Jancewicz & Son

unknown

I was the victim of home improvement fraud involving Rick Amidon of Bellows Falls, VT and Windham Windsor Housing Trust.  WWHT had me hire  Jancewicz & Son to inspect, provide photos and do a detailed report so my situation could be remedied.  While the man that did the inspection was very knowledgeable and initially very helpful, they provided a very minimal report and would not back me during arbitration.  Clearly they don't actually care of the well being of people, only making the almighty buck. It took me months and months to get my roof fixed and not leaking.  If they had only been upstanding moral people, my h*** would have been minimized.  Very much NOT recommended.

When I moved to Brattleboro from Washington DC, I was not only unfamiliar with the area, I had never lived in New England, and therefore did not even know what an ice dam was. My house is a simple cape, with a large dormer (flat roof) on the back, which faces north and gets no sun. It is only one and a half stories high on the front, but at the back, because it?s built on a hill, with the dormer it?s three stories high. 
I got three estimates from local roofers: 11K, 14K and 18K. The most expensive bid was Jancewicz, but since I was unfamiliar with the area and they seemed to be the most professional outfit around, I decided to go with them after a very convincing sales pitch--complete with glossy brochures. Before I signed the contract, the salesman did mention that the manufacturer?s warranty on the shingle would be void if the boards that made up my roof deck were not a certain width and spacing. If they were not, it would mean that they could not guarantee that every nail would hit wood since the shingles are designed to conform to those specific measurements. He DID NOT tell me that it would compromise the structure of the roof. I do not have an attic, but he went in a crawlspace to inspect the roof deck and assured me that there would be no problem. Once they got my deposit their customer service evaporated and I called for months asking when work would begin on my roof.
Finally, when work began, they had about a quarter of the old roof removed when the workers informed me that my roof deck did not meet the specifications. They said it would be an additional eight thousand dollars to install a new roof deck (which is simply an under layer of plywood.) This was not an option for me because I just didn?t have the money. What was I going to do now with my roof partially gone? They had me over a barrel to say the least, and I just told them they would have to proceed and begged them to do their best to make sure the nail gun hit wood. They said it shouldn?t be a problem.
The following winter was a freakishly mild one, with almost no snow. It was the winter after that that the problems began. Every time it snowed?even a couple of inches--I would get an ice dam on the dormer section and water would drip down the interior walls of my house. During the second winter I admit I did not do anything to fix the problem. I had a lot of other stressful things going on. The third winter I had a six inch thick wall if ice covering the top two stories on the back. This is when I contacted Jancewicz to fix the problem and the runaround began. They did not return my numerous calls and emails. Finally, after I sent an email threatening a law suit, they brought in an insulation ?expert? (silly me trusting an expert they hired) who told me that it was the steam from my cooking that was seeping through the exterior walls and forming ice on the back. Seriously, how stupid do they think I am? Is it because I?m a single woman?
I was fuming and sought out a lawyer, hoping I could resolve this in court. That?s when I learned that the only thing I could sue for was faulty workmanship for the work that was done. ?Should? does not hold up in court. As in they ?should? have known that this would be an issue with a flat roof facing north. Or they ?should? have recommended a metal roof for the dormer at least. Or they ?should? have put a snow belt at the edge to prevent the dam from happening. Or they ?should? have put a layer of rubber under the shingle. There are a lot of things they could have done to prevent this from happening, but the cost of a lawsuit would be prohibitive and I probably wouldn?t win anyway since I had to sign off on not getting a new roof deck. All I know for sure is that I never had this problem with my old roof and the only difference between my old roof and my new one is one layer of shingle. I am left feeling totally duped, ripped off and victimized. It is going to cost me thousands of dollars to fix the problems Jancewicz caused. My only recourse (and I?m seriously doing this) is putting a 3 x 5 foot sign on the front of my house that says ?Jancewicz did my roof and I am NOT a happy customer.? I live on a busy street and hope it will save at least one person from getting ripped off by this unscrupulous company.

Greatly exceeded expectations, especially since they did the work during one of the worst winters in a long time. They even came in below zero temps and the work. America out better than I ever expected.

unknown

Jancewicz did beautiful work, and was very helpful in deciding what to so with our roof. We will certainly use them again in the future.

The process of installing the new roof was excellent. The work crew was incredibly helpful and polite. The work was clean and there was no hint of work debris or material after the installation ended. We will (and are) using Jancewicz for additional work given our experience.

The whole process went well and more quickly than I had expected, they brought a crew of five to do an average-size house. The weather did not help, with snow and cold they needed to shovel off the roof and deck to access it and put up staging. They were considerate about disrupting our driveway and generally did not cause serious problems with our being in the house, leaving for work, etc. The workmanship, so far as I am qualified to tell, is first-rate. Before doing the work, the sales rep explained the issues with the existing 30-year old roof, and the single layer of sheathing, so we had a second layer added. They were extremely cautious about harming anything on the ground (e.g., plants around the house). They worked a regular 5-day week, so we had quiet on the weekends, but with a large crew they finished in 11 days. There are a few minor glitches, due to the heavy snowfall, that they plan to finish up now that the snow is gone. We've had this company do work for us before (replace a flat roof and overlaying deck), and I've been very satisfied with a thorough and competent job both times. Though they are more expensive than many others, the assurance of a good job, and long-term warranties on the work and materials (35+ years) is, I believe, worth the premium cost. This company has been in business in this location for a long time, and it is clear they care about their reputation.

The sales and the install teams were fantastic to work with. I'd use them again without question.

Two technicians from the company arrived on time, got to work and finished within the time frame originally estimate to complete the job. The roof has no leaked since then.

Excellent construction project with highly professional results. Fit and finish excellent. All staff very professional, site cleaned up at end of every day. Final result just beautiful and leak / problem free during the space of this Winter, just concluded.

I didn't follow up with them again... but I shouldn't have to. I'd call them again if I had to and they had multiple positive reports. I called them in August and they came within a week.