Remodeling
Home remodeling contractor in Suffolk County
Rooms, basements and the long list of small fixes. One crew handles framing, sheetrock, trim, paint, tile and floors, so you never manage five different trades.
- Fully insured
Where most remodels go wrong
It usually isn't one big mistake. It's the gaps between the people doing the work.
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Nobody owns the finish
The sheetrock guy blames the painter, the painter blames the trim guy, and the room still doesn't look right.
Our crew does every trade in the room, so the finish is on us.
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Weeks of waiting between trades
One contractor finishes, and the room sits empty until the next one can fit you in.
The same crew moves from one step to the next on a schedule you see in writing.
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The price keeps climbing
A loose number turns into a long list of extras once the walls are open.
You get a written, itemized price before anything starts, so you know what's included.
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Dust in every room
Sanding dust on the stairs, in the kitchen, on the couch you weren't even touching.
We close off the work area and clean up every day before we leave.
How a remodel works with CGS
Same steps whether it's one bedroom or a whole basement. You know the price and the start date before we begin.
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Walk-through
We look at the space with you, measure, and talk about what you want the room to do, not just how it should look.
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Written price
An itemized price with a start date and how long the job will take. Every trade in the room is on the same page.
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Build it in order
Framing, sheetrock, wall smoothing, trim, doors, tile, floors and paint, each step done before the next one starts.
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Clean as we go
The work area stays closed off and swept. We clean up at the end of every day.
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Final walk-through
We walk the finished room with you and take care of anything you're not happy with.
Remodeling services
Three ways we help: a full room, a finished basement, or the list of small repairs you keep putting off.
A home remodeling contractor that does the whole room
If you’re looking for a home remodeling contractor in Suffolk County, you’ve probably noticed the problem already. Most remodels need five or six different kinds of work, and most contractors only do one or two of them. So you end up hiring a framer, a sheetrock crew, a painter, a tile guy and a flooring installer, then trying to get them to show up in the right order.
We do it differently. Our crew handles the framing, the sheetrock, the wall smoothing (skim coat), the trim, the doors, the tile, the floors and the paint. One crew, one written price, one number to call. When something doesn’t look right, there’s no question about whose job it was to fix it.
Three kinds of remodeling work
Everything on this page falls into one of three services. They overlap a lot, and plenty of jobs use more than one.
Room remodeling
Room remodeling is a full redo of one room or a few rooms. Think of a living room in a high ranch with the original paneling, a spare bedroom that’s been storage for ten years, or a den with water-stained ceiling and hollow doors. We take the room down to what needs replacing and build it back up: new or repaired walls, smooth ceilings, new trim and doors, flooring and paint.
Basement finishing
Basement finishing turns an unfinished or half-finished basement into real living space. Long Island basements have their own set of problems: low beams, ductwork and water lines overhead, a concrete floor that can get damp, and a boiler or oil tank that has to stay reachable. The plan has to account for all of it before a single stud goes up.
Handyman services
Handyman services are the smaller jobs. A door that sticks, a hole where the doorknob hit the wall, a loose piece of baseboard, cracked caulk around the tub. A lot of people call us for the small list and then realize they’d rather do the whole room. Either way works.
The order a remodel goes in
Every remodel follows roughly the same order, and most of the headaches come from doing steps out of sequence. Here’s how we build a room:
- Demo and prep. Old paneling, damaged sheetrock, worn carpet and old trim come out. Furniture is moved or covered, and the work area gets closed off.
- Framing. New walls, closets, soffits to hide a duct, or blocking inside the wall where cabinets or shelves will hang.
- Behind-the-wall work. If you need new wiring or plumbing, a licensed electrician or plumber does it now, while the walls are open. Those trades aren’t on our list, so we plan our work around theirs.
- Sheetrock and ceilings. Hang, tape and finish the walls. Ceilings are sheetrock or a drop ceiling, depending on what’s above.
- Wall smoothing and patching. Old walls that stay get patched and skim coated so they match the new ones.
- Trim, doors and built-ins. Baseboard, casing, crown, new doors and any shelving or cabinets.
- Floors and tile. Flooring goes in after the messy wall work is done, so it doesn’t get scratched.
- Paint and final touch-ups. Walls, ceilings and trim, then caulk, then the final walk-through.
When one crew does all of it, the steps run back to back. There’s no waiting a week for the painter because the tile guy ran late.
What to figure out before you call
You don’t need a finished plan. We’ll help you get there. But the first conversation goes faster if you’ve thought about a few things:
- What the room needs to do. A guest room, an office, a playroom, a gym? That decides where the outlets, lights, closet and door should go.
