I must say...from the first phone call to the very last call it was an extremely pleasant and excellent experience to work with Jim Graves and his employees. From everyone in the office (Nicole and Bonnie) to each contractor I came in contact with...it was nothing but pleanant and professional. All the contractors knew what they were doing  and remained professional from start to finish. The job started on time and took approximately a month to finish and it finished on time. I used my own electrian for the job and he worked well with Jim and his crew. Jim called almost daily to touch base with me in case I had any concerns.  If any concerns arised Jim immediately addressed them and was patient with me at all times. I never felt rushed by him and he always took time in explaining anything I didn't quite understand. No major hiccups during the job and only a few minor things we had to deal with probably not worth mentioning only to say Jim took care of it immediately.  The contractors in my house were very professional and nice to have around. They respected my house and left it clean each day they were here.  I remodeled my entire kitchen and tore down the adjacent dining room wall. Jim was great with his suggestions along with his kitchen design rep and gave me some really good ideas.  Wes was one of Jim's contractors that worked in my house and he was very knowledgeable as well. Don't remember the names of everyone (just a couple more) but they were nice as well and extremely efficient in the work they were doing.  While Jim was renovating my kitchen/dining area we also had him look at an adjacent family room to repair and paint the entire room as the drywall was done incorrectly by a previous contractor. Jim was able to add that room to the job and gave us a good price on it. We plan on having a deck built off the dining room and our master bathroom done as well. I won't bother with getting bids from any other contractor because I was completely satisfied with James L Graves Construction!!  We will be using them for all our future renovation jobs. We were so happy with the end result and would recommend them highly to anyone looking for excellent service.  My brother and his wife were also so impressed with the quality of work Jim had done in my house that they are using them to renovate their entire basement. This has been by far the greatest experience I've had with a contractor.

We are very satisfied.  Everything is beautiful and the improvement in functionality and natural flow is even better than we dreamed.  We have had lots of family and friends visit in August and September, and everyone is just stunned that we have "a completely new house" after living here 26 years!  We expected to run into lots of unanticipated issues on this project and we did.  Our house was owner-built 44 years ago by someone who did not do things correctly.  I wish we could count the number of times over the years we have had a plumber, electrician, carpenter, etc., in to fix a problem and they would say something like: "I can't believe they did it this way."  in anticipation of this situation, we searched Angie's list for someone who seemed to have broad expertise, good communication skills, flexibility and who was fair in handling contract changes in addition to having high quality standards.  Jim seemed like a good choice based on reviews, and we had confidence in him from our first meeting.  He exceeded our expectations on every one of these selection criteria.  He is a perfectionist!  His team members all reflect Jim's values. Besides being very good, they are pleasant, and take time to answer your questions.  Joe, Wes and Mandy stand out, but all his team members were very good.  I would echo all the specific accolades from the other reports on JLGraves.  Jim handled all the hidden problems (like termite damage and missing beams) in a fair and professional way, giving us options and recommendations.  He loves to "turn a problem into a feature!"  He has excellent color and design sense, and helped us a lot in those areas. You may not believe it, but we quite easily lived in the house during the entire project!!  Jim moved our old refrigerator to the garage, and we had a microwave in the basement and grill outside.  We did laundry at a nearby friend's house.  Jim's guys cleaned up well each day, so it was not a hardship at all to carry on with life.  We're looking forward to phase 2, a smaller project in our basement that we're going to start soon.  In fact, I was going to wait to submit this report until after phase 2, but I've delayed it  based on some decisions I need to make.  So we're submitting this report now. We'll update it with photos as soon as we figure out how.

