Taisey Design and Construction

Very well enjoying our new chandelier!

This is a very hard review to write. There were some highlights and some lowlights. We intentionally chose someone who WAS NOT the lowest bidder so as to ensure quality of work would be high and to pay enough so there would be schedule adherence. Another bidder came in substantially lower but had reviews that weren't as good as Mr. Taisey's. 

-The job was supposed to take a week at most and Scott did a good job mobilizing immediately, however he only did the work in fits and starts and showed up late, or not at all an alarming amount of the time. The work took more than two weeks. 

-The main parts of the job were of high quality. The flooring in the living room was master carpenter level. The retaining wall and drainage system was also top notch. The smaller tasks inside, such as drywall repair, replacing the trim and not making a mess, were completely unacceptable and I eventually fired him from this inside work and demanded he make haste with the exterior work. 

-Scott is a very nice guy, and I like that he treats his employees well and doesn't cuss, spit, be unpleasant. I did not like that he initially offered to replace a toilet wax ring after a bunch of problems happened and then came back wanting a nominal amount of money after talking to his wife. That was nickel and diming and he completely blew an opportunity to make right on making a mess of our home and being a week over schedule. He did apologize, so that is something. 

-Scott was late so often I knew more about his other job in King County, was more than I wanted to. He stretched himself too thin. 

While I won't hire Scott again, and feel we paid too much, it is my opinion that provided he is given a large enough task to completely keep his crew busy, he will do a good job. He certainly knows his stuff and knows better. I really do think he is a good person and competent. 

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He was prompt and worked quickly to do the needed work.

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Scott is very honest and easy to work with.  He handled a sticky situation really well with my neighbor.  I've hired him 2-3 times for small jobs inside and outside the house.  He is efficient and does quality work.

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Positive:

1. 1. They went over various options for windows and we clearly understood why we should select the type and brand that we did.
2. 2. Staff were warm individuals, and quite willing to explain what the problems were.
3. 3. The outdoor installation was excellently done. The window is high quality and well sealed, and the structural damage (from ants) well repaired.
4. 4. The cedar shakes match those on the house already. 
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Negative:
1.They did not match the placement of the molding to the twin window on the other side of the room. They did reuse the old molding, but they placed it to the edge of the window, instead of one-inch away, as there was framing wood around both windows. This resulted in the molding being much narrower. Eventually, we added a piece of one-inch wood around the molding so they would match.
2. The caulking was lumpy and uneven. 
3. They did not put a tarp under the window outside and pieces of debris and paint fell in the garden.
4. They did not call to inform us of when the window arrived to be installed nor was there an apology when we called, and found that the window had already arrived. 
To sum up: it's a good window, and well installed. The price was reasonable. But the small detail work was sloppy or unattended.

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He is a great man. He is really a nice guy, punctual and professional. His a little priced but its worthy paying.

He was great, he is a really, really nice man. He is punctual, he is professional, he seemed a little higher priced than what we are used to paying, but I think the quality of his work was well worth it and I would definitely use him again.

He was great. He is a really, really nice man. He's punctual he's professional, he seemed a little higher priced than what we were used to paying, but I think the quality of his work was well worth it and I'd definitely use him again.

It was wonderful. He had great personal skills.  He was on time.  He offered to come back to do something extra that he didn’t need to.  I would highly recommended anyone to him.

Well.....
He did not clean up his messes, and at one point i brought him a broom to help out.  
He did NOT ask for directions, so a towel bar is too low.   Another towel bar is not level.   He arrived 30 minutes early---8:30 instead of 9 am.   I guess that is better than being late, but i was still in bed when he arrived.
Otherwise the jobs are done, so that is helpful.

Scott had to deal with a difficult and demanding tenant.  He was very professional and went back to fix some concerns they had.   We were not able to fully review until the tenants vacated, but now that we have a full inspection of the work, he did a high quality job.  Thanks Scott!

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Scott showed up on time and completed everything on my punch list within the 2 hour time frame.  He was efficient, did excellent work and I couldn't be more pleased.  Additionally, he pointed out other areas that needed some TLC and made recommendations for what needed to be done and a timeframe within which the repairs could be reasonably accomplished.  I would highly recommend him for any job, large or small.

He was very responsive and thorough in communicating through email. He was patient, as there were circumstances delaying our project request. We have no complaints or concerns at all, and are arranging for him to do another project for us. We will continue to hire Taisey Design as projects arise.

