Teagno Construction Inc.

This is a review of Teagno Construction Inc. (TCI), 228 Triangle Street, Amherst, MA, 01002. It was a bad experience for us. We thought the project was poorly managed and had poor workmanship by both TCI and some Subcontractors. We contracted with TCI to work on our 1970s ranch around 8/5/22. The contract amount was $375,000. Completed: about 5/2023. Our Project Manager (PM) did a poor job. Homeowners may not tell subcontractors what to do. The PM needed to do that. We often questioned workmanship or plan specs. The PM would say our concerns “weren’t a problem” or “this Old House.” We had mixed results with subs. We had problems with the roofers, electricians, gutters, painters, and windows. The design aspect of the project was also lacking. Our contract called for new shingles & a roof decking inspection. Some plywood was replaced. Months later we noticed shingles buckling in 4 areas because some decking wasn’t nailed down securely. The roofer came back to remove, nail, and re-shingle. No charge, but it cost us in terms of stress and anxiety. TCI couldn’t get a pro painter on time. We agreed to have the priming and first coat of paint done by TCI workers. They seemed sloppy & inexperienced. Finally, a local person agreed to do the final coat. We had concerns with their work and eventually decided to let them go. We hired our own painters after the TCI contract was finished. We wanted to improve the look of our block foundation. TCI seemed to have trouble finding masons or materials that would meet our design goals. We hired our own Masonry Company to install the stonework after TCI was done. Some of the TCI carpenters assigned to us were sloppy. Many aspects of our contract called for “finish carpentry.” BEWARE!! I don’t know of any set standards for what a “finish carpenter” is. I don’t believe there are any Massachusetts licensing standards for carpenters. They installed the exterior door of the addition wrong. The door was made flush to the exterior wall instead of the interior wall. It didn’t open right. The door’s recess was about 6 inches off. We complained. Our concerns were explained away. The door latch was scraping against the door frame. We were livid. Eventually the owner of TCI came to see why we were making such a fuss. He took one look at that door and said “That door’s been installed wrong.” TCI completely reinstalled the door with a new door frame and trim so that it was flush to the interior wall and worked correctly. They installed a door with the wrong swing direction. The PM said “Is that a problem?” YES, because the custom storm door was designed to work with a left inward swing door. The custom door had to be reordered. A carpenter dropped a claw hammer on our custom cherry-wood floor. His ability to fix the floor wasn’t satisfactory. TCI compensated us for that, but the floor will never be the same. Under some windows furring strips would have helped to keep the layer of siding below the window flush with the layer of siding below that. The PM suggested a trim material that shouldn’t be mitered. After the PM had left the project, the owner of TCI agreed to replace it with trim material better suited for precise mitering. Our pocket doors were installed crookedly. They did not meet correctly. TCI eventually sent a very good carpenter to help fix it, but there was only so much that he could do without tearing the surrounding wall apart. We received some compensation for that, but it’s still very aggravating. One of their carpenters walked off the job in the middle of the project. TCI sent some excellent carpenters to fix problems encountered. Sometimes that worked, sometimes not, as the damage was done and couldn’t be reversed without more problems. We wouldn’t recommend TCI. If you get the good carpenters and subcontractors, lucky you! Although we paid a premium for TCI to manage this project for us, it seemed like we always had to manage them, argue with them, and pressure them to get things done correctly.

Great people to work with!

Present from design to building, patient, supportive, knowledgeable, and professional. The company is organized and very detail oriented. Plays well with architects.