We moved into a new house in the summer of 2011 and noticed the master bath (tiled througout, including shower basin, drop in soaking tub), looked like a sloppy do-it-yourself job, but everything seemed sound, so we figured we'd save our money and de-uglify it later. About 5 months later, while wife was in the basement, and husband was in the shower, she noticed dripping comming from one of the pipes. A call to a plummer revealed that the problem wasn't with any of the pipes, but with the shower itself. Having redone a half-bath at our previous house, husband decided he'd begin demo to take a look and see what was up. Just a little bit of demo around the shower reveals that no backer board, and very little waterproofing was done anywhere around the shower, and it appeared to big of a job for us to do ourselves.
We tried calling about 3 other contractors on Angies list, but when we gave our budget of 10000 dollars they refused to come out and even give an estimate (partly because of all the water damage we expected, we told them they'd have to rip out everything including sub floor, this turned out not to be the case and was an overestimate on our part, if they came out they would have been able to see this though, but I guess we weren't a big enough job for them).
Mr Graves, however, did come out, he took a look at where we demo'd thus far, assuaged our concerns that the damage wasn't as bad as it looked, and worked with us to figure out a way to replace most of the bathroom within our budget (save a few fixtures we wanted to reuse). We decided to reuse the drop in tub and toilet, and Mr. Graves line itemed every aspect of the contract, so that we could save money on things we felt we could do on our own (like painting).
We ended up splurging a bit on tiles and sinks, but this was our choice to go above budget. Once work was started within about a week and a half we could use everything but the shower, for which we had to await custom shower doors/surround from a glass contractor. In the course of demo, they did discover additional damage on one panel of subfloor, but this was replaced at no additional cost.
The only reason we gave a B in punctuality is because of the delay in the glass surround (which was likely due to their glass company), that it took a little longer than we expected for them to start the project. However once they started, we always felt in good hands, that we communicated well with Mr. Graves and company, and we look forward to working with them again in the near future.

Due to two years of neglect by prior tenants our family home required a complete interior renovation.  It would be an understatement to say every part of the interior needed to be replaced.  I had never hired a contractor before and was very leery after hearing the problems others have had.  This massive project had to be complete in one and a half months after taking back the house.  I knew I needed the best and started reading reviews on Angie?s List.  Immediately James L. Graves Construction was my obvious choice.  I called Jim and explained that I could gain access to the house for one day in February to discuss the scope of this project and had to start May 1st, moving in after June 15th.  Jim put me at ease by letting me know I wouldn?t be in this alone.  I told him that I had my own plans, but needed someone to give me sound advice when needed.  Jim said that was his specialty and he proved it, time and time again.  The appointment was set for two weeks later, the day I chose, at 8am.
The morning of the appointment at 8am I looked outside and several vehicles pulled up.  I went outside and Jim introduced himself and his team.  As far as first impressions this one hit the mark.  Jim worked well with his team and my project appeared to be his only concern.  As I explained my plans Jim ran ideas by his interior designer, electrician, and plumber.  I never felt rushed and the ideas continued to get better and better.  I spent some time, one on one, with each member of his team so that they knew exactly what I wanted.  To add to the stress of the timetable I explained to Jim that I needed an estimate on the entire project by next week.  None of my requests ever seemed to be out of Jim?s reach.  By the end of the appointment we had covered the house from top to bottom, exchanging ideas all the way.  A week later Jim gave me a reasonable estimate in writing and I?ll say now that the estimate never increased.
Even though the project would not start for another two months Jim never forgot about me.  Nichole from Jim?s office emailed all the places I would need to go or websites to visit to select everything from fixtures to cabinets and countertops.  After making my selections she even reminded me of all the little items I had not even thought of.  Who knew so many things could go into a bathroom.  My daughter and I went to pick out cabinets, tile and flooring.  Everywhere we went as soon as we mentioned that Jim Graves was our contractor we felt like we were getting priority treatment.  The prep work was complete and it was finally time to begin.
Since cost was an issue Jim asked if I was going to perform my own demo to save on cost.  I told him I would.  Jim took care of having the dumpster delivered May 1st and I started to transfer the entire interior of my house into that dumpster, finishing May 6th.  I turned the house over to Jim?s team on May 7th.
My onsite contractor was Brian.  I was highly impressed with him as a person and skilled craftsman.  Since I only periodically stopped by the house he would always call to let me know what was accomplished and what was next.  Jim would stop by and make sure the work met his high standard.  On occasion, Jim would give his guys advice to make their already excellent work outstanding.  All of the subcontractors were professional and highly skilled.  I would like to give honorable mention for Mauricio?s skill.  Jim orchestrated several subcontractors working everyday without getting in each others? way.  When I would stop by the house my neighbors would always comment on how busy the workers are and that they never see them sitting around.  Jim would always take care of any small detail that was over looked and always got the results I was looking for.
Jim not only completed the project on budget and on time, but he turned what was left of a house back into a beautiful home for my daughter and me.  I could go on and on about each member of Jim?s team and how they did an outstanding job, but all the reviews already say that.  Thanks Jim and crew.

