Small jobs welcome

Why small jobs get skipped

Many contractors turn down small jobs or price them out of reach, because travel and setup take as long as the work. That leaves homeowners living with a running toilet or a broken cabinet hinge for months. We take small jobs on purpose. They are the reason many people find us, and they are what keeps a house in good shape.

Make a list

The best way to use a visit is a short list. Walk through the house and write down everything that bugs you: the loose towel bar, the closet door off its track, the outlet cover that cracked, the light bulb you cannot reach, the screen with a hole. Text the list with photos. We quote the whole list and handle it in one trip.

Common small jobs

• Fix a dripping faucet or a running toilet.
• Hang pictures, mirrors, shelves and curtain rods.
• Adjust sticking doors and cabinet doors.
• Replace outlet covers, switches and light fixtures.
• Patch small holes in drywall.
• Recaulk a tub or a sink.
• Change high light bulbs and smoke alarm batteries.
• Assemble a piece of furniture.
• Tighten loose railings and handles.
• Replace a broken blind or a torn screen.

How pricing works

We give you a quote before we start, based on the list and photos. Free estimates. Small lists are usually priced as a single visit, so you know the total up front. If something on the list turns out bigger than it looked, we stop and tell you before going further.

Good fits and not-so-good fits

Small repairs and like-for-like replacements are a perfect fit. New wiring, moving pipes, roof work and structural repairs are outside our scope. For anything in between, text a photo and ask.

Who calls us

Busy families, renters with landlord approval, older homeowners who no longer climb ladders, new homeowners working through an inspection list, and landlords between tenants. See also landlord repairs and home safety for seniors.

Booking

Text a photo and the address. Most texts are answered within the hour during business hours.

Ladder jobs

Many small jobs are small only once someone has a tall ladder: a high ceiling bulb, a smoke alarm on a vaulted ceiling, a ceiling fan that needs dusting and balancing, a stuck skylight shade. Older homeowners and renters without a ladder often save these up. We bring the right ladder and handle them in one trip.

Pre-sale and pre-move lists

Before you sell or move out, a list of small fixes, such as patched holes, touched-up paint, working doors and replaced bulbs, helps a home show well and avoids small deductions from a deposit. We can work from an agent’s list or an inspection report.

After a move in

New homeowners usually have a list on day one: change the locks, hang pictures, mount the TV, swap a light fixture, fix a door that sticks, install blinds. Send the whole list; how long it takes depends on the job, and we’ll tell you after seeing photos.

Working around your schedule

Small jobs fit well into short windows, such as an early morning before work or a Saturday. Tell us your best window when you text.

Bringing the parts

If you know the brand of your faucet, toilet or blinds, include a photo of the label. We can then bring matching parts and cut down on return trips.

Repeat visits

Many households text us a new list every few months. Keeping a running note on your phone of small things as they come up makes those visits quick.

Examples from a typical list

A real list might read: fix the guest toilet that runs, hang three frames and a mirror, swap the hallway light, adjust the pantry door, recaulk the kitchen sink, and replace two smoke alarm batteries. How long a list like that takes depends on the job; we’ll tell you after seeing photos. Sending a list like this, with a photo for each item, gets you a clear quote and a visit that finishes everything at once instead of one item at a time spread over several weekends of your own time.

Honest about scope

If a small job reveals a bigger problem, such as a drip that turns out to come from a corroded pipe inside the wall, we stop and explain what we found. You decide what happens next. We do not turn a small job into a big one without your OK, and if the bigger job is outside our scope, we tell you.

A clean exit

We put furniture back, sweep up, take away old parts and packaging, and test everything we touched before we leave. A small job should leave the house better than before, not with a new mess.

Text, call or form

You can text a photo, call, or use the quote form on this page. Texting photos is usually fastest, because we can see the problem and reply with a quote as soon as we have looked at the photos and any notes.