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Scott Taisey is an absolute treasure. He works hard, works fast, and listens to your wants and needs. You can't beat his "can do" attitude! And, he is honest, pleasant and considerate in his work. I found him on Angie's list last winter, when we needed a contractor to manage several varied projects in our recently purchased beach cabin and cottage. We'd had some improvements done, and wanted to hire a hands-on builder/contractor who could make further improvements, and could possibly design and build an addition for us in the future. We have found his work to be excellent, well-thought out, and sensible. For example, we had suggested a brand of instant-on water heaters, and he researched that it best suited our needs. Because of limited electrical capacity in the 100 year old cottage, he suggested running gas piping to use propane (already on site for the adjacent cabin), rather than relying upon less economical electrical power to run the water heaters. As he was finishing installation of the second water heater, I asked him to add gas lines for a new dryer. Though a last minute request, this was happily accomplished. He managed the permits and contracted to have licensed work and inspections completed, so our leg work was minimized. Choices of where to place the water heaters in cottage and in cabin were discussed with pros and cons, and comparative costs. These have been a tremendous success. Our electric bill has been cut, the huge, rusted water heaters are gone, and we never ran out of water when we hosted 10 overnight guests. One challenge was met with curiosity and persistence: with the water shut off while replacing rusted iron water pipes in the cottage, turning it back on loosened residue that decreased hot water flow. In fact, a filter in the hot water heater had clogged. Scott looked at all of the information provided with the heaters, and online, and found this built-in filter was the issue.

Our many to-do lists have always been completed and improved upon by his suggesting different approaches and outcomes. He has the critical eye of someone who wants the work done right, and finished attractively. He notices what will work with the style of the home, and suggests appropriate materials. For example, in replacing both cabin and cottage kitchen faucets, he suggested keeping a simple style with lower price in the cottage, while choosing a more modern style that compliments updates made to that kitchen.

In  changing over the shower to tub, he had to remove several rows of tile at the bottom of the walls, slide the tub in place, (through a hole he made in the front hall wall, and then retile a 7" gap. Matching existing matte offwhite subway tiles was difficult, and he suggested creating a diamond pattern that added interest and a contrasting color.  The odd size meant that he had to make MANY tile cuts to accomplish this pattern, and had to use narrow border tiles at top and bottom to fill the gap, and complete this simple and attractive pattern. I think few people would have been as willing to do all the extra work of many cuts and many small pieces to deal with, but he said, "It's your home. You want to enjoy this improvement for years!" By cutting the hallway wall, he accessed the pipes to change shower to tub and shower controls, without taking out many existing tiles. This meant we needed only a few matte tiles, and could use the more prevalent higher gloss tiles for our decorative border along the top of the tub. It looks so attractive! He did a perfect job replacing and patching the wallboard, and painted the wall beautifully, without dripping on the stained woodwork. In fact, removing this wall was what exposed water that had pooled underneath the front hall flooring that had collected around the foundation from gutters and downspouts, and from an underground spring under our driveway! The existing drain had been overwhelmed by the amount of water. We'd  noticed an extension of a hairline crack in the front hall tile from a few inches, to 12", but didn't realize the cause. Drainage problems had contributed to cracks in the foundation that had to be repaired before we could purchase the house. We didn't want a repeat of that repair! Thus, exterior drainage pipes joined the new water lines in the trenches he'd dug, with extra trenching and pipes to carry the storm water away from the house, piped over the cliff, and released away from the base of the cliff, to protect from erosion at the top and base of the cliff.

His willingness to put in the extra effort to do a job right showed in this choreL  An electrician hired earlier by us had added electrical outlets, but couldn't make them flush to the floor because he couldn't drill through the 4" of leveling cement that had been needed due to a corner of the house sinking from foundation cracks. The electrician drilled only enough to feed the wires into boxes mounted on the floor. The boxes were a trip hazard and an eyesore. Scott cut out the square of thick cement and rebuilt the outlets and chose attractive covers that are flush to the floor, and that have flip up childproof caps over the outlets. What a huge improvement! And, it's great he thought ahead to our future grandchildren's safety! The same electrician had installed new electrical wires across the log cabin ceiling beams, and used stark white covers over new electrical lines. He had fished lines through the walls, and installed switches. These worked, but the two 8 foot lengths of stark white material against cedar beams looked terrible. And, this electrician had mounted the ceiling light directly on the slightly angled celiling beam, so it didn't look straight. Scott reinstalled the  light using shims so it looks and IS  level, and he stained the white cord covers, so that the lamps work and are not an eyesore. He tried three different stains to be sure to match the color of the cedar beams, and applied several coats of stain to make it match well. This attention to detail is so important. Every time I am in the kitchen/great room, I am happy that the ugly white stripes are gone from the ceiling beams. And, I laugh about my dog running into the wet stained cover and Scott's unfazed reply that he'd fix it, no worries!

 Scott is respectful to communicate the schedule and any delays and he is considerate as he completes the work. At one point, our bathroom renovation stalled because a pipe fell and scratched the tub. He reordered the tub, but couldn't complete the next steps until the replacement came, but said doing it right was what mattered most. He works alone, or with his part-time employees, so large jobs will be slower than when a four man crew is assigned. For us, it is well worth having him and his team do the work. They are completely trustworthy, and pleasant to work with. We know he will communicate any questions or suggestions as the work progresses, and we know the job will be done right, and will look good when he finishes.

His bids are clear and reliable. Any changes are clarified with associated costs known in advance. His hourly wage is fair, and he accomplishes more in those hours than others that we've hired. We were delighted to see his recent "Big Deal" because he'd done such large projects for us at the beach property, we didn't know he'd do a mishmash of handyman items. He tackles big and small tasks with the same focused determination to do it well, attractively and speedily. Visit http://www.taiseydesignandconstruction.com for his company's information. On his website he says, "I chose to work in this industry because It is my g