Nothing done!

Jim met with us shortly after contacting him and we discussed what we wanted in terms of the kitchen remodel.  Jim made some great suggestions about things we hadn?t even thought of such as new lighting and flooring.  We went with Jim?s suggestions on both and are very pleased.  The guys Jim sent out to do the work (project manager, electrician, plumber, windows & floor) were excellent, courteous and left the house clean and tidy.  Communications with Jim and his crew were also excellent.  They always called when they were coming out to work and were always available to talk with us if we had questions/concerns.  The kitchen demo went very quickly but we ran into a slight delay because the cabinets my husband and I purchased were the wrong size and we had to exchange them.  We should have listened to Jim and purchased the cabinets through him.  Because of our mistake, it delayed the counter work and sink/dishwasher/disposal installation, but Jim and his crew were very accommodating and performed other work during that time.

 

In the end, we have a new kitchen, windows and doors that we love and we are grateful to Jim and his team for their work.  We highly recommend James L. Graves Construction Co. and will use them again for future work.

For the most part it all went well once the job was started.  The guys were knowledgeable, skillful, and professional.  Jim really knows his stuff and was able to give guidance to his workforce and advice to us when choices had to be made.  The carpenters and plumbers were top-notch, always wanting to do the right thing instead of hiding a flaw.  I really appreciated their honesty and good advice when the job would run into an unexpected snag.  In such cases they always had a creative solution.  Jim also went out of his way to help solve some of the unexpected problems for which we were most appreciative. I really have only two complaints, which deal with flooring and painting.  Through a series of mis-communications I ended up with a floor I didn't exactly want.  Floating floors maybe good where the sub floor is perfectly flat, but bridging over dips just creates hollow spots that always creak/crack when you walk over them.  As to the painting, I'm refering to the varnishing of the closet doors.  The process the painter used had the doors reeking with noxious solvent for a month.  It got cold at night with all the windows open and fans blowing!  I would also recommend that you go personally to see your granite selection for counter tops, as there can be a large variation between what you see in a catalog vs. the real thing.  I love the granite tops we now have, though my wife thought it would look different.  Take it from me, it's always safer to have your spouse on-board when it comes to color selections!
 In short, I am wiser now for some of the details involved, and will be more assertive and involved in voicing preferences & choices for any future home remodeling.  And yes, my first choice for the future will be James L. Graves Construction!

