Carpentry
Rotten trim replaced properly before it gets painted over. Interior and exterior carpentry across Chicago, the North Shore and the western suburbs. Licensed and insured.
Most of our carpentry is found during a paint job
Once the old paint comes off an exterior, soft trim shows up — usually at the bottom of corner boards, around window sills and where a downspout has been discharging for years. Painting over rot buys a season and costs you the repair anyway. Because we do both trades, we can replace the wood and finish it in the same visit instead of stopping the job to find a carpenter.
What we take on
- Rotten exterior trim, corner boards, sills and casings replaced
- Fascia, soffit and rake board repair and replacement
- Siding repair, including individual damaged boards
- Deck boards, railings, spindles and steps
- Interior trim, casing, baseboards and crown
- Door and window trim made good after other work
- New wood primed on all faces before installation
How the work runs
1. Find out why it rotted
Wood does not fail at random. A blocked gutter, a failed flashing or a downspout in the wrong place will rot the new trim too if nobody looks.
2. Replace properly
Cut back to sound material, new wood primed on every face including the back and the cut ends, then fitted and sealed.
3. Finish in the same visit
Caulked and painted to match, so you are not left with bare replacement trim waiting on a second trade to come back.
Carpentry questions we get asked
Can you just fill the soft wood instead of replacing it?
For small, contained areas an epoxy repair is legitimate and long-lasting. Where the rot runs into the end grain or behind the trim, filling it is cosmetic and it will come back. We will tell you which one you have.
Do you find this sort of thing during a paint job?
Regularly. We flag whatever is visible at the estimate, and anything that turns up once the old paint is off gets shown to you with photographs before we touch it.
Do you paint the new wood as well?
Yes, and it is the main reason to have one contractor do both. New wood is primed on all faces before it goes up, then finished to match once installed.
Do you do structural work?
Our carpentry is finish and repair work — trim, siding, fascia, decking and interior millwork. If what you describe turns out to be structural we will tell you it needs a different trade rather than take it on.
Photographs of our own carpentry work are being added to this page shortly. In the meantime, see our recent projects.
Get a free estimate
Send us a photo of the trim or siding. We will tell you whether it can be repaired or needs replacing — no charge and no obligation.