D and S Construction

I hired D & S to build a deck at my Dad's home in WI.  I live in MN so we had a bit of a long distance situation.  Because I wasn't there on site, Doug provided progress pictures along the way to make sure I was happy with the deck.  He is very honest and I felt I was able to trust his decisions. The deck was completed within a week and looks beautiful!    I would definitely hire him again for any future projects I have.  Great company to work with.

Provider met with us to give us a bid on installing a solatube and references of his work.  He was honest/upfront with us stating he had not installed a solatube before, but had installed numerous skylights, so we were a little hesitant to hire him.  His bid was a little higher than another bid we had gotten, but after contacting the two references he given us and they gave him glowing recommendations, we decided to go with Doug.  One of the contacts had two skylights installed.  He gave us a written bid on 10/15/15 and was able to install the solatube on 10/16/15.

He arrived about 2 hours late to install the solatube, but was very courteous in letting me know that he'd be late with a phone call.  Once Doug and his helper arrived, they went to work immediately.  Doug did mention he had watched several videos of solatube installation prior to doing the job, plus he did use some of the instruction information I printed off.  Doug and his helper were very mindful of protecting the kitchen island, wood flooring and surrounding area. 

They completed the installation in a timely manner and left all areas completely clean and clear of debris (kitchen, attic, house roof and surrounding ground area).  He did an excellent job of installing the solatube and I would hire him again for any other tasks that we may need completed.

Doug is a born again Christian and shared some info and his religions thoughts with me.  I think sharing the information is OK, but detailed discussions might be better served during a different time/place.

Doug came within a couple days of my first call. He took notes and measurements of what I needed done, and called me with a detailed estimate within a week. Doug and his crew started as soon as supplies came in. They were the most pleasant group of workers to have on my property. Doug took the time to explain everything he was doing and why, and answered any questions or concerns I had. The entire crew was extremely courteous and trustworthy. I have recommended D&S Construction to anyone who asks about the work I had done, and I will use them again if needed in the future.

The bathroom renovation went extremely well.  The new shower needed a bit of extra work that wasn't on the estimate but Doug got it done without any problems and didn't charge extra for it.
There were a few basement leaks that Doug applied some remedies to but they continued albeit in an abated fashion.  I don't think this is Doug's fault because he said we would have to do what was most obvious and then maybe do something else later.  We weren't willing to pay for all the extreme measures that would handle everything. In other words, he took the first steps and brought about some improvements except for when there is a BIG rain, pretty much like he said would happen.  He didn't guarantee this part of the job and rightly so.
In all, he was honest and he does good work.  He also is very knowledgeable.

Called to have estimate for work done.  I had made a list of everything I wanted included.  I received estimates from

three companies.  His was the middle quote and planned to complete the work in a reasonable amount of time.  All the workers were professional and courteous.  He kept me updated with the progress and did not go over budget as a lot of companies do.

The installation was done quickly, but not correctly. The contractors had a plumber come to the house to actually do the work. The unit was not placed in a proper leak tray and therefore didn't pass inspection by the state inspector. The inspector was supposedly going to contact the plumber that did the work and have the item corrected, but he never did. The hot water heater works fine, but I just hope it doesn't ever leak like the other one did or it will ruin our floors again. Also wanted to hire them to do 3 other small jobs around the house. After dozen's of phone calls and emails I could never get them to respond. My business was apparently not of any priority for them. They spent a lot of time and effort telling me they were "Good Christian Contractors", but I would have been much more impressed if they had spent a tenth of that effort calling me back.

Doug said he didn't need permits for the work being done but did call in experienced plumbers for advise on restoring plumbing to code after a previous contractor's bad work. Against my better judgment I allowed him to continue. Doug wanted to put a tray in the attic area for water to flow out under the eaves. He said it worked in another house he did. I said, "Absolutely not! It will freeze and the roof will be damaged more. I want it repaired." I am not able to check out the work myself so don't really know what he did. There is still a glass jar up there I can see. Couldn't use new washer until an appliance repairman came out and discovered shipping screws were left in. We had ordered delivery of appliances for one week after work was promised done. Doug insisted on installing them himself after they sat in my kitchen for a month waiting for completion of the floor tile. Wall and floor tile is uneven. They are off as much as 3/16" in places. When confronted about the floor his response was that there was a bump in the floor under the tile?!? Doug used cement board throughout. He didn't level it? Doug used an improper threshold between the bathroom and the next room. There is a 3/4" difference in height between the tile and carpet. When walking thru the doorway you have to be very careful where you step - especially if you have balance problems. Doug's helper Bradley painted all the new drywall and cut, grouted and sealed the wall and floor tile as well. Doug laid the tile. Bradley did an excellent job. Bradley came around 10 or 11 AM. Doug never showed up until afternoon or not at all. Work being done at 8 or 9 o'clock at night was very inconvenient. Doug put flimsey plastic caps on top of the screws holding the toilet. They are way too short and just wobble. Doug refused to install an exhaust fan by the toilet which is in a confined space and he then walled over two existing nearby junction boxes. He said the fan was unneccessary. I asked for a fourplex of plug-ins to be moved and he said they didn't need to be moved. The toilet paper dispenser was never installed. Diverter for handheld shower doesn't fit. The whole thing just falls off when you try to attach it. Made shelves under counter and doors for a cabinet. Very unprofessional work. When I asked why it wasn't done the way I asked he said, "Because I am the carpenter." The new shower plumbing flooded our family room below. We called a plumber who discovered no teflon thread tape had been applied to the new shower pipes. The oak parkay flooring and a sofa in the family room were damaged. The ceiling fell in that area and now there is water damage to the ceiling a few feet farther over under the the new washing machine which was installed in the new upstairs bathroom. The new appliances are sitting on the new tile floor which hopefully will not have to be ripped up for the repairs. The entire family room ceiling will have to be repaired and painted. When I e-mailed Doug about the pipes leaking he said the tape must have slipped off. Thread tape doesn't slip off. It hugs the threads. When told in a September 18 e-mail about the shipping screws left in the washer his response was, "whoops! My bad!~" I found no humor in his remark. I begged for cleanup before he left town in August. Never happened. We did it. Begged for holes in upstairs ceiling to be repaired. There are several. One is about two feet by two feet from where he was checking out the roof leak - that work goes back to May! The holes are still there. Doug replaced two sections of sidewalk damaged by tree roots a few years ago in front of our house. I had seen his signs recently in the neighborhood. Since being happy with his small job I called him. Doug is a friendly and affable guy. Needless to say, Doug will not be hired again. I can't trust him. During his time here I was and still am recovering from a broken back and head injuries from an accident. I will never let anyone work around my house again if I can't be there all the time. With two bad contractors our house has been torn up for more than a year.

This was a lengthy job and Doug (the D in D & S) was always on site. His crew was great - skilled and responsive to our needs. I suggest that someone considering D & S give Doug the overall scope and ask for his ideas. We did this and the result was excellent - good ideas and saved us some money.

This was an outstanding job. It is very hard to find a company which is high quality and to fully trust to work in your house when no one is there. The quality of work was excellent, done on time, no over bill and clean cut non smoking well managed workers. I would recommend this company to anyone who needs large work done on their house or even a small amount of work done. We needed a qualified company to redue our kitchen and Bathroom and that is what this company offered. Could not be happier with work and working relationship.

Work began on time and finished on time (about 4 months). The surprise with the back wall location and roof lines not coming out as originally planned was expertly handled on the inside with new drywall and a row of lights. The inside now looks better than the original design. D&S cleaned up as they went, isolated dirty jobs with plastic and even filtered and recirculated the air to keep dust and vapors out of the rest of the house.