Met with Jim Graves and went over our plan to enlarge the master bath and replace a tub/shower with a multi-head walk-in custom ceramic-walled shower. Also needed was a ceramic bathroom floor to match the shower and updated fixtures, commode and cabinet along with an exhaust fan which the original bath did not have. Jim gave us a number of Web sites to look at to get an idea of the fixtures and cabinets we would like. We picked out the major items we wanted from these sites like the faucets to shower heads, cabinet and lights. He also sent us to a Ceramic and Tile Store to select the flooring and shower walls.  Once everything was selcted Jim gave us an estimate for the total turn-key job. The estimate was above our budget for this job so the negotiations began. He adjusted some of his pricing and we eliminated some of the things we could do ourselves like the final painting. Once we agreed on the cost, everything was ordered to begin the project. Over the next couple weeks packages would show up at the house containing fixtures, lights and plumbing items. Once everything was accounted for, Jim scheduled work to begin on a Monday. The complete job took 2 weeks and was well planned with no down time between the different tasks. Tear-out carpenters as well as the tile and drywall intaller, plumbers and electricians were scheduled in such a way as to not interfer with each other. Clean-up at the end of the day was complete and every precaution was taken to control dust and debris. Items from the tear out were removed quickly and we were always told what the next step in the process was going to be, how long it should take, and if any changes needed to be done to the original plan.  At the end of the 2 weeks the project was done except for the custom shower doors and mirror which were the last items to be crafted due to measurements having to be taken after everything else was complete. It took a week for the doors to be installed and we were ready to get wet.    Lessons Learned:  We decided we wanted to have the finish on the plumbing fixtures and light be Oil Rubbed Bronze. We learned that looking at a Web Site we couldn't tell that this finish varied by Manufacturer. We ordered from three Manufacturers and some of the items were a different shade etc once we received them and we had to re-order. Our suggestion is if one is to select ORB as a finish, you order everything you can from the same Manufacturer, or pick the items locally where you can actually compare. Jim had no problem sending back the non-matching pieces.  Another lesson is to pick out everything from the color of the flush handle and water lines on the commode to the color of the drain in the shower. The Plumber who did our project was the one who noticed that these items, as they showed up did not match our ORB theme but were bright chrome. He suggested we make the changes, and we agreed to change them.Special Comments:  I have never seen a ceramic wall with intricate design more professionally installed than by the person who did our project. His tile and design work is top notch and no doubt he paid special attention to fine detail and finish work.  I also would like to commend Jim for his patience and being there to answer any and all questions. It was a pleasure to work with his Company and Staff. At our final inspection after the doors were installed, there was only one small plumbing related item that needed addressed. It took all of 10-minutes to make an adjustment.  We have never before not had a bucket list of item that needed attention prior to accepting a job as complete. This is testimony to the professionalism of Jim and attention to detail that his workers displayed during this project.   A job well done!

Popular lore has it that if you want to test your marriage and/or your sanity, have some or all of your home remodeled while you are living in it. Believing that the best way to get the best people and thus retain our best health, we consulted Angie's List for recommendations of remodeling contractors.The Jim Graves Construction company stuck out like a light to guide someone down the path to a better remodeling. We called. The owner came. He is so good that you think you dialed a wrong number and got a very good actor from Off Broadway. But he has been doing building and remodeling for so long that if he does not feel capable of providing the solutions himself, he knows the problems themselves so well that he has learned what sort of expertise is called for.The upshot is that he has people who know and care about what they are doing, and Jim himself is a master at scheduling and coordinating his tradesmen most efficiently. Quality without Compromise, he says, is the motto of the company. It sounds like something that a Fortune 500 company's advertising division would think up and then forget all about as they go on their merry way, blissfully ignoring and insulting the people who really expect to have the company listen to their wants and complaints. If anything is unsatisfactory on a project, Jim wants to hear about it and correct it to your satisfaction. He calls himself a problem solver. If anything needs fixing, they fix it. If it is their fault--or even maybe not their fault--they fix it. You feel like a good friend is working for you instead of a commercial operation that does several million dollars of remodeling every year.We needed a bathroom remodeled quickly, and Jim thankfully fit the project into his schedule within a few days of our signing the contract! The work moved very quickly, and Wes did a great job on all the carpentry and was extremely diligent, pleasant, and patient during the entire job. The area was sealed off to contain dust, and there was little noise or disruption once the demolition was done. We so appreciate the area being cleaned up every day before the workmen left the job.  Besides being a delight to work with, Mauricio's tile work and dedication to his job resulted in a gorgeous tile work. It is refreshing to deal with people who care so much about their work. And our heat duct cover that was in the floor was replaced with a beautiful "flush" vent tiled with the same floor tile-beautiful! And thanks to Nichole for all her work estimating, coordinating with suppliers, and answering questions.As I said at the outset, you are not going to believe it when you meet this man. He listens carefully, makes pertinent suggestions, points out things that might cause you grief, writes up an estimate that shows in such detail what you are paying for that you go into shock, and then says if there is anything that is not going the way you want it to go, he wants to hear about it. After you recover, give him a try. Remodeling is not an extremely happy experience. But if there is anyone who can make it more comfortable than Jim and his good workmen, then let us have a contest. I'll be backing the Graves company. We love our beautiful, new bathroom!

