"dpb" wrote in message ...
ythread wrote:
"dpb" wrote in message ...
...
My initial impression with the contractors here has made me extremely
cautious. I had several over for a lighting job and most of them didn't
even follow up with a bid. One was clearly not qualified at all. One that
did bid said he'd do it in two week and he called me two months later. I
don't like to do business with people that don't follow up on their
promises.

Is it a good idea to have the work done through Homedepot or Lowes? I had
a door installed through Homedepot and it went fairly smoothly.

As I noted earlier, don't think that experience is anything out of the
ordinary in any location unless you already have local contacts. I know
of no better way than to scout out recommendations from
coworkers/neighbors/church/organizations on folks they have used that
satisfied. Surely you know _somebody_?

As for HD, etc., imo it's a crapshoot -- negatives outweigh positives from
a contractual standpoint as they take full payment up front and you deal
w/ them instead of the contractor so dispute resolution is troublesome at
best if needed. Then there's the thing of who is actually doing the
work -- there you have no control, either.

This is a small enough location we don't have them and while folks are
busy, it is possible to know who is in the area that does what and can
eventually get to them. Whether I would even consider it would depend on
what was needing done, but I certainly would be at the end of my rope, so
to speak, before they would make the radar screen, even.

--
Thanks for your advice and I have been asking around but I don't hang out
much with people who use contractors, I'm retired, and haven't been to
church since I was 10. LOL

I was thinking of going to a lumber store and asking them.

Thanks again. :-)