Questions

The things people ring to ask

These are the six questions that come up on nearly every first phone call, answered at the length they deserve rather than in a sentence.

How long does a renovation take?

A bathroom is two to three weeks, a kitchen three to four, a whole house ten to sixteen depending on how much of the shell we are touching. You get a week-by-week programme with the quote, and we tell you on a Friday if the following week has changed.

Will the price change once you start?

Only if we find something behind a wall that nobody could have seen — and then we stop, show you, and price it before we go on. Everything on the original page is fixed. In four years the average job has finished within three per cent of its quote.

Can we stay in the house while you work?

For a single room, yes, easily. For a kitchen you will want somewhere else to cook for about a fortnight. For a whole house most people move out for the first month and come back for the finishing. We will tell you honestly which one your job is.

Do you handle permits and the assembly?

Yes, where a permit is needed — structural changes, extensions, anything touching the outside of the building. We prepare the drawings, lodge them and follow them up. Internal work that does not move a structural wall usually needs nothing.

What guarantee do we get?

Two years on our workmanship, in writing, from the day of handover. Manufacturers' warranties on fittings pass to you and we register them for you. If something we did fails inside two years we come back and fix it at no charge.

Do you work outside Accra?

We cover Greater Accra as far as Kasoa in the west and Prampram in the east, and we will travel to Aburi and Akosombo for whole-house work. Beyond that the travel starts costing you more than the work, and we will say so.

Practical things

The everyday arrangements

Working hours

7.30am to 5pm, Monday to Saturday. Nothing noisy before eight, and nothing at all on a Sunday unless you have asked for it.

How you pay

A third on signing, a third at the halfway point, the balance on handover. Bank transfer or mobile money, and a receipt for every stage.

The rubbish

Skips, tipping and removal are in the price. The site is swept every evening and the skip is gone before we hand the house back.

Keys and security

One named person holds the key and signs for it. If you would rather fit a temporary lock for the duration, we will fit it and take it off at the end.