This was the second time I used Jim for a major renovation and I couldn't have been more pleased.  It's been almost a year since the kitchen was completed and I'm even happier with the result now than I was when I first saw the finished product. 

Jim takes good care of his clients.  He makes you feel like you're his only client.  He uses craftsmen that take great pride in their work.  I don't trust my house to anyone but Jim Graves!

Pretty much everything went smoothly.

  I had some problems with one of the carpenters on the job.  He was a bit sloppy with protecting my home from dust during the demolition phase, but his carpentry work was excellent, and he also had very good suggestions for accessories that I was buying over the internet.  However,  he is no longer with the company.  Jim wants only the highest possible quality and customer satisfaction, and this young man was not a good fit.  The degree of dust during demolition was my only complaint.
  The job took nearly three weeks, but the result is spectacular.  My bathroom is gorgeous and functional.  Brian, the other young man who did the bulk of the work, took great pride in his work, and it shows with the result.  My bathroom is so well insulated that even without a radiator, the bathroom felt comfortable.  The tile specialist, Mauricio, is a true craftsman.  I have a very challenging bathroom.  It is small, and the tub/shower is under the slope of the roof.  The walls were also not completely straight, although Brian rebuilt them on a level.  Mauricio did a fabulous job with the floor and wall tiles.  I could not be happier.
   After two months, I noticed that one of the tiles was cracked, and several more looked like they were starting to crack.  I called Jim, and he sent Mauricio right away.  Luckily, I still had a box of tiles and a bag of grout left over, and Mauricio replaced six tiles.  Apparently something happened as the mud was drying that created stress on the tiles, cracking six of them.  As usual, Mauricio did a fabulous job, and I am thrilled with the result.
  My tub is tiled all around and up the slope of the ceiling.  Brian built a knee wall at the back of the tub (my original tub was bigger and fit flush to the wall), which is tiled.  It's like I have a little alcove at the back of the tub.  The tiles are hand-made white tiles, with floral accent tiles and a floral listello.  There is white wainscoting on three walls, a new white wall cabinet with crown molding, and a new pedestal sink.  I wanted a look in keeping with the age of the house, and Jim designed and built exactly what I was hoping to have.

Where do I begin?  Jim and his workers have spent so much time in our house that some of them are beginning to feel like family.  We first started working with Jim in the Fall of 2010.  We met with a few different contractors to discuss our options in remodeling and reconfiguring our master bathroom and master bedroom and updating our guest bathroom, we also installed hardwood floors in the majority of the house including the stairs and replacing the banisters.  Jim was by far the most upfront when it came to our options and the most cost effective way to do the work.  We were impressed that Jim has you meet with each of his subcontractors and has you pick out all of your finishes before he provides the estimate so you know exactly how much the project will cost.  We had a ton of work done on the house and I think that our bill was less than $400 different from the original estimate and that was due to changes we made along the way.

Our master bath went from a tiny little functional bathroom to a beautiful room with a large shower with frameless glass door, double sinks and beautiful tile work.  They built me the most beautiful walk-in closet with a custom built window seat its truly amazing!

Our guest bathroom is equally stunning.  One of the places where Jim excels is his eye for design.  My husband and I are not blessed with this talent and Jim wasn't shy in giving his opinion if he believed something else would look better.  Case in point, we had picked out a slab of granite for the guest bathroom and Jim called to tell me that he believed it was too busy with the tile we had picked and he had seen the perfect slab at the yard.  We trusted Jim's choice and that beautiful piece is the first thing people comment on when they see that bathroom.  

With the amount of work we had done you can expect some problems but ours were minor and Jim worked hard to make sure everything was done to our satisfaction.

We hired Jim and his team again in January 2012 to help with a minor remodel of our basement, this time we didn't bother to talk to anyone else.  The work was done quickly and efficiently and we are very happy with the results.  We are sure that the work has added to the value of our home and we are so happy that we had it done and if we need anything else in the future we will call Jim.

