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Since I couldn’t find a mantel at a salvage store that would fit my somewhat oddly-sized fireplace, I commissioned Heights Woodworking back in June to build a small stained shelf over the fireplace’s ugly concrete ledge. I read mixed reviews about this firm here on Brownstoner, but I wanted to give my business to a local carpentry shop, and decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. Big mistake. Heights Woodworking is an unprofessional, extremely unpleasant firm to deal with.

Heights Woodworking took four months to make and install the piece – and only after repeated calls from me to follow up on the status of my order. I was informed that the reception staff could not communicate with the floor staff, and vice-versa. (The owner of the business, who could communicate with all his staff members, kept an extremely low profile during this whole Heights Woodworking did turn up to install the piece in late September, it wasn’t stained at all(as I requested). The carpenters took it away, and after three more weeks of nagging from me, the crew turned up at my apartment (almost 5 hours later than promised – lucky I took the whole day off work) with the stained mantel. As they were packing up, I was casually informed that another small piece of the mantel would require staining, which they promised to do the next day. I couldn’t take another day off work, but my friends from out of town promised to stay home in the morning and let them in. Surprise, surprise, Heights Woodworking didn’t turn up, and when I called to find out why, I was curtly told that the “receptionist works upstairs, and has no idea about what goes on in the shop downstairs”. When I demanded to speak to the owner, she promised she would patch me through to him when he checked in later that afternoon. That didn’t happen either.

Using this company was a bad decision on my part. I’m glad other people on this forum had decent experiences, but mine was absolutely miserable.