MOSHE CALAMARO & ASSOCIATES

I hired Moshe Calamaro & Associates Structural Engineering firm to supply initial architectural drawings for the conversion of the first and second floor internal stairwells of a building into laundry rooms, as well as initial drawings for the construction of an external deck on the first and second floors with corresponding stairwells. According to our initial contract, the initial drawings would only be sufficient for discussions with the zoning board of my local town city hall. The initial drawings would not be sufficient enough to obtain a permit for construction; this would require final drawings and a separate contract. The initial contract also stated that I would be charged by the hour for the time required to complete the initial drawings. When I inquired about an estimate for the approximate number of hours to complete the initial drawings, I was told that they could not approximate the number of hours that would be required. I had previously had conversations with three separate contractors with first hand experience dealing with structural engineers on similar projects. All three stated that the completion of not only the initial drawings but the final drawings as well should be around a total of $1,500 to $1,800 dollars at most. I signed the initial contract and the initial drawings were completed. I then received a bill for $3,400. I feel this amount was extremely unfair for initial drawings by themselves that would only facilitate a discussion with city hall and were not even sufficient enough for obtaining a permit.

Moshe Calamaro was very prompt and responsive. The problem is complicated, extensive, and will be costly. They are assisting us in taking care of the initial steps as they arise. This will be a process.

It went very well. He was very detailed in his account and used as much layman's terms and drawings to help us understand what he was describing. He took just under an hour in examining a 3 story home and a two story coach house. We asked if he would purchased this home and he was very direct at answering us and we learnt alot in the process!

Moeshe tells you what you do and don't want to hear. Its a good idea to get an idea of how much additional it will cost to buy a house with the improvement in mind.

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eerfieldFrom the moment he arrived he was very professional and knowledgeable and showed us all the issues involving the house. We were pleased with his knowledge level and his patient answering all of our questions.

Moshe was great, and he took the time to explain his diagnosis of the issue and referred us to a great service provider to resolve the issue.

So far, so good with them. I had a few questions and as soon as I iron those out, I will probably use them for the drawings. I paid $400 initially. I was impressed so far.

Moshe Calamaro was efficient, thorough, professional and courteous. He arrived on time and efficiently collected the information needed for the structural design. He took our blueprints back to his office, scanned the documents and promptly returned the originals. His final drawings were delivered on time and were 100% clear to the contractors bidding on our project. Throughout the process, it was clear he would not compromise on the needed structural design. We plan to engage Moshe to monitor the installation of the steel beam.

I've always been a bit nervous about buying an old (100+years) house, but got drawn in by a place with a fancy new addition. However,the older section of the home had some sloping floors that concerned me.Everyone said "it's a 100 year old house, they all have that problem", including my A-rated Home Inspector (Who, to his credit, found many other serious non-structural issues).
We called in Moshe, who very quickly identified serious structural issues with the older section of the home.These problems weren't a result of the house being old as everyone else said, but rather from a botched remodel project that used insufficient structural members to support the load. This lines up with the home inspector findings of serious electrical issues in that same portion of the home.
Moshe even quickly absorbed the blueprints for the new addition and identified problems with the design along with an attic door installation that compromised the roof structure. It turns out that hacking up the joists and nailing a 2x8 to the ends has consequences.
Needless to say, we walked away from that deal. Moshe's input made the decision an easy one. Those people can sell their structurally compromised home to some other sucker who doesn’t have someone like Moshe on their side.

Moshe is awesome. I did a lot of research to find a structural engineer and called quite a few places. Moshe was very likeable on the phone and waited for me to call and confirm without being pushy. His price was about the same as everyone else so i can't complain. I liked that he had a flat rate, rather than per hour, which always makes you nervous watching the clock and makes me cynical that they may be dragging out the process in order to get paid more. I appreciate anyone who charges a flat rate, like Moshe does.

He was prompt and friendly. He got straight to the issue (our home inspector showed him his concerns he had found in the attic) and jumped straight into the explanation of the problem. He showed us each area he was concerned about and attempted to put things in layman's terms for us to understand.

He was very straight forward, did not mince his words, and gave us a direct professional opinion of his findings. He also gave us the option of requesting that he does not submit a report as that would cost extra. I like that he told us that upfront so we could decide if we wanted a written report knowing the cost in advance.

