Omundsen Construction Corp
2016-10-18T20:46:16.000Z
My wife and I decided to do a complete renovation of our kitchen last April. We quickly realized that the contractor we signed on with, while a nice guy, had never worked in the building trades and, consequently, knew very little about how things should be done. Luckily for us, though, he hired Eric Omundsen as the foreman on the job, and allowed Eric to hire tradesmen he knew to function as the crew. As the days wore on, and we became better acquainted with Eric, we began to appreciate his vast knowledge of every area of home construction: cabinetry, carpentry (including installing doors, windows, moldings), electricity, flooring, painting, plumbing (his specialty), sheet rocking–you name it. And, equally important, Eric was very approachable and empathetic; he would listen patiently to every problem and concern we had, without every blowing us off or coming up with excuses. When we complained to the contractor about certain errors that were made on the job, he would often become defensive and say, “that’s how it’s got to be.” So, we learned to bypass the contractor and call Eric, who would agree that we were right and would tell the contractor that it had to be fixed and explain to him how it should be done.
Eric’s help often extended to things that were not directly related to his responsibilities on the job. For example, I remember calling Eric the afternoon of the day before our appliances were scheduled to be delivered, expressing our concern that our crumbling front limestone staircase might be a safety hazard when the delivery people attempted to drag the heavy appliances up the stairs. Despite having put in a full day’s work, Eric came to our house after dark that evening, bought lumber at Home Depot and used it to shore up our loose stairs. Because of his efforts, the delivery the next day went off seamlessly.
Except for the tiling work done, which Eric and his crew had nothing to do with, the new kitchen was beautiful, and we were very pleased. (Oh yeah, we took advantage of Eric’s presence in the house, by asking if he would mind fixing a couple of problems in our upstairs bathroom. All the problems were immediately taken care of.)
In the succeeding months, there were a few minor problems that cropped up. With Eric on speed dial, all that was required was a phone call, and Eric would soon be at our house to make everything right. It is a pleasure to deal with Eric: always a smile and a laugh and always eager to please. Any problem we voiced, he would respond with , “I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about it.”
With Eric now having his own company, it was a no-brainer as to who we would approach when we decided we wanted to rip up the cheap oak floor in our living room/dining room that the builder had installed 35 years ago, and replace it. This was a massive job as we had to remove all the furniture on the first floor of our house, which included a huge, custom made entertainment center that had taken two men from the long-defunct company that built and designed it to install twenty or so years ago. Eric gave us a very fair estimate for the job which included renting the storage pod, removing all the furniture and moving it into the pod, leveling the whole floor with new 3/4 inch underlayment, installing, staining and polyurethaning, a new, wide-plank oak floor, installing new moldings, painting the two rooms, and then moving everything back from the pod into the house. At one point, I told him, “Eric, you’re making light of being able to dismantle this thing (the entertainment center). These guys from the company were trained to do this work and still it took them a full day to put it together. I don’t want you getting half-way through dismantling it and give up and tell me you’re sorry you got involved.” He responded with a smile and confidently predicted they’d be able to do it.
Well, they did. If you could have seen the work it took to do it, you’d appreciate how miraculous it was that Chris, with some help from Eric at the end, was able to figure out how to take everything apart and then, with the help of some of the other workers, was able to move these heavy laminated particle-board pieces out of the house into the storage pod that was parked in our driveway. And, even more miraculous, Chris succeeded in putting everything back together, all without putting a single scratch in the new floor.
I’m pleased to write this recommendation for Eric and his crew as we have had nothing but positive experiences with them. The price is right, the craftsmanship is outstanding, and they are reliable. (They don’t work two days and disappear for two weeks. If Eric tells you they’ll be at your house at 7 AM, then, sure enough, if you look outside your house, at 6:45 you’ll see Chris sitting in his car waiting for the others to join him.) Any problems? text Eric and you’ll receive the “I’m on it” text message. No arguments, no excuses, no explanations, no extra charges, nothing.
To give you an example of how they go the extra mile, on the last day of our recent job (Eric said it would take two to three weeks, but finished in two), with the crew touching up the paint, hanging the shades and valances, and taking care of other odds and ends, Eric decided he didn’t like the look of the old black electrical outlets we had in the living/dining room, so he voluntarily purchased and installed all new, white ones. Oh yeah, he also installed the new bell my wife requested. And when, my wife said she’d like a faucet outside on the deck to make it more convenient for her to water her plants, Eric said, “no problem, I’ll have Chris install it.” And, he did. None of these extras were mentioned in the contract.
Believe me, if you want a fair price, impeccable craftsmanship, and a company whose workers will come to your house faithfully every day until the job is complete, then you should hire Omundsen Construction.
Jeff and Dianne Beckman