- What bothers you now. Dark, cold, cramped, dated, cracked walls. The list of complaints is often the real scope of work.
- What’s staying. Keeping the existing floor or the old doors changes the plan and the price.
- Your timing. Getting ready to sell in the spring, hosting for the holidays, a new baby. Tell us, and we’ll build the schedule around it.
- Photos. A few pictures sent with the quote form help us come prepared.
If you’re not sure where to start, our answer on what to do first when remodeling a room walks through it step by step.
What drives the price of a remodel
Two rooms the same size can come in at very different prices. The main things that move the number:
- How much comes out. Painting over paneling is one job. Tearing it out and hanging new sheetrock is another.
- What’s behind the walls. Old water damage, out-of-level framing, or a wall that isn’t straight all add work.
- The ceiling. Patching a ceiling, skimming over popcorn texture, and hanging a new ceiling are three different prices.
- Your finishes. Plain baseboard or tall trim with a cap, a basic door or a solid-core door, vinyl plank or tile.
- How many trades are involved. Every added piece of work adds time and material.
We put every item on the written price, so you can see where the money goes and decide what to keep or trim. For basements, our answer on what it costs to finish a basement on Long Island goes into more detail.
How to choose a remodeling contractor
Whoever you hire, these questions will tell you a lot:
- Are you licensed? In Suffolk County, home improvement contractors need a county license. Ours is HI-73429. Ask for the number and check it.
- Who does the work? Find out if the person you’re talking to has a crew, or if they’re lining up subs you’ll never meet.
- Is the price written and itemized? A single number on a business card leaves too much room for surprises.
- When do you start, and how long will it take? You should get a start date and a length of job, in writing.
- How do you handle dust and cleanup? You’re living there. It matters.
- What happens at the end? A final walk-through where you point out anything that isn’t right should be standard.
Also think about the size of the job. A handyman is great for small repairs but may be out of depth on a whole room. We cover the difference in what a handyman does vs. a contractor.
Permits and your town
Painting, trim, flooring and fixing sheetrock usually don’t need a permit. Adding a room, moving walls, and finishing a basement often do, and the rules depend on where you live. Before you start, check with your town’s building department. Around our home base that’s usually the Town of Brookhaven, the Town of Islip or the Town of Smithtown, or your incorporated village if you’re in one, like Lake Grove. For basements, see do I need a permit to finish my basement in Suffolk County.
Remodeling before you sell
If you’re listing the house, the goal is different. You want the rooms to look clean, bright and finished in photos, and you want the buyer’s inspector to find less. That usually means patching and painting, new trim and doors, fresh flooring, and fixing the obvious problems. A full basement finish can make sense too, depending on the house. We talk through that in is it worth finishing a basement before selling.
Where we remodel
We’re based in Medford and take remodeling work up to about 45 minutes away. Most of our remodels are in high ranches, capes, split-levels and colonials in towns like Sayville, Blue Point, Stony Brook, Lake Grove, Patchogue and Holbrook. If you’re not sure you’re in range, call 631-745-9982 and ask.
Remodeling questions
Do you handle every trade in the room?
We handle framing, sheetrock, wall smoothing (skim coat), patching, paint, trim, doors, windows, built-ins, cabinets, tile and flooring with our own crew. If your plan needs new wiring or plumbing, that has to be done by a licensed electrician or plumber, and we'll plan our work around it.
How much does a remodel cost?
It depends on the size of the room, how much has to come out, what's behind the walls, and the finishes you pick. We look at the space and give you a written, itemized price before any work starts.
How long will my remodel take?
It depends on the size of the job and how many trades are involved. Your written price includes a start date and how long the job will take, so you can plan around it.
Can we live in the house while you work?
Most people do. We close off the work area, keep the dust contained as much as we can, and clean up at the end of every day.
Do I need a permit?
Some remodels do and some don't. New rooms, changes to the structure and finished basements often need one. Check with your town's building department, like the Town of Brookhaven or the Town of Islip, or your incorporated village.
What areas do you work in?
We're based in Medford and take remodeling jobs up to about 45 minutes away, including Sayville, Blue Point, Stony Brook, Lake Grove, Patchogue, Holbrook and Port Jefferson.
Get a price on your remodel.
Tell us about the room and what you want to change. We'll set up a walk-through and put it all in writing.
631-745-9982- Price in writing before any work starts.
- One crew from start to finish.
- Fully insured