We're the type of couple who like to do our own projects--in part because our labor is free, and in…read morepart because of pride. However, there may be a time when you just need to bite the bullet and admit that a project is pretty daunting, and you need help... and for us, that's where Michael came in. Michael completed the finishing (and skill-intensive) work on a somewhat complex deck rebuild/redesign that was simply taking us too long to complete. We were ready for someone to come in and make our ideas a reality. Michael did just that. We drew up our concepts, and he brought them to life--and even added some touches we wouldn't have thought of. Following that project we were so pleased with his work that we had him refinish our 100+ year old front door. It needed a lot of work, and he brought it back to life. I cannot speak to the other reviewer's experience with Michael, but we've had good experiences and would use him again.

Michael Cohen, owner of Rent an Artisan (he advertises on Ithaca Craigslist and boasts a ton of…read moreexperience, which cannot possibly be true) gave us an estimate of 40 hours of labor at 40.00/hour + materials for a simple project that required him to build 3 kitchen cabinets (2 of which were in corners, so those should have been pretty easy) and to modify a fourth cabinet by making it shorter. He was also to install a stove hood/microwave combination. He also included adding trim molding to cabinets and to the kitchen itself as part of the job. Michael told us that this job was very simple, well within his skill set, and that he'd be in and out in a week without any trouble. I see in his ads that he is now saying that he does not carry insurance, but he told us that he was fully insured. After one day of work, we considered letting him go due to the crookedness of the cabinet he shortened.The next day, he fixed that and began working on the first cabinet he was going to build. After that day of work, there was a frame (no sides, shelves, or bottom) and the pieces of wood making up the cube were all crooked and of different lengths. The cabinet was also not the same depth as the other cabinets in the kitchen. The third day, he came in and I showed him the messy cabinet and he apologized -- and attempted to fix it. I also asked him to replace the soft wood he'd used with hard wood b/c he had used pine on the front face of the cabinet, for some reason. I am not sure why anyone would use a soft wood on the front of a cabinet that would take the most wear and tear. Our other cabinets were hardwood, so his choice of pine did not make any sense at all. The fourth day he built a cabinet for our sink and left screw heads on the surfaces of that cabinet, including the front face of the cabinet. The cabinet was to hold our new expensive farmhouse sink and we wanted a furniture-quality sink cabinet. He cut out a place to hold the sink, but that was asymmetrical and the cabinet was just a sad mess. Clearly, a person with any experience making a cabinet or furniture would never use screws that were visible/level with the front face of the cabinet. The hole he made for the microwave/hood was improperly placed and had to be patched and re-made by a more competent contractor. The venting material he bought was 200.00+ and the wrong size when normal hood venting kits exist and cost only 60.00. He clearly had no idea what he was doing and used our house to attempt to learn how to remodel a kitchen. At the end of a week, we had 3 cabinet skeletons that were shabby and unprofessional looking. This is after a week's work! There was NO SIGN of him being close to finishing the job and the level of workmanship was really an embarrassment. We decided to let him go. In order to have a functional kitchen, his work had to be removed and thrown away and a skilled contractor came in to re-do the whole job. His cabinet skeletons were inconsistent in size, crooked, and were not made in a way that would look nice. Because of his lack of skills, we wasted almost 2000.00 for his week's labor bill and nothing that he did was at all usable. This was a horrible experience. Michael was paid in full for his time and materials, yet we got absolutely nothing in return. Nothing he did was usable and he wasted our time and money. He is clearly not able to make cabinets even though he claimed that he was. I consider his claims to all be very dishonest and his workmanship is well below par. His level of craftsmanship may be on the level of making something for outdoors use (a bench, for example). We are very dismayed and definitely were taken advantage of by Michael. We requested a partial refund and then stopped hearing from Michael. I would not trust him to do anything, ever. He did not do honest work (he also over-charged us for the hours he spent here -- I kept track of when he came and went and he added several hours to his bill compared to the hours he was in our home) and he also had the nerve to charge us for the time he spent redoing his work due to his own mistakes. This is not at all honest or normal for a contractor. DO NOT HIRE

So impressed! We needed our chimney cleaned for the season but had big concerns about Covid. They…read morewere just as concerned and we were able to get our chimney cleaned with zero contact. I love how this company was just as concerned about their employees as they were about us. This is the kind of company I want to do business with. A few years ago we had a chimney fire and needed structural work done. They did everything to make our wood stove and chimney safe to use. We heat exclusively with wood so this is very important. We also bought a brand new wood stove from them and everyone we dealt with was top notch, they know their business. We got the right stove at the right price. No upselling, they knew what we wanted and needed and showed us all of our options. Our wood stove works great. I highly recommend this company.

Holy Smoke recently did a repair job on a chimney liner for me and I thought they did a fine job…read more The workers were kind, explained things well, answered my questions and requests, and cleaned up. The work I was able to inspect (I did not go on the roof) was exactly how I had hoped it would be, straight, well sealed and overall professional looking. Bob (the owner) was helpful especially with the initial diagnosis of the problem, even when it looked like we were going to do a different solution which would not involve chimney work. However in the end we ended up going the chimney repair route to solve our issue. It was about a 3 week wait to get my work done. It was not an emergency situation and would imagine they have provisions in there schedule for stuff like that, however that was the wait time for my job. They arrived on time and did the work within the estimate. The hourly rate is not cheap. However, I did check with one other chimney service company and their hourly rate was within a few dollars so I expect this is the going rate for this type of skilled professional labor. In the end I am very satisfied with the work they did.

