Get matched with top deck and porch pros in Cedar Park, TX

"These guys are great. Did quality work for a reasonable price, and were able to start right away."

"New 2-story deck missed the mark across code, Trex guidelines, and aesthetics. Poor planning. Won't make it right. We lost 5 figures on a 2-man crew that lacks longevity with owner. Hire inspectors before paying final invoice. FYI “Custom Deck and Fence Austin” also has poor reviews on multiple sites noting owner Todd Louis Ratajik of "Good Day Baked Energy Snacks" (Forfeited Existence). Sites now name “Cesar” as owner. Negative reviews disappeared. AFFD has pending lawsuits with Travis County Courts. Unknown AFFD subcontractor alarmingly used my name and address in another client’s lawsuit w**! Standard: Visual consistency. AFFD: Mismatched railing. Todd’s words: "It's the same railing but pinched." (A contractor’s FB review notes lack of materials to properly complete jobs.) Std: Concrete pad supports stairs. AFFD: Stair stringers hover in air, failing to land on concrete. Todd blatantly texted that stringers would step out (not down) from deck. I refuted the abnormality. Top step was cut off; stringers don’t reach concrete. Instead of extending pad or redoing stringers, an ugly post was set. Std: Stairs treads w/o gaps. No overhangs. AFFD: Stringer cuts forgot stairs' fascia; treads weren’t 11+”. Gaps added to meet code -> stair noses >1.25", ie trip hazards. FYI Use rise-to-run guidelines. Std: 42” deck railings. 34-38” stair railings ABOVE boards. AFFD: 44” deck railings. Didn’t supply 34” stair railings; boards grossly notched to lower height, which start at 44”! Std: Posts sit on existing FINISHED concrete pads. (LOL) AFFD: Post had no contact with pad (after removing makeshift shams to hide the blunder) ie ZERO deck weight on ground. Todd asked if this was okay [to not deal with]. Post not corrected at start. Rough concrete poured atop pad to meet post. Ew. Std: 16" oc MAX joist spacing (Trex specs). AFFD: 7 of 13 spacings are >16". No blocking. Add 1 or 2 joists = ~15.5" or 14" spacings. Todd said his ways are “affordable” and “economical”. Eek. Best: Competitor contracts: "12-in joist spacings", "blocking", “glulam beam”. Std: Trex Cocktail Rail Kit (full-width support, hidden fasteners). AFFD: 5.5" wavy floor boards nailed to 1" rail. Visible screws, rough shavings, corner gaps, no support eg 2x4s to flatten board. No countersunk screws and putty to hide nails. Std: Professional aesthetics. AFFD: Not spraying railing cuts = RUST. No continuity in stairs fascia to meet deck edge. Silver bolts on black railings. Posts unequal distance from deck edges. Cedar’s shorter lifespan requires staining / maintenance < Trex’s composite fascia. Std: Disclosure of unforeseen issues. Protocols. Loyal crews. AFFD: Crew wasted a day plotting makeshift repairs after causing roof damage. Licensed roofer was furious about erroneously-cut flashing. Roofers returned after crew again made damaging cuts where told not to. Zero acknowledgement from Todd. AFFD: Crew noted holes in house’s ceiling after removing joist nails. No repairmen references. Not-our-problem mentality. AFFD: 15+ days by 2 tired guys: the hire + his actual neighbor. Ditto to reviewer compelled to supervise. Days start late, end after 7pm. My neighbors had 5 deck builders who left by 6pm still jolly. AFFD: Non-recyclables in recycling bin. Concrete and stinky liquid in trash bin. Cigarette butts, nails, and construction debris across yard. AFFD: Crew won’t tell owner about gray areas and errors in judgments. One unsure if he'd get paid wth. Std: Professionalism. AFFD: No final walkthroughs. Owner ignores items in emails. Condescending; when I climbed a ladder re an issue (that I called a roofer to fix), Todd muttered that I was “an inspector, eh”. Instead of talking measurements, Todd’s retort was “I’m the owner of a deck company”, as if titles alone grant proficiency. Labor is hired out, crew turnover is high. Workmanship depends on whoever is outsourced, who aren’t deck builders so much as guys who "have built decks before". Expect no corrections on what Todd Ratajik deems as "good enough"."

