Burkes Remodeling

Last year we built a pergola using Burks Remodeling Company and we paid premium price for their service. Billy (Clyde William Burks) is the owner of the company (BurksRemodeling.com). Based on the quality of his work and professionalism, I very strongly do not recommend Burks Remodeling Company to anyone out there because of these reasons: 1. The quality of their work is very bad: The pergola is not level and the main 4 cedar posts are not aligned with each other. The end alignment on the top parts of pergola (layer ?cedar stripping?) is not aligned at all. Some are longer than others. When they finished the job, it was already late at night and dark, so I couldn?t really see this until the next day. 2. I requested them to reinforce the 4 cedar posts into the ground. While they did this, they did not touch up to smooth out the concrete. They just dig the hole, and then set the posts and pour the concrete, and let it dry without smoothing the concrete, and the concrete is way below than the ground level. I asked Bill to smooth the concrete, and he wanted another $100 extra. I refused, and I ended up fixing it myself. 3. They did not clean the mess they made after the work: This was including 200 pounds of clay soil sitting around in my backyard from digging the hole for the posts, and the left over wood pieces from the construction. When I asked Bill to clean this, he said he normally doesn?t clean after the job, you (I) have to clean it myself. My wife and I spent several hours cleaning their mess and removed the 200 pounds of clay soil. 4. The quality of the cedar wood they used was very cheap and terrible. In less than 1 month after they built the pergola, the cedar posts have unusual cracking over 1 inch wide on the middle of the wood on all 4 posts. I compared the pergola that is built by Home Depot (over 10 years), and they didn?t have this problem other than normal cracking (between 2 to 5 mm). 5. It took them about 3 weeks total to build the pergola instead of 1 week from what they originally promised. 6. When I tried to resolve some of the issues for the concrete and the mess that they created with Bill, the owner of the company; he was very unprofessional and threatened me that he will show up in my house with p***** attitude (this was his own word). When he started the job, I paid 60% down, and on the last day of the job (Saturday), Bill asked me for the remaining payment (40%) before they finish the work (it was about 90% complete). Bill said he need the money really bad for his son?s birthday that day, and it was my biggest mistake to pay them before they finish their job. Moral lesson of this: Never pay your contractor until they finish their job, clean up their mess, and you are satisfied with their job. I hope other readers will learn from my mistake. This company is not credible and the owner (Billy) is only nice to you when he try to get or sell the job. Please avoid them with all costs.