Every aspect of the job was top quality, especially the tile work, which is better than I have ever seen.  The job took longer than we expected, but the finished product was worth waiting for.  He did not offer the lowest price, but we we were glad to pay for the professionalism, reliability, responsiveness and quality of the work.  I  highly recommend him. 

We had four estimates for the project and Jim Graves was the most professional and thorough. Jim met with us to discuss the project and submitted several different options for the floor plan. He worked with us until we landed on a floor plan that we liked. Once we selected James L Graves Construction for the project Jim guided us through the very difficult process of picking out tile, sinks, counter tops, faucets ect. On one occasion Jim met with us to help us pick out the tile, vanity and granite counter top. From start to finish the project took about 5 weeks. Tom was our project manager and he did a great job of keeping us informed about what they would be doing each day. All of the people that did the work were professional and they took great care to keep our house as clean as possible during the construction. We were very pleased with the final results. Our new bathroom looks great and we would use James L. Graves Construction again.

Overall extremely pleased with professionalism and workmanship of the company.  Due to holidays, start date was somewhat delayed but work after the start all work was completed in a timely and professional manner.

I can't say enough good things about the company.  The supervisor on the job was professional and was looking out for my best interests.  The individual firms that Graves employed to do the work did an excellent job both in the workmanship but also in their professional manners.  They arrived prompty and left the place in very good condition after the work day was done.  I received several calls from the supervisor to make sure that the workman did show up and accomplish their tasks.  It was pleasure working with Mr. Graves, Tom and all the other workers.

The job went very well.  The kitchen was completely gutted and new cabinets, countertops, cabinets, floor, backsplash, lights, etc, put in.  Jim was meticulous with the job - ensuring everything was done to the highest standards.  Would definitely recommend him!

James L. Graves construction was an absolute joy to work with. This was a multi-month process that is almost entirely our fault because we had selected one type of door and the estimate was made with that door in mind. Since this was a big purchase for us and one we would have to live with for many years, we changed door styles and had to have a new estimate drawn up, only to go back to the original plan. Tom, the man who was working with us on the estimate, was so very patient and accommodating throughout our decision making process. We found the estimate to be wonderfully detailed and appreciated that compared to other estimates we had received. We also appreciated that the job was done in a timely manner once all the materials came in.

We needed a new door because there was water damage and rotting of the frame and entryway subfloor which had caused some water damage and mold issues in our basement.

When it was time to install the door, the workers arrived at the time they said they would, were professional, and did a complete job. They were also very patient and kind to my rather curious 2 and 5 year old children. We initially thought we would paint the interior of the door and stain the exterior of the door. The gentleman who was doing the painting/staining asked if we had thought about staining the interior of the door. We had not and he said to us that we can paint over the stain if we don't like it, but we can't stain the door once it's painted and he would do whatever we wanted. We went ahead and stained the interior door and fell in love with it. The painter himself was impressed with how the fiberglass was taking the stain like real wood. We get many compliments on the door and people are surprised when we tell them that it is not a solid wood door at all.

There were some issues with the installation that the workers were able to address. The brick that the base of the door frame rested upon was, apparently, very uneven and was a source of some of our basement troubles. Also, the area of the subflooring that was water damaged was larger than initially expected and there was a colony of ants living in the subfloor under our hardwood floor. The workers took the time to address the ant situation before tackling anything else and addressed all other issues in a satisfactory manner.

We also chose a mortise lock set that required precision work to install - a multi-hour process. We are very pleased with the results.

After the door and lock set were installed and everything painted, the hardwood floor was set to be repaired. We really believed that there would be no way to match the untouched flooring with new flooring and were content with placing an area rug by the front door to cover up the mismatching. Well, we were VERY impressed with the work done on the floor and no one can tell where the new flooring and old flooring come together. The match was exact - size of the planks, wood type, and stain. The worker even came out on a Saturday to finish the job.

We are very pleased with James L. Graves construction and have plans on using them again for some projects we have in mind for the near future. When there was an issue with the door closing tightly and the deadbolt sticking a bit, someone came out to the house within a week (less than that, I think) and made the necessary adjustments. There were no surprises with the estimate with one exception that we felt was fair - the entryway floor damage was more extensive than initially thought, thus more flooring had to be torn up and then replaced (and the ant colony destroyed). The change was a few hundred dollars extra, but not beyond what we had in our heads. The floor is solid now, there are no ants, the basement is dry, and we have a front door that we just love. 

