Refine Construction

Refine Construction is Danny Ruby's company in Dorchester, and the one detailed account of his work keeps circling the same thing: he is a carpenter first. In a 2018 Boston Voyager interview he described coming to the US in 1999, working for other contractors, and taking on side projects until he started his own business. A 2013 Houzz review is the fullest picture anyone has written. A homeowner described him renovating the second floor of a two-family from bare studs into a finished apartment, open to changes along the way, and building a large custom shelving unit from a drawing they had sketched themselves. Her closing line reads like the company's real pitch: "Besides being a general contractor, he specializes in carpentry and can build anything just the way you want it." The volume behind that is substantial even if the reviews are few. BuildZoom counts 105 permitted projects; the Houzz page carries five project sets - kitchens, a third-floor addition, mahogany decks, a white cedar fence and a Dorchester house renovation. Its Massachusetts construction supervisor licence, CS-091042, is active on the state registry with Daniel Ruby as holder of record, and BuildZoom lists a home improvement contractor registration, #150773, issued in May 2026. The BBB grades the company A+. Two things to raise before signing. First, the written record is thin and split across thirteen years: the detailed 2013 Houzz account, and a brief "Very talented and professional" left on Google in May 2026, with Google showing 5 stars across two ratings. A 105-permit history deserves more voices than that, so ask for three or four recent homeowners you can call. Second, BuildZoom shows the company's EPA renovation certification, NAT-F156366-1, as inactive and at one point cancelled. That is the lead-safe renovation credential, and it matters on any pre-1978 Boston house - worth asking whether it has been renewed. One more to clarify: the founding date moves depending on the source. Houzz says established 2004, the owner said 2005, and the BBB dates the business to 2011. Right call for: a gut renovation or an addition on an older Boston house where the finish carpentry is the point - built-ins, stairs, trim - and where you want the owner on the job.