Arrived and completed the job as scheduled. Cleanup was done satisfactorily. We were pleased with…read morethe quality of the workmanship. Also grateful that there was not cost overrun, exactly as the estimate.

Please do not hire. I hired them to do a couple simple jobs. First, they didn't show up when they…read moresaid they were going to, second, they changed things without consulting me. I had them replace a roof on our gazebo and wound up with 3 inch nails sticking through the ceiling. They didn't explain that this would be the case and now the ceiling in the gazebo is ruined, and some of the wood is split. If I had known this was going to be the case, I would not have had the roof replaced.

I have been a frequent customer rehabbing my house and Baker-Miller has routinely provided…read moreexcellent service and guidance. Larger projects include residing my house with Hardie board, building an entry porch and deck, complete reno of kitchen designed by Lori, and currently reno of 2 bathrooms also imagined by Lori. Showroom and customer service staffs have been great - deliveries, billing, product suggestions. Should add that quality for cabinets, deck, lumber has been an important plus.

Great folks to work with. Adam was fast and efficient in helping build my quote. Also, when I…read morestarted building, I noticed some materials were missing. I called, they did an audit on their side, found the missing boards and got them back out to me within 24 hours. Highly recommend.

I'd broken a basement window at our home in Cortlandville, and found The GlassSmith in Homer, in an…read moreonline phone listing. I called and asked for a ballpark figure to fix it, since I'm on a fixed income. I found it was super-reasonable. I asked if they made house calls, -they said 'Of course!', and asked how fast I would like them to come. I said of course, ASAP, but I had company coming. They got here in MINUTES, took my ancient window out (took some work); took it back to their shop, fixed it; and was back in place, ALL WITHIN A HALF HOUR! I was blown away. -And the tech, Sean, was as wonderful as can be! They do other STUFF, so I'm getting a bid on another type of job that I hope they can do for me because they are wonderful people and the job was affordable and really well done. Thank you, GlassSmith (gals and guys)!

Left our yard a mess. Wouldn't hire again. Not as…read moreknowledgeable as I would have liked. Not helpful with suggestions and solutions.

It's one of the dirtiest and nastiest jobs a human being can endure, but Bob, Nate and Max of Land…read moreMaintenance Systems Inc. made it look like a walk through a pristine park on a gloriously sunny day! OK, so we embellished a little there, but Max Fedrizzi and Bob Munson came to our rescue within minutes of calling them. Bob immediately showed up at our house "after work hours" to evaluate the situation. He took the time to check out what he could of our leaking septic system, inside and out, and talked with my husband about the issues that they may find when the needed excavation was done. The next day and surprisingly way before expected, Bob and Nate showed up with their Bobcat fastidiously and swiftly backing it into our driveway off a very busy roadway. The next day and surprisingly way before expected, Bob and Nate showed up with their Bobcat, fastidiously and swiftly backing it into our driveway off a very busy roadway. Out of the truck the 2 popped out, energetically and with big smiles on their faces (go figure). The day began early and expeditiously with the needed team members coming and going to assist (Kessler septic, Roto Rooter and LMS operator, Max Fedrizzi). Bob always made sure I knew the whole process and every procedure required, making sure I had a say in all the proceedings while having me photograph the process to share with my husband who was at work. 7 and a 1/2 hours later the whole septic dilemma was resolved and we can now, thankfully, use all house plumbing without worry! We highly recommend LMS inc. for all and any septic needs. These guys truly are the experts!

I got excellent service for the repair of a stuck gliding window. This was not an urgent matter, so…read morewe had to wait a couple of weeks to get it fixed. But the service person arrived at the announced time, was very polite and got our window glide again like a charm in no time. Very fair price. Highly recommended.

we had a problem with leaking after a glass shower door was installed. though I might have chosen…read morea more secure glass shower door had we fully discussed options, the leaking problem results primarily from an error due to the plumber, not this business. Rick is fixing it and I appreciate his solution to the problem.

I had the best experience with S&S flooring. Scott is a true professional with the utmost patience,…read moreattention to detail, and perfectionist discipline to his craft. When other companies turned me down due to no availability, Scott squeezed in our kitchen floor project on the weekend even though that meant him working 7 days a week. It's clear that this is a family business with the passion for the trade as well as the "mom n pop shop" customer service and delivery of high quality for a very reasonable price. I will absolutely use S&S for all future flooring projects without hesitation, and so should you.

Stop looking! If you found S&S and Suzanne, all your problems will be solved with great quality,…read morereasonable pricing and superb customer service! I discovered them a year ago when I was desperate to get a basement carpeted. They came through quickly and with great pricing. This year I needed to recarpet an entire apartment after a tenant of 18 years moved to his own house. I went back to S&S and Suzanne and As usual they did a superb job, in a short time frame at a reasonable price. She is terriffic! A problem solver, wonderful to deal with and very reliable. She deserves 10 stars not 5. If you are looking for someone to do carpeting and/or flooring work in the Ithaca area, stop looking: use S&S!