Ptr Carpentry Inc. reviews (249)

Summary: PTR Carpentry is fantastic. Trustworthy and reliable to fault, their work is impeccable (faultless), their attitude is highly professional and always courteous. We had used Paul last summer for a third floor renovation and we were blown away by the quality of his work, his professionalism, and his ability to see problems right away. (See our earlier report if you are interested in what convinced us that he is the best professional we have ever dealt with.) Recently we had him back for a much larger project. Our original impression was only amplified. We don’t really think it is possible to do justice to how amazing Paul and his crew are. PTR Carpentry are not just the best in their HomeStars category, they are without doubt among the best of the best in all categories. Our only regret is that they don’t do everything else—plumbing, electrical, roofing, finished cabinetry, etc. However, before you do any of those things, please think about the importance of having any new work properly framed or, as in our case, having your house reframed to make it not only straight and level, but also stronger. Our work included the framing of a recently underpinned basement (five rooms) and the removal of three partition walls and a ceiling on the first floor as well as the whole floor on the first floor. Our house is over a hundred years old. It is 16’ by 48’, but nothing is straight after a century of wear and tear. With the use of remarkably accurate and expensive levels (sprit and laser), the PTR team quickly rectified ten decades of settling, leaning, bowing, and, most importantly, structural weaknesses original to the house. Essentially they rebuilt the basement and the first floor of our house. In doing so they demolished and removed the walls, floor and ceiling with extraordinary efficiency and the absolute minimum of mess. All the joists were glued and sistered to new ones, thereby not only removing the bowing in the basement and first floor ceilings, but, more importantly, strengthening the house. New exterior walls were built to receive foam insulation and drywall. After a hundred years, most houses in Toronto probably need to be rebuilt. Before you think about wasting a lot of money on cosmetic changes, think about the structure. With a plywood floor glued to the doubled joists, our house has a solidity that is worth every penny and much more. More importantly, the floors are now perfectly level. To achieve this Paul had to resolved differences in height of just over 3.5 inches over the 768 square feet of oscillations in floor height. After removing the old hardwood and subfloor and working out the high and low points of the house, Paul worked out that if he lifted our stairs three inches, he could return them to the level they probably were when they were originally built—that is, level—and so raise the whole floor to the high point. This was a totally unexpected bonus for us, but just the way that Paul thinks his way through projects at every stage. Paul sees problems so well because he is always thinking ahead. He is a chess master in terms of his ability to be able to think so many steps ahead in his projects. Yet he is very fast. His intelligence and courtesy is matched by an extraordinary work ethic and commitment to doing things accurately and well. The tasks on our project were complex and demanding and at times dirty (demolition), but Paul and his team were nothing less than a pleasure to work with. They kept us informed all along. The work they did is outstanding. Paul has given our house more than another hundred years of life. The structural soundness of the framing is something that is daily pleasure we now get to experience every time we step foot on to the first floor. We have every confidence in the integrity of Paul’s work. Ask him about the advantages of nails over screws (all about shear strength, which he can also explain if you don’t understand) in framing and you will wonder why anyone would use anything other than a pneumatic nail gun. (On floors he uses a hybrid nail-screw that goes in as a nail but can be removed as a screw.) Finally, two further details that are significant. All this work was done in two weeks! That is not a typo. They did it all in ten days, but ten days in which there was never and idle moment. The PTR team work like a well oiled machine. Everyone is doing something all the time. If anyone has a spare moment, they pick up a broom and sweep or tidy up as they go. But there aren’t many spare moments once the team is at work. Paul is the choreographer, but all the dancers know exactly what they have to do and do it very well. Furthermore, the work of the first floor was done around a significant amount of furniture and our kitchen appliances, which his team moved from room to room effortlessly and without complaint as they made their way from the front to back of our house. 10 out of 10 seems rather a ridiculously low score to give someone whose work so far exceeds even the most stringent expectations. 10 should mean that there is nothing to complain about. We not only have nothing to complain about but also so much to be grateful for. We never felt Paul was working for us so much as he was working with us, by which we mean he was so concerned to make sure that things were done correctly and in a way that would make all the finishing so much easier. PTR treated our house as if it was their house rather than that of clients they might never see again. So to Paul, Kyle, Marshall, Chino, and Elijah, many, many thanks and we look forward to having you back next week to do the deck. You are always welcome in our house. PTR are busy, but don’t settle for just anyone. Smaller projects they can occasionally fit in between larger ones, but we are glad we waited for three months to have them do our basement and first floor. Waiting for Paul and his crew is well worth it. If you can plan ahead, then of course you might not have to wait. Framing is not something you think you are going to notice, but you will. I would rather forego marble counter tops and begin any renovation by going back to the studs and rebuilding any older house now that I know who to call.

