STUART KITCHENS

We came across Stuart Kitchens by chance and liked the fact that it had an office/studio near our home. David, our designer, was great to work with and really listened to what we wanted in a new kitchen and was able to work within our budget. Deciding which options to go with was an overwhelming task that David made easy based on what we were looking for. As far as the work itself, the crew was very skilled and professional and did a great job. The job was completed in the agreed upon time and all unforeseen issues were taken care of. Overall our remodel experience was great and Stuart Kitchens made a stressful event less so. We will probably hire them again for future remodeling endeavors.

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It went pretty well. The only thing is, they hired some unlicensed immigrants to be plumbers and they flooded my house. The plumbing company showed up immediately and fixed it. The end product was beautiful.

I've given a very mixed rating because while I found the workers and the scheduling coordinator to be very conscientious, and I enjoyed working with them, and while I'm very happy with the quality of the job that was ultimately achieved, the contract manager/designer (Jim Bignear) was not candid when we encountered problems on the job. There were 3 such instances: (1) one of the walls as installed was bowed/not flat, and the bowing did not allow the cabinet to sit flat against the wall. When we pointed it out, he said "you can't get level walls in an old house." The company did flatten the wall by applying "mud," but I learned that, instead, the studs should have been shimmed to make for a level surface against which the drywall would have been installed. The problem thus stemmed from the drywallers' failure to shim the studs, rather than from the age of the house; (2) the shower door initially installed was way too short--you would have had to duck to get in the bath/shower if you were over 5'6", and it looked awful. When I called to report the problem, Mr. Bignear left me a message saying that the door was the standard size supplied by the manufacturer, and I could order a custom door for another $900 on top of the $1300 I was already paying for the doors. I called the manufacturer and was told the doors come in whatever size the contractor orders. I realized that Mr. Bignear had just incorrectly specified the size of the doors. When I conveyed this information to Mr. Bignear, he agreed to switch out the doors for the correct size. (3) When the correct size doors were installed, they hit each other as you tried to slide them. When I reported the problem, I received a message from him saying that since the doors were taller, they were heavier, and that "per the manufacturer, the doors would smooth out with wear." By this time, I had already called the manufacturer, who informed me that if the doors were hitting, either the guide had not been properly installed, or the glass in the doors was warped. I transmitted this information, and Stuart Kitchens looked at the doors again and determined that the glass was warped. They were able to solve the problem by switching the position of the doors. The project was supposed to take "approximately 3 weeks," but instead took 7 weeks. At the outset, I was told that the company would not accept a more explicit completion date into the contract. As noted above, I'm happy with the end result, but was disturbed by the initial lack of candor in addressing the 3 problems mentioned above. On the other hand, the scheduling coordinator, Kelly, was delightful to work with,and the workers all seemed very nice and conscientious. Because of them, I would consider using the company again, but would do so only if I felt I could protect myself in the event of problems similar to the ones encountered here.

They did a great job. I would highly recommend them. They have great craftsmen. The guy that did the cabinetry did an outstanding job. They did the job in satisfactory time frame. Any little hitch that they came across, they would resolve. There was some caulking that was cracking and they came back and fixed it. They seem to be very responsive. I was really happy with their designer.