a reasonable and very timely fashion.  

The painting was completed quickly and professionally.  Several of our railings need to be accessed through the units, and Alternative was respectful and courteous to our unit owners and made it a priority to minimize interference with nap schedules and the like and to complete these portions of the work quickly and quietly.  The painters did a full double-check of the work and touched up any uneven spots from the initial coat.  The finished product looks outstanding.  The building next door to us had their railings done several weeks ago and there is a visible difference in the quality of the work - their railings now look flat by comparison to ours.  Several of our unit owners indicated that they were surprised at how much better the building looked after the work was completed.  Alternative used high-quality paint and, after a week of steady rain, the finish still looks great.  

In addition, when preparing to do the work, Sam noticed that we had some staining on the limestone on/near our front steps, so he personally power washed the entire area on the first day of the work at no additional charge.  This made the entire area look much better.

Sam was consistently available and responsive.  He promptly provided all information requested and was reasonable in his approach to issues (e.g., inclement weather) that arose throughout the project.  The other workers, many of whom have worked with Sam for years, were courteous, professional, and attentive to detail.  Overall, we were highly pleased with the experience and value that Alternative provided for this project.  

Deck cleaning

We were very happy with their work. We used them 3 years before and had a good experience, so we called them again.

Sam came out to give me an estimate on the Saturday I called. My patio had become grey with mold. He assured me that after cleaning it would be a night and day difference, and that the cleaning solution they use would not harm the plants. His guys were able to come over one afternoon, and the job was done, and looked as promised.

Sam came out and gave me a bid. I hired him and they started the work almost immediately. After washing the deck, I decided a few boards needed to be replaced - which was not in the original quote.They got the new boards and installed them quickly. Lastly, the whole deck was sealed.

Sam is prompt in returning phone calls and starting the job. Mine had to be sanded due to the type of stain previously used. The crew arrived on time removed all items from the deck, worked hard all day and cleaned everything up at the end. Sam came by to make sure the job was completed to my satisfaction. I will definitely use Sam again next summer as I had some brick work done and they ruined the deck finish! Sam, see you in May!

He finishes each job perfectly to the clients satisfaction, and we have used him for 3 years uses high end stains and we are always pleased. He comes out on time, gets the job done in a good amount of time, really does a wonderful job. Always comes back and checks on his work. Always accessible on his phone.

Excellent. They power washed not only the porch, but all of the other places where there was mold around the front of my building. They were flexible in scheduling when it was convenient to me, showed up on time and were very friendly.

I called and left a message requesting a quote. Mr. Alt called me back the same day and we discussed the job. He came and evaluated the porches and provided a quote the next day. Within a week from the initial contact, all work had been completed. In addition to cleaning the front porch, Alternatives cleaned the walk to the fence and the concrete along the side of the front of the house. The work was done very well and I would hire this company again without hesitation.