I hired Paul Richardson of PTR Carpentry to do some structural work and enclose my front porch and I'd like to recommend him for his outstanding workmanship. Paul stands out among the crowd as an honest, reliable, and high quality carpenter. He even went out of his way to go down to City Hall when I was out of the country and drop off building permit documents for me. I am so impressed with the work Paul did and would recommend him with confidence! Paul, I look forward to hiring you again when we're ready for more renovations!

Paul only needed about 5 minutes to read the drawings, and tour the house and he “got it”. Most other contractors didn’t get it. It also helped when we realized a happy coincidence: Last year when another master carpenter built a section of our 1st floor, it was Paul who was the structural consultant. Even with all our planning we still needed peace of mind that the work would flow smoothly and Paul was very courteous to make another special trip to the house to meet with us prior to knocking down the chimney and ripping off the roof. Well the new structure is built and it’s fantastic! Paul and crew are the definition of a team who are each talented yet work well together. I knew the house and the drawings might cause some challenges to the build so I arranged to work from home to be nearby to answer any questions. There weren’t many but when there were questions, Paul was very patient with my often non technical explanation of the design. When Paul and I agreed to deviate from the drawings to improve a structural component, he even arranged for the engineer to do a site visit and oversee the changes. When the Building Inspector arrived, Paul was happy to accompany him through the work and satisfy all his questions. When the new dormer was closed in, we realized we now had more than enough room to widen the cramped upstairs hall. A quick meeting with Paul to go over the potential new scope of work (demolishing another wall and building a new wall incl. 2 doorways). Paul not only said yes but he said they will build it right there and then (and not have to come back weeks later) and the best part is it didn’t lenghten the job, thus his next client was not delayed. While I was still shopping for a roofer to put the roof on the new dormer, Paul and crew were finished. Paul suggested a roofer he had worked with, and after meeting several roofers, I went with Paul’s reference who re-roofed the entire house. The crew were extremely careful with carrying rubble out and building materials in. They worked delicately around exposed plumbing and electrical that had to be pre-installed. Knowing that we would have the house exposed to the elements in the month of April, we were prepared for rain to come in the house and it did come in and it was easy to deal with because the extent that the crew went to tarp the whole house at the end of every work day was an engineering feat unto itself for which they must be commended. Paul even went so far as to use up his lunch break to go out to buy bigger and better tarps when heavy rain was forcast. That is "above and beyond". Even our neighbours were in awe and impressed. Paul and his team are welcome in our home any time.

Paul rescued me from a disastrous renovation that went completely off the rails. Although the original intention was not to completely rebuild my third floor, this became the best solution to my unfortunate situation. Paul and his team were clearly the right people to take on the task.They were true professionals in the way that this was handled. I could not imagine my entire roof being removed during the coldest weather we encountered this winter. I truly don't know how they were able to work up there. But they were great! I trusted them 100% and they did a fantastic job! I can now see that this will turn into a beautiful space and well worth the money, time and effort. Paul communicated with clear explanations and answers to my questions. I would not hesitate to recommend him, especially for the most difficult renovations, to which he seems to always have viable solutions.

