This review is long over due. We worked with RKC in October of 2016 to tear down a 24 x 16 25 year old 6x, 10x and 4x wood patio with plastic corrugated roofing, and replace it with an aluminum 42 x 18.5 part solid, part lattice patio cover allowing us to go from an 8 foot ceiling to a 10 foot ceiling. We went with RKC product called ELITE WOOD. It is the best we could find on the market with the greatest thickness verses other also rans we interviewed. Other patio contractors wanted to come off of the roof fascia, which was where we were, allowing us no gain in height. RKC was the only contractor I could find that has a rooftop mounting bracket system, which allowed us to take the NEW 25 foot wide solid patio which is held in place with a C Channel and mega screws, up the exterior wall of a portion of our 2 story home, to 10 foot plus, pushing the NEW lighter weight, 17 foot wide latticed patio next to it, up on top of an adjacent single story roof top, where the roof mount brackets (2) were installed to hold the aluminum beam the lattice was cross mounted too. This gave us a seamless single 25 ft level solid cover, transitioning to the same level 17 ft latticed cover. It simply looks amazing. The lattice is so well done it slide right over the top of the side rail of the solid patio cover making it look as if it were one mega patio cover..............WHICH IT IS !!!
We had the lattice mounted on its 3x side which allows for 70% shading, which now that we have had it for a while, to us, is optimum given our set up. I know this may be a tad confusing so browse the photos below.
When we went into contract then, the delay from contract execution to ground breaking was 6 weeks, and at 6 weeks we were rolling.The tear down team was super clean and arrived on time and executed within the previously claimed allotted time frame. We were off to a great start. The construction team showed up a day or so later, and within three to four days we were up and ready to enjoy. The guys were easy to work with. They were super clean, neat and very professional. I worked along side them some of the time on small complimentary projects that went hand in hand with their work, like inlaying 4x4 tiles where the 4x4 posts of my old patio cover had been cut off at the existing surrounding tile grade. Working in the middle of them was easy and they were all super professional guys. I would have a question here or there and they were quick to provide insight and answer for me on specific aspects of their installation. I was painting stuff, prepping for some stone work to elevate the stone surround on an exterior fireplace, now that I had 2 more feet of it exposed with the ten foot ceiling, we were enabled with RCK. The guys were cool to be around. The solid patio is insulated and provides cooling relief underneath and is so sturdy you can walk on it topside, which came in handy for the electrical install. The underside of the solid patio looks like wood in texture, though it be painted aluminum. RKC referred us to several qualified electricians, so that we could time their arrival against RKC's completion and have a seamless transition between contractors. The day after RKC was done the electrician was on the site. We went with chandeliers and a BIG ASS Fan. Look for it in the photos. It turned out awesome. Being able to go up to 10 feet made a huge difference in how the patio, looks, feels and operates. The Roman Columns give it a resort look and feel and after going BIG ASS Fan in the patio I ended up putting one in our bedroom too. They are incredible air movers. If I had a chance to do it again I would hire Rick Crawford and his team at RKC. I referred them to my brother in law in Santee and my son in laws brother in El Cajon. If I am referring family with confidence, you can trust my reference for RKC here. The team did good and we are loving our new set up. It's like we got an entire new living space and a big improvement to our "resortist" back yard. Call Rick..................he is super. read more