
Serving Manhattan, NY and surrounding areas
Approved
In business since 1983
Free estimates
Warranties offered
"We did an almost-gut renovation of the top floor apartment of a brownstone building in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn. Scott Chatel was not the only contractor we solicited, but his vision of the job and his pricing were the most realistic. Scott is very easy to deal with. He was available for consultation both during and outside regular business hours. While he had several jobs going at once, his son Paul was in charge of our renovation, and one or the other of them was always available to discuss the construction and to answer questions. Scott did not let little glitches get in the way, and he took care of minor problems without extra charge. For example, we needed to move everything out of the apartment for the renovation, and on the start date we still needed to get rid of some furniture items. Scott's demolition guys took care of moving everything out. We had a tight 10-week schedule to make, and Scott was sensitive to getting the job done as scheduled. Scott met with us to schedule the timing for when different items (bathroom fixtures, appliances, etc.) needed to arrive both so they'd be available when needed, and also to make sure they were not in the way too early. It is impossible to anticipate everything that can crop up during a project, and Scott was flexible in dealing with the smaller issues and accommodating in dealing with the larger ones. The major unforeseen issue we faced was that our subfloor was in worse shape than anticipated, and needed to be rebuilt before the new floor could be laid on top. Despite the extra work, Scott stuck to the overall schedule to finish on time. Scott was helpful with design suggestions, such as adding a small soffit over some of the kitchen cabinets and creating a bar area by building some shelves in a corner. Scott's electrical, plumbing, and tile subcontractors all did good work. (Initially the tile work in the master bath was not up to snuff, but Scott had the tile contractor return, and he did an excellent job fixing everything.) Scott made sure to clean up the work area and the entire building's hallways that got dusty from the work. Scott returned at a mutually convenient time to take care of everything on our "punch list," and we anticipate one more visit (a full year later) to handle one or two smaller items that have cropped up. In a century-old brownstone, no corner is exactly square, and no surface is perfectly level. Scott's crew did a skillful and professional job of working with the building's quirks to make the work look right. We are very happy with the quality of the workmanship. He built closets to our specifications; he fit a bathtub into an area that previously held an oversize stall shower; he fit recessed lighting around existing skylights. Overall, we think we received great value: very good work at a fair price. We think Scott is a gem."





















































