Renovations and construction work often translate into chaos for homeowners. So much unpredictability can overtake even the simplest of project. For this reason, choosing a reliable contractor may save you a tremendous amount of trouble when it comes to the timing and the quality of your home construction.
When you are looking to hire a siding contractor, here are the top five most important questions you’ll need to answer:
1. Does he show up to your interview on time?
Many contractors would cringe at this initial assessment of reliability, because their schedules are often hampered by ongoing jobs. However, the timeliness of your contractor’s first arrival can tell you:
• How well he plans out and schedules his current projects
• How reliable he will be with your project
If a contractor schedules your initial consultation between the hours of 1pm and 3pm and arrives later than the stipulated time, it is frequently an indication of how smoothly your project will go. Top notch contractors are able to foresee potential problems with a job and factor those problems into their overall schedule. Showing up late from the get-go is a very bad sign. It indicates that this contractor is a poor planner, and it may also foreshadow a construction job that features many overlooked errors and negative surprises.
2. Is your siding contractor overly confident?
A good contractor will never glance at your home and assume the job is perfectly straight-forward—especially when it comes to siding. Construction jobs frequently go awry when a contractor and his workers don’t carefully inspect the particulars of your home. He should be able to answer your questions, but also ask you questions regarding the specifications you require and what your primary concerns entail.
He should become familiarized with any structural issues related to the job so that these problems don’t arise as time-crunching surprises halfway through the work. Although you can never fully eradicate potential problems, a contractor who takes a decent amount of time to examine the task exhibits the type of care and consideration one desires for the job.
Don’t mistake confidence for experience. Careless and undisciplined contracting companies are often masked by straight-shooting confidence, but the reality hits when a siding job takes weeks longer than it should, and results in shoddy construction.
3. Is your contractor familiar with the siding product market?
Yes, you want your contractor to be certified by a siding manufacturer. Yes, you want him to know all the ins and outs of the siding products he will be using on your home. However, does he know how these products compare to others on the market? Does he know the varieties that make one product superior to another for specific instances?
This is important because you don’t want your siding contractor to choose a product based on his own relationship with the manufacturer. You want your contractor to choose that product because he believes this siding is the preferred one based on his own experiences, which is why he has chosen to form an alliance with the manufacturer. He should be able to answer detailed questions regarding the siding and also inform you as to why some homeowners may have made an alternate decision.
4. Does your contractor have references?
References can only tell you so much, but it is always a good sign if your contractor is prepared to give them out without a second thought. It shows that he is willing to make an effort to meet client standards. Good references are a must, though no contractor will list an unsatisfied client as a reference. So, again, references cannot give you the entire picture, but they can show you that your contractor is a capable worker.
5. What is his current project schedule?
You may have a flawless, efficient contractor standing right in front of you, but if you don’t inquire as to his current workload, then prepare for a long and winding crawl to the finish line. Contractors often straddle jobs, and each job comes with its own intricate complications. If your home is not the priority, you can end up with a job that takes far too long to finish. Your home may be half done and remain unfinished for needless days or weeks while a contractor scrambles to sew up other projects he had scheduled.
Choosing a siding contractor—or any contractor—can be a gamble. Even if your friends and acquaintances have had tremendous successes with a certain contractor, the specifics of your job or changes in his current work schedule can alter the mood and flow of the task. However, the first preventative measure you can take against a disastrous outcome is to monitor the timeliness and interest level of your contractor during your initial consultation. Confidence in your contractor’s skill and ethics will help to avoid any potential surprises that occur on the job, and this confidence will arise through observation and careful inquiry.