Which service professionals to call?
October 1, 2016 7:10 AM Subscribe
First time home owner. I've figured out the plumber and the electrician, but what do I even enter in the box on Yelp to try to find a) someone to install an indoors screen door, b) install a vapor barrier in my crawlspace, c) figure out why my extension room suddenly started smelling musty, then do something about it?
I'm not expecting these to be the same person for all three, obviously. Are these, or at least the first two, the kind of thing they advertise "handyman" services for?
I'm not expecting these to be the same person for all three, obviously. Are these, or at least the first two, the kind of thing they advertise "handyman" services for?
We have a handyman to help with all of those kinds of things, the "odds and ends" of home upkeep.
posted by SpacemanStix at 7:44 AM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by SpacemanStix at 7:44 AM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Indoor screen door: look around for local door and window dealer/installers. I just had a window turned into a sliding door and the local door/window business that has been in my area forever did a great job. Since your door is indoor, it won't be a problem, but if you make other changes, like the one I did, you may need to get permits from your township. This could also be a handyperson thing, depending on how skilled your handyperson is.
As for the other two, an HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) technician can most likely help with the latter two as they seem to fall under the "ventilation" category. I would recommend calling them before a handyperson because the problem may be bigger than just clearing up a musty odor, you want to get to the root of it. A handyman may not have specialized tools or meters to fix things.
Most places do free estimates and it doesn't cost you anything to call and have someone come over and assess your situation. I had some HVAC issues - circulation, hot/cold pockets, huge bills - and had three HVAC companies come out and give me their opinion. One company wanted to sell me a whole new system! But after really listening to their assessments, of the three, only one company was really able to figure out what was wrong and propose a solution that would fix it. It wasn't the cheapest, but the problem is resolved. Good luck!
posted by NoraCharles at 7:45 AM on October 1, 2016
As for the other two, an HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) technician can most likely help with the latter two as they seem to fall under the "ventilation" category. I would recommend calling them before a handyperson because the problem may be bigger than just clearing up a musty odor, you want to get to the root of it. A handyman may not have specialized tools or meters to fix things.
Most places do free estimates and it doesn't cost you anything to call and have someone come over and assess your situation. I had some HVAC issues - circulation, hot/cold pockets, huge bills - and had three HVAC companies come out and give me their opinion. One company wanted to sell me a whole new system! But after really listening to their assessments, of the three, only one company was really able to figure out what was wrong and propose a solution that would fix it. It wasn't the cheapest, but the problem is resolved. Good luck!
posted by NoraCharles at 7:45 AM on October 1, 2016
All of those items are carpenter jobs. The last one might be an HVAC thing, but a carpenter would still be my first stop. Carpenters do more than just build stuff with wood; carpentry is by far the most generalist od the building trades.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 8:09 AM on October 1, 2016
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 8:09 AM on October 1, 2016
Best answer: New homeowner here, too. Recently we had new vapor barrier installed in our crawlspace. When we mentioned needing this work to our realtor, she referred us to a waterproofing company - otherwise we wouldn't have known these were the the type of contractors to turn to!
For b), look for waterproofing companies, their websites will say they specialize in waterproofing basements and crawlspaces. During their assessment they may also be able to identify what is causing c).
In my experience I have found my local Nextdoor group to have very good recommendations (of course YMMV, my local one runs mainly to lost/found pet announcements and recommendations), more so than Angie's List. Our realtor, a former architect, also turned out to be a good source of recommendations for various types of contractors, especially the ones who operated on word of mouth only and did not advertise, because they had more than enough of work coming their way without having to advertise.
posted by research monkey at 8:09 AM on October 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
For b), look for waterproofing companies, their websites will say they specialize in waterproofing basements and crawlspaces. During their assessment they may also be able to identify what is causing c).
In my experience I have found my local Nextdoor group to have very good recommendations (of course YMMV, my local one runs mainly to lost/found pet announcements and recommendations), more so than Angie's List. Our realtor, a former architect, also turned out to be a good source of recommendations for various types of contractors, especially the ones who operated on word of mouth only and did not advertise, because they had more than enough of work coming their way without having to advertise.
posted by research monkey at 8:09 AM on October 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
Best answer: If you're a new homeowner and recently used a realtor you liked then ask them who they'd use. That's certainly worked very well for us. Also introduce yourself to neighbors and ask for recommendations. Often good handymen don't need to advertise / have a web presence as all their work comes from word of mouth. Get yourself some of that good word of mouth!
posted by merocet at 8:33 AM on October 1, 2016
posted by merocet at 8:33 AM on October 1, 2016
Best answer: there is one independent hardware store (not a box store) in my town. Been there forever. I call them if I am stumped. That has always worked for me.
posted by cda at 12:10 PM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by cda at 12:10 PM on October 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Best answer: For the vapor barrier in the crawlspace, I'd definitely look at waterproofing specialists as opposed to general handymen services. I had my crawlspace encapsulated recently and I found a well-reviewed local waterproofing company on Angie's List. I am not an expert on crawlspaces, but I had some discussions with my real estate agent prior to buying the house, the home inspector we used, and a few pest inspectors, made me realize that there are some subtleties to that job, and that it was worth hiring an expert.
You probably will be able to have them solve the mustiness problem, too. For the screen door, yeah, a general services company should be totally fine.
posted by tybstar at 2:43 PM on October 1, 2016
You probably will be able to have them solve the mustiness problem, too. For the screen door, yeah, a general services company should be totally fine.
posted by tybstar at 2:43 PM on October 1, 2016
I work at a place like cda is talking about. We definitely don't do any of the installation ourselves, but we do catch a lot of shit if someone we recommend does a bad job. So talking to any place like this will be a great way to get some names.
posted by theichibun at 5:08 PM on October 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by theichibun at 5:08 PM on October 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
Talk with specialist contractors before talking with general contractors. A GC will install a vapor barrier but a good waterproofer is likely to do a more thorough job simply because they'll be able to recognize and deal with more idiosyncratic problems. The waterproofer won't necessarily be more expensive.
When you have multiple repairs/installations/etc. for a GC to work on, get as many of them covered in a single visit as possible because that will usually lower the total cost. Agree beforehand on whether you or they will be providing the things to install (such as the screen door).
posted by ardgedee at 3:32 AM on October 2, 2016
When you have multiple repairs/installations/etc. for a GC to work on, get as many of them covered in a single visit as possible because that will usually lower the total cost. Agree beforehand on whether you or they will be providing the things to install (such as the screen door).
posted by ardgedee at 3:32 AM on October 2, 2016
You can also use a service like Houzz to find people who do the various kinds of work you're looking at. In my experience they are a good source of local references for any kind of project.
posted by ptm at 5:33 PM on October 2, 2016
posted by ptm at 5:33 PM on October 2, 2016
This thread is closed to new comments.
I've had good luck with an Angie's List membership to find folks for stuff like this.
posted by Thistledown at 7:32 AM on October 1, 2016 [3 favorites]