June 11, 2013

When Jim came out to give us an estimate, he was on time and very professional. Through our discussions with him )and because I've had a little experience doing carpentry work myself), we could tell he was very knowledgeable about shutters and carpentry in general. We knew there were some areas in our home that would make his work a little more challenging. He was able to answer well how to address those issues--it was apparent he had handled similar issues before. 

Not long after his visit, he promptly provided a written estimate. We considered his estimate as well as that of a couple other well-qualified shutter installers we had come out to our home. Hofer's price was not cheap. There are installers who will do the work for much cheaper, but they also provide a inferior product and installation, and we weren't interested in those kinds of installers. However, among the quality installers we could find, his price was the best. We were actually surprised by this because we had the impression that his work would be the best in terms of quality.

When installation day came (which was consistent with the day he originally promised at the time he gave the estimate), he and his son arrived on time and were able to install all the shutters fairly quickly. The paint matched our existing trim work very well. It's now been a couple days since the installation and the shutters open and shut very cleanly. The installation looks clean and crisp, as if the shutters had been there all along, installed by the original builder. We're very pleased with the product and would highly recommend his work. 

I should also note that he was willing to build and install a frame around one of our windows that we did not want shutters on. We wanted this window to have a frame that would match the frames on all the windows that were getting shutters. He was willing to do this for free! We asked for it after he provided his estimate and after we had already paid.

June 11, 2013

This was a really good experience. I sent e-mails through Angie's list to three different companies. Hofer responded within a few hours to set up a time to give me an estimate. He did ask how many windows we were considering doing before hand; at minimum we were doing 12, I don't know if he has a minimum amount before he'll come out. We scheduled an estimate for a Saturday afternoon; he arrived when he said he would, and didn't seem to mind the barking dog or curious toddler. We weren't certain how many windows we would do for sure, so asked for an estimate that broke it down window by window. He said he would give us a discount based on the number of windows we did. The estimate he provided included a discount for doing all of the windows we talked about, and he said if we decided on a smaller number of windows, he would figure out the discount from there. We decided to do all of the windows we had measured. We did not do a high half-moon window in the master bedroom, any of the bathroom windows, or our kitchen window because we plan on redoing our counters in the near future and worried about working around the shutters, and we just plain forgot that our garage has windows that face the street. When we finally get around to redoing the kitchen and having that shutter made, we'll do the garage windows too.
After we decided to go with Hofer, we had to choose the shade of white for the shutters. The previous owner did not leave paint cans behind, so we brought home all the white paint chips from Home Depot and did our best to pick the one that looked the closest to the existing trim and window frames. We gave the paint name to them, and just waited for the shutters to be ready. When they were ready, we arranged installation on a day my husband could be home. Installation was quick, and they even puttied one of the window ledges that our puppy had chewed up. 

Overall, our experience was very good, and the shutters are awesome. We will definitely return to Hofer when we are ready to do the kitchen and garage windows.

June 11, 2013

Overall this was an excellent experience. My husband has already recommended Jim Hofer to a collegue because we are so pleased. It is with pleasure that I recommend Mr. Hofer to anyone on Angie's list who wants beautiful plantation shutters in their home.

June 11, 2013

We called Jim and 2 other shutter providers from Angie's list for estimates. Jim came out to give us an estimate within 48 hours of the initial phone call. He was by the far the most knowledgeable about real custom wood shutters. We were expecting his estimate to be on the high side to do the level of customization some of our windows required (arched, extra large, crank openings). We were pleasently surprised when his estimate was the lowest of the three quotes, including one quote for polywood. From the time we ordered with Jim it took 4 weeks for the shutters to be made, custom painted to match the various trim colors in our house, and installed. The other two quotes estimated an installation date of 8 weeks after order date.The shutters have completely transformed the look of our house from inside and outside. We decided to go with the 4 1/2 inch, single panel plantation shutters after a recommendation from Jim's son, who works with him. They look fantastic! We could not be happier with the finished product. We also ordered roman shades for 9 french doors from Jim. We went with a basic style and fabric and we have been happy with those as well!

We would highly recommend Jim Hoefer if you are considering shutters for your home.

June 11, 2013

Overall, I am totally pleased with Hofer Wood Interiors, and Jim is such a pleasant guy it would be almost impossible not to like him.He obviously has a good attitude and likes people.He makes it obvious that he is there to do a quality job and tell it like it is about the different types of product and so on.As most all his other reviews here on the List reflect, he is a great choice. Plantation shutters are expensive, but I love what I received for my money and they should last the lifetime of the home, as they are solid kiln dried wood.My fiance was against them at first, but when I had them painted white as she asked for and she saw them, she loved them too.The pait job he did is flawless. He is a very good painter; I have not seen one drip. They are set in a fitted frame so that you can open them for cleaning, and being inside, they will never get weathered.I will probably eventually replace most or all of my hard to clean, easy to break flimsy plastic blinds with these plantation shutters.

March 21, 2013

One of the most frequently asked questions regarding plantation shutters is why use flat(straight) louvers instead of elliptical (oval) louvers. We believe that the straight design (flat) looks more like a shutter, b) it offers a better view because of the overall thickness 3/8", c) The louver to tilt rod connection is more secure. d) A straight louver is more environmentally friendly(green). e) The overall finish is smother and nicer. 

Straight(flat) louvers actually offer a better view than the archaic elliptical(oval). On standard windows you have 2 1/4 inches more viewing space just by choosing the straight(flat) louver over the elliptical (oval) louver. A straight louver is more environmentally friendly(green), because Less material is used.

Because the straight(flat) louver has more thickness on the outer edges the staples used to connect the tilt rod to the louvers hold tighter and longer than those elliptical louvers do. In addition, the elliptical louver only has a small edge for a staple to hit to be perfectly aligned. Many staples on oval louvers miss their mark and look funny because they are on the surface of the louver instead of on the center edge where they are supposed to be.