Greg was our project manager on this job.  He always made me feel like my kitchen was the only job he had going on -- and I know that wasn't the case.  He was very personable.  He offered ideas and solutions.  They say we should trust our instincts when we meet people --- my instincts  told me Greg was a  very trustworthy and knowledgeable man in the construction business.

I am very sorry to learn that Greg had been in an accident within two weeks of finishing my kitchen, in which he lost his thumb.  I am praying the doctors were able to work their magic through God's miracles.  Greg, please be safe and get healed as quickly as you can.  You are such an asset to your business and you are just a very good man.

James L. Graves Construction did a fantastic job on rebuilding my front porch Portico and I will hire his company again to do other major work needed on my house. I am pleased with the results of my Portico and have received numerous compliments about the it.

As always there are hiccups with projects like this. Jim was great, extremely communicative and made sure that no decision was made without first talking with us. We ran into a problem with the granite install where the seam was not close enough for us. The installed tried to fix it and ultimately was going to extend us a discount. I was wavering on whether to accept the discount and Jim simply told me NO, he would not let me settle on this since we would have to look at this every day we live in the house. He made his sub eat the cost and ultimately it was fixed and Jim was completely right. This type of decision says a lot about the pride they take in their work.

Jim was also great to deal with on the small things. I am EXTREMELY picky about details. Almost every other day I was sending him a punch list of items I would like addressed. Unlike so many other contractors, not once did he try to convince me I was being too picky. He simply fixed the things I requested and moved on.

Jim is extremely knowledgeable and has a great team working for him. My only concern is that he will get too busy not be able to keep up the pace :-)

They let me know that they could net get out until January. I needed this done now. I could not wait this long, so I had to call other companies.

s       My overall experience with Graves construction was very satisfactoy. They responded to my call for an estimate very quickly and the quoted price was very fair. They repaired the damaged part of the roof, installed new flashing, and replaced all the water damaged drywall inside. The workmen were very courteous and professional and cleaned up thoroughly after the repair. I would definitely recommend them to anyone needing any exterior or interior repair to their home.

Upon pulling into the garage, I noticed water dripping onto the hood of my car from the garage ceiling. Luckily, I backed out and parked in the driveway because by the next morning that section of ceiling fell onto what would have been my car. Since the roof is only six years old, we suspected tree branch damage. I immediately did an Angie's List search and found James L. Graves Construction.

Jim Graves came over that very day. He was professional, knowledgeable, and sympathetic with our "sky is falling" panic. Intrepidly he went into the dark crawl space over the garage ceiling and surprised us by finding not one but two holes, one on each side of the roof ridge. Since more bad weather was predicted he sent someone over the very next day to repair the roof. Would that it would be so quick and simple. The day after the repair, a new section of ceiling fell. Another call to Jim Graves brought him right over to look for a possible missed leak. No new leak was found, even after saturating the roof with a garden hose. The patches held. Just in case, we waited through a few gully washers: no new leaks - bone dry! Apparently the second ceiling fall was due to heavy,  accumulated water that had soaked into the insulation and wall board causing that portion of ceiling to finally give way.

The next phase was ceiling repair. Scaffolding was set up to reach 12 feet over our embarrassingly cluttered garage floor, tarps covering the lawn tractor and other items. (We didn't have to clean out the garage in bad weather to get the work done.) The repair took three days total and looks as good as new. We were very pleased.

The remodeling process went very well. There were some surprises along the way that were dealt with quickly. I discovered that the water in my downstairs shower was not draining through the drain in the floor because it was plugged, but into two of the shower walls, requiring them to be replaced. In the upstairs bathroom, I discovered that there was no floor but that the tile was set on top of something like concrete and that there was no floor under the tub. The tub was simply resting on 2x4s. Now the bathrooms not only look great but also are functioning properly with no hidden surprises.