Framar Porches & Decks/Frackiel Builders

Bonnie has cost your business the possibility of revenue due to her discriminatory questioning. Her heavy non-English accent was very hard to understand. She also cheapened your company by stating right off the bat if the homeowner spoke English, then long paused. She rudely remarked no Senior discounts then another long pause. We own an over million dollar mansion/landmark and her demeanor has made it a loss for your mediocre contractor business.

I am not impressed with John's work. He talks a good game but his delivery is not quite there. John did my back porch with composite wood and steel. He guaranteed his work but I have had issues with the boards and he refuses to come back to fix. I have to say I researched his reviews and they all had a common theme and it's that he talks a good game but doesn't stand by his warranty. I spoke to him about the reviews but he informed me that his business is under management and that all the problems happened under his son, but it's not his son it's John the owner who doesn't stand behind his warranty. Several of the composite boards he put down on my porch are already coming up and the work isn't even a month old. I have called him several types he responded when he wants to and say he is coming and never shows up. So I can say John repaired my deck and finished the work. He made some mistakes on deck but for the most part the deck looks good but he doesn't stand by his warranty

I had these guys do my front and back porch. Can't say enough good things about Mark, Bonnie, and the crew over at Framar porches. From the permit and drawings all the way to the little finishes, these guys were on top of it. I would highly recommend hiring these guys if your looking to redo your porch!

Excellent.

Framar came out, inspected porch, followed up with estimate and. completed work as required. They also discovered additional problem and were able to fix on same day for additional cost.

No response for estimate. Handyman located instead.

I found Framar/Frackiel Builders by seeing their trucks in my neighborhood. From that moment on it was a constant dream to someday build a deck on the back of my house. This summer that dream came true after more than a decade of yearning! Bonnie and Mark are so nice to deal with, honest, hardworking and fair. I got a great looking deck! The father and crew son of two came on four of the hottest days of summer to build my beautiful deck. I'm so happy every day to just relax on it! What is interesting most is that other deck builders told me the wait during summer on a deck is 4 to 6 weeks because it is their busiest time of year and they only have two people who do it. Framar/Frackiel Builders says they put up so many decks and porches a week because they have so many different crews working in multiple locations throughout Chicagoland. They were able to start in 7 -10 days, the wait being mostly to obtain the Chicago Permit. The cost was less than other estimates AND the pleasantness of working with Framar/Frackiel Decks far surpassed anyone else with whom I've worked!

It didn't. After getting the recommendations on this site, I checked Framar;s site which clearly says they do yard decks and stairs and porch enclosures. The relevant part of my first email said "We have an old two level deck that must be taken down. We hoped for a screened in room at top level and then a few stairs down to a deck area closer to the actual ground. Ideally we would have electric in the room. [A different] contractor talked about the possibility of property taxes going up if the city decided we had added a room and how to address that, and we would talk with you about that as well. If that is an issue, we would no matter what need a new deck. " I also noted I was looking for estimates this fall for work to be done next spring/summer. The response I got from Bonnie was "Thank you for contacting us we only do open decks/porches no screen in decks and no additions." I emailed again to clarify we didn't want either of those, and that we were very open to ideas, and what I hoped to do was schedule an appointment to talk further about options. Bonnie responded by repeating what she had already said. Not sure why I tried a third email, but there was no response at all to that one. It's possible I used the wrong terminology to describe my situation but I find it unbelievable that my request was dismissed the way it was. I wasn't asked any questions or given any options; it was just "sorry no we don't do that." I don't even know what to say... I've never experienced this before. Their work looks beautiful and clearly they have excellent reviews. I had to make a choice above and so given the way this has ended, no, I would not "hire" them again But I am sorry not to be able to even hear what they would have suggested. On the other hand, I guess that if this is how a request for an estimate gets handled then I may have dodged a bullet.

My front porch and steps were in disrepair, and I thought that a rebuild was needed. Mark stopped by to quote the job and informed me that the repairs could be handled by a carpenter. A rebuild was not necessary, and Mark’s advice allowed me to avoid an unnecessary expense. Even though I didn’t use Framar for the repairs, they deserve five stars for honesty. I will contact Framar first if I ever need a rebuild.

Contractor was responsive to request for a quote. Quote was substantially less than we had gotten from another contractor. Was told they would fit us in between new porches as this was a small job. Got 1-2 days notice on when they would do the work. Crew of two showed up on time (before 8 am) and worked diligently throughout the day. Completed the job just before 8 pm (when Chicago noise ordinance might have halted the work). New brackets are solid making porches and stairs sturdier. Crew was good at incorporating brackets into existing porches for minimal aesthetic impact. Overall, very happy with the work performed.

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Excellent, could not be happier. Fast quality work, polite personable workers.

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Their price and timeliness is what stuck out the most. The cost was way lower then what others quoted.

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Framar is a family business. They quoted us a great rate, completed the work on time, and worked with us on a reasonable payment plan. To this day, there hasn't been a hint of any issues. Brought us up to code. What else needs to be said? Bonnie, their expediter, is awesome.

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At first it was fine then one of the boards they used started to warp, we called them and they said that was how the wood was and would not do any fixes on it.

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The work has not been performed.  Scheduled for June 2014.

I called this company to provide me a proposal to conduct repairs on our porches. We had slippery stairs whenever it rained because they were ponding water. When I called to make an appointment for an estimate, the lady on the phone began explaining to me we should drill holes into our steps. The porches are less then 7 years old, and they're immediate recommendation was to drill holes in all of our stairs, without evening looking at the issue.
They sent someone out to meet with me, at my property. I expected to walk around with the contractor and show him the issues we were having. Nope. He walked into my office and told me what the lady on the phone told me. I told him as well, we did not want to go that route. He told me to just have my maintenance guy drill three holes in the step and problem will be solved. He did not want to even look at the steps and then just left. 
Apparently my message did not get through, and they did not want the work or something. 
In all the years I have managed properties I have never dealt with a company like this. Stay away from fishy companies like this, they tend to not back up any of their work and disappear. They are not professional and I do not recommend them at all, don't even bother calling.

It was a very good experience from start to finish.  They were reasonably priced, did quality work, and completed the project in a timely fashion.  We do, however, have a warped pergola beam that needs to be replaced, but I'm confident this will not be an issue.

Very friendly and professional.  Excellent workmanship and materials.  Will use in the future
and will recommend to others.