Housecrafters

Lousy job!  The installer was rude as was his assistant.  The crown moulding was cut poorly and didn't match up, the installer cut a giant hole in my wall to allow for a phone, no I didn't want that, i didn't ask.  The installer then cut the water line so that I had to contact a plumber to hook up my dishwasher, I had to go around and tap in nails, one of the quiet close hinges fell out and I cannot get it back in since the installer drilled the hole too big.  They left a huge mess!  very unpleasant experience. Stay Away!!!!!

HouseCrafters is a sub-contractor for The Home Depot in the Philadelphia region.  In 2007 A kitchen and bathroom total renovation was contracted.  Initially they installed cast iron baseboard radiators with only 1/2" copper pipes, although the manufacturer's required specifications were for 3/4".  Once winter arrived, it was immediately apparent that the two renovated rooms were 10 degrees colder than the rest of the house.  Rather than install the correct pipe sizes, they installed cheap Aluminum wall panels still with the 1/2" pipes.   The rest of the house has cast iron radiators with 1" pipes feeding them.  Because the aluminum fixtures didn't match the rest of the house, they did not heat correctly either.  HouseCrafters procrastinated fixing the problem for four years, always doing a "repair" in the summer when the heat is off.  One "repair" was simply letting air out of the system.   When the problem was still present the next winter, they delayed again until the next spring. In May 2011 they finally removed the Aluminum wall panels altogether leaving the heating system drained and there were no fixtures in the kitchen and bathroom at all for 5 months.  After months of begging, they returned in October.  I kept insisting on cast iron units with larger pipes.  Their manager promised he would "take care of me" and had his workers install used, un-matched, refurbished, rusty, un-painted radiators from a scrap yard to give me heat for the winter.  They STILL used 1/2" pipes for the fixtures.  They STILL do not heat adequately because they have the wrong pipe diameter feeding them.  This last job left me with over a dozen broken floor and wall tiles and ruined insulation beneath the rooms, and the refurbished ugly radiators DO NOT match the beautiful, otherwise newly renovated rooms.

The original contract specified cast iron baseboard radiators.  The manufacturer specified that 1/2" pipes would be expected to give less than 50% of the BTU's that would be gained using 3/4" pipes.  HouseCrafters did not install them correctly from the beginning.  Furthermore, since the time of the renovation, it was discovered that HouseCrafters never insulated the ceilings in 2007 although they were contracted to.  With different radiators being installed, we've been left with over a dozen broken floor and wall tiles, and the insulation beneath the two rooms was left removed and ruined.  HouseCrafters never returned to repair or replace the damage.  I have pictures showing how they vandelized my kitchen and bathroom with the last "repair."

In four years of negotiating with Home Depot, I have been transferred to five different District Managers, each time without them informing me of a change, and each time I had to start from the beginning with a new inspection of the problem, new plumbers giving different options, and lots of procrastination.  The most recent District Manager acknowledged that the original cast iron baseboard heaters would have worked with the proper plumbing when he spoke with the manufacturer.  Home Depot refused to have HouseCrafters return unless I signed a legal form releasing them from liability for their mistake.  I refused to sign it, and they have not spoken to me.  Home Depot has "closed my case."

I am now having a private contractor replace my pipes with 3/4", the originally contract cast iron baseboard heaters, fix my damaged tiles and floors, and re-insulate my crawl space.  They are forcing me to sue them for the cost of the repairs that they should have done correctly in the first place.

If anyone wishes to use HouseCrafters or The Home Depot for a renovation, I suggest you reconsider.  The money you think you're saving isn't worth it.  Run away from them! 

It did take about two weeks to complete. They did a great job. This is a sub-contractor through Home Depot.

They came pretty much on time. But when I had questions it was hard to get return calls. We had one minor problem after he installed the lazy susan cabinet. Ir bumped up against our stove. We called the carpenter to come and fix it. We went to Home Depot and mentioned it to Teresa and Marilyn. Both of these ladies sent communication to House Crafters for it to be adjusted. We heard nothing all winter. I called again in February and received no response. I finally gave up. I have paid the bill so now I have no back-up for them to come. I feel I did everything I could to get them to come out. I offered for him to come at his convenience and have heard nothing. They were efficient while doing the work.