I would recommend Moshe to anyone. He was professional, knowledgable, friendly and reasonable.

When we had new windows installed in our house, we decided to upgrade our curb appeal by ordering curved front windows to match the arched lintels in our exterior detail. It seemed to be a simple matter of arching the drywall to match after the window installation. But our drywall contractor ran into a problem when he actually opened up the wall to do the work. The structural lintel inside was too close to the new top of the window for them to install the drywall. He suggested moving the lintels up a brick or two and said it was no big deal.

Since it's an old house, 1876ish, and we live near the El, which can cause some movement, we decided to not take chances and get a second opinion. I called a foundation company that ranks at the top of Angie's List, and they told us the consultation was too small for them, but they gave us several engineer's names, including Moshe Calamaro. I called all of them, and Moshe was the most professional, prompt and knowledgeable when I discussed the problem. He asked if I needed drawings or not, and since drawings would cost more, I said no. He then said he wanted to come when the contractor could be there, too, so they could discuss the situation in person and he could make sure the necessary solution was understood clearly.

He showed up on time and assessed the exterior and interior of the wall. He pointed out that the lintels had already been compromised and showed us where a row of arched brick had been chipped away from the tops of the windows inside, which we'd never known since it had been hidden by drywall. Given the age of our house and the situation, Moshe recommended installing a C-channel steel beam above the point where the new lintels would be put in. He said only after the C-channel was installed could the lintels safely be moved without shifting the bricks or causing cracks. He told the contractor exactly which C-channel to use, how long, how far apart the anchors needed to be and how high above the lintels it should be. He also drew a hand sketch with the specs for the contractor to work from.

Our contractor was not super happy with the recommendation because it would mean more work on his part, and he thought it was unneeded. When he suggested that the C-channel might not be needed because our house is only brick on the first floor, so there would only be several rows of brick above the C-channel, Moshe just looked at him and said, "No. It holds the whole wall together."

That sold us. Even though it cost us $1,000 more to have the contractor do it Moshe's way, we decided it was a good preventive investment. And although the contractor grumbled, the C-channel/lintel solution came off without a hitch, and we have total peace of mind in the structural integrity of the solution.

Moshe was very professional, knowledgeable and prompt on the phone and in person. He also made himself available for questions if we needed to follow up and ask him anything. I would not hesitate to recommend him and would gladly use him again. He was great.

This was a terrible experience. Difficult to contact, late, inaccurate, unprofessional, costly, rude...... Our experience was horrible.

Moshe was very unaccommodating to my schedule. I work long hours and requested an 8:00 meeting so that I could miss as little work as possible. Moshe would not do this because he said he did not want to drive into the city from Evanston during rush hour. We decided to meet at 9:30, he arrived 20 minutes late for our appointment and then gave me the rush act when I was trying to pull together for him since he had another appointment. Three weeks later, we received the report back from Moshe. The only thing he did was to recommend alternate tests for moisture. He said nothing about the cause of the damage or what steps should be taken to avoid damage in the future. As the unit owner, I was left feeling very insecure about the state of my unit or the potential for future damage.

Some miscommunication and difficult to hear and understand him. I made the appointment over the phone and when my husband asked him about a report at the inspection, he said we agreed not to have one. I wasn't expecting a signed off engineering document but I was expecting a summary document with recommendations and estimates. I specifically asked over the phone if he would be able to give us a general cost to repair the problems. His estimate was about $2000 per pier but he wouldn't say if we needed 6 piers or 26 piers. His recommendation was soil boring. When I called the companies he recommended for soil boring. They said they couldn't even do the job because the rig didn't have access to do the drilling. Even if it did, it would cost about $3000 and 3 weeks for the test. Anyway, it was a waste of my money and time. I had two foundation companies come out afterwards and give estimates, one was for $70,000 and the other was for only $7,000. I have no professional opinion to trust.

Moshe is very methodical, old school, but well worth the money. He explained the reasonings for his findings, and pointed out structural elements we need to look out for.

NOT AN ALARMIST, BUT DID DETAILED INSPECTION AND IDENTIFIED SEVERAL ITEMS THAT NEEDED REMEDIATION.