Not only do I 1000000% recommend Gmano Railings, I want this review to be a public service announcement about the importance of using a qualified company for your railings.
My partner and I recently bought a home that required extensive renovations. This included constructing & installing new railings for the main and second floor landings, as well as a railing for the stairs leading to the second floor. For additional context, the previous owner had removed all railings and constructed walls in their places. Also, our's is a narrow home, so the second floor hallway is also narrow.
From our first meeting with Leo, we knew we wanted to work with him!
First off, Leo came to review the site in order to provide an accurate and informed quote (whereas other companies just asked for pictures & gave us estimates based on that). During his visit, Leo was extremely thorough in taking measurements and really reviewing the site conditions, and took the time to inform us about our options and answer our questions. He gave us the confidence and assurance we needed that not only would the quote be accurate and within budget, but that we were also in great and experienced hands.
(And here is where I want to emphasize the importance of working with a qualified company - we had previously worked with a GC who did decent enough on some general renos (drywall, etc) and we had inquired about having them potentially do our railings. This GC was adamant that the only way to install the railing was to rip up part of our flooring in order to secure the post to a floor joist. The idea of this horrified us since we had just gotten our floors done.)
In taking the time to review & understand the limitations of our space, Leo recommended a removable railing for our second floor landing. This would allow us to remove the rail and create more space should we need to move large objects to & from our main & second floors. Part of our handrail would also be removable due to some space limitations in our stairway as well. Again, this is why it's critical to work with someone who specializes in railings and has the expertise to provide you with the options that fit your needs!
The installation took 2 days, as Leo completed all the work himself. He was not only super diligent and thorough, but also kept a very clean and tidy work site. He also kept us informed and continued to answer our questions throughout the process. For the removable railing, he even took & provided a video of the process, so that we could use it as a reference for the future!
Beyond that, I just want to say what an awesome guy Leo is to work with. He is friendly, genuine and committed to providing excellent quality worksmanship and service. (I literally marvelled and stared at our newel caps for like half an hour because of the level of detail he put into them!)
We couldn't have asked for a better and more knowledgeable railing contractor to work with, and I can't recommend Gmano Railings strongly enough! In addition, he is an independent and locally-owned business, which I am always a proponent of.
Thank you, Leo, for all of your hard and excellent work! :D