"It went very well"

"Great would hire again!"

"Great experience working with all of them. The project managers, Shai and Eli, consistently checked in. They made sure everything and us were taken care of. Very big help from Lenny for the design. The outcome was amazing, and definitely a big upgrade from what we had before."

"My Gazebo was shipped but not have all the parts to complete the roofing. 3 weeks later with a lot of customer service calls I finally received missing parts. They worked tiresly ti complete the job! I am eternally grateful and completely satisfied with my Gazebo. Any future needs I will use ATX Outdoor Construction. ATX Outdoor Construction was Amazing!"

"Outstanding job! Thanks guys"

"Amazing job great price. It took a little while to order a get the color I wanted for my metal roof but they kept me informed during the entire process. True professionals."

"I recently talked with the owner Rene’, I previously requested a estimate for a project that I had to abort. His customer service was outstanding. Professional and compassionate to my situation.If in the future I can proceed with my project. He would be definitely contacted to bid on the project. I got good feelings about this company. Thanks Rene, God Bless."

"I paid Best Austin Handyman over $24,000 and I provided 95% of the demolition and materials and did all of the painting. The general contractor, Barrett Criscoe, said work could be completed without permits by a crew within 3 weeks beginning December 4th, 2017. This job did require permits and it took six weeks before the plans were right and accepted by the city during which I had no kitchen. Work began February 7th, 2018. It appears this nightmare won't be over until resolved in court. I fired them on April 24th. They did substandard work and charged me for things that were listed in my estimate, but that they either didn't do, did incorrectly, or very poorly. When they began work they would work for a few hours and then not show up for days or even weeks at a time. Barrett had the job foreman, Eric Gazur, and project manager, Nick Martin, do the electrical work that was supposed to be done by Andy Keil of Live Oak Electric. Those that did the electrical work appear to have been unqualified, unlicensed, and unsupervised. I found out that their work was not done correctly. Andy Keil refused to fix the electrical issues, telling me he had only been paid $500 to pull the permit as a favor to Barrett. Barrett wouldn't talk to me, handing me off to Megan Walker in accounting. When I asked for an itemized list of charges, she gave me a list with each item priced significantly higher than quoted in the estimate and insistence on charges for work never performed. They would not fix their electrical mistakes unless I paid them an additional $2800. A friend sent her son-in-law, a master electrician, to look at the electrical work they had done. He told me what they had done was unsafe and had been done illegally. I hired a legitimate and ethical electrician to fix numerous issues. So far I've spent $6,000 to correct shoddy work including corrected breakers in electrical panel, smoke detectors that were not properly daisy chained, loose wiring in attic, an unshielded live wire that was attached to the electrical panel, dishwasher and garbage disposal that were wired together into one switch, electrical sockets no longer working on one wall of the living room, two walls in the breakfast area, an outside light and outlet, the addition of required light in the attic and corrected wiring in attic to garage exterior light. Other contractors vented dryer from laundry room to exterior, repaired drywall and tile, and finished the other two sides of a beam I paid BAH to cover in drywall. They still need to hang the upper cabinets, move and vent the microwave, install toe kicks, shelving, and backsplash. I've already paid BAH for all of theseitems. For this extensive list of items to be completed or repaired Barrett Criscoe offered a refund of $1,000, which I declined. I've reported everyone involved to Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. I've been told that each person involved can expect fines of up to $10,000 and revocation of licensure. This fiasco has caused extreme stress and loss of sleep, affecting my health. They took advantage of my initial lack of construction knowledge. I documented everything in my personal daily log and recommend anyone using these people do the same., or better yet, staying far away from everyone listed in this review. My goal is to save others from going through what I have."