Paul is the best framer, Trust me he is worth the wait. Extremely professional and great workmanship. I had a funny wall to frame Paul and his crew was able to straighten the wall without loosing too much space off the wall, infact less than 1.5inch off that part of the wall which previous carpenters i asked said it would be at least 3.5 off the wall which mean they dont have clue how to frame properly. Paul You are definately the best Framer. Thank you very Much for saving me space with a perfect framing.

Paul came recommended thru another contractor and from the first moment that I reached out to Paul until the last nail was driven was nothing but a pleasure. It's obvious that he is a skilled carpenter but what makes him so valuable is his attention to detail and the customer service he provides. Unlike many others, even ones skilled at their respective craft, it's all the other things that he does so well which makes the experience with Paul so good. Showing up on time, returning phone calls, leaving a clean job site, offering advice and making recommendations. We had a laundry closet as part of our design plan but it was Paul who noticed it was too shallow to accommodate a washer/dryer and ended up adjusting the framing. If he had stuck to the building plan and not caught this, I don't want to imagine what the result would have been. He puts a lot of care into everything he does and that translates clearly in the work that he and his crew perform as well as how he treats his clients. I could go on and on about Paul's skill and professionalism but in short, I would not hesitate to recommend him.

Paul was fantastic. Although my project was small he managed to fit me in, arrived ready to go and completed the work quickly and precisely. A very skilled carpenter, I highly recommend him.

Another great job for me by PTR Carpentry. I have a very old garage in need of major repair but I also lots of competing priorities for my money this year! :) Paul came to look at the job. His experience means he could quickly suggest the right short-term solution to make the garage safe and useable. He meets the committments he makes - from arriving when planned, to completing the job on the time and for the budget agreed to, and as always exceeding the discussed spec's. The repairs look amazing. I am comfortable that the garage will last for the time I need to save to replace it. I am absolutely delighted! Thanks Paul and crew.

PTR recently framed a large home for us in the Lawrence Park area. The word "professionalism" gets thrown around a lot in the contracting business - but after working with Paul and his team, it is safe to say that PTR is a professional company, doing professional level work. We will be contacting them in the future.

We had the amazingly good fortune of finding PTR Carpentry's Paul through homestars. We had a very unique project of converting our split level home into a same level for wheelchair accessibility reason. It required the task of lowering half of the main floor by 2 feet to bring it to the level of the other half. Plus a lot of other complicated structural changes. The most challenging part being able to support the second floor before lowering and creating a new main floor with a seamless transition. In the process, also had to get rid of some patches of the foundation concrete blocks along the perimeter of the house while still maintaining the integrity of the structure. We also took away and moved around quite a few walls, some load bearing as well, on all floors and added a couple of dormers and also an elevator shaft. If not for a highly skilled framer, like Paul, it could have been a complete disaster. He had a thorough understanding of the engineer's drawings and patience and sensitivity towards our vision and needs for a wheelchair accessible house. Thanks to his remarkable skills, confidence, experience, a highly reassuring attitude and exceptional speed, the entire project was over in no time. He worked smoothly with other trades as well, handling even overall issues regarding the project. Our structural engineer and the Mississauga city inspector had nothing but high praises for Paul's quality work. They especially pointed out how the work was above and beyond the required building codes and how impeccably executed, not seen often. His working habits and ethics were exceptional and a pleasure to see in today's competitive construction industry. Him and his excellent crew were very reliable, always on time and worked hard nonstop. At the end of the day he would leave the site as clean and accessible for us as possible. Infact, he finished exactly on schedule and with so much more and extras that he absolutely did not have to include within his timeframe. His extensive knowledge and sound advice every step of the way was a lifesaver in our situation. We are very grateful and fortunate. Him and his crew were all the way professional, courteous, trustworthy and so very friendly and fun to work with. Our son especially enjoyed Paul's Facebook status updates with photos of our project, every so often. We simply can't say enough of good things about Paul's work and him as a person. We for sure HIGHLY RECOMMEND Paul and his crew. If it was possible we would rate him way over 10. After such a positive experience, without a doubt Paul will be our ONLY go to guy for our future projects. We also appreciate his honest and fair quotes. Thank you for everything Paul. Our home looks amazing thanks to you!