The summer services

Saint-Hippolyte · 450 821-9042

One service at a time, with the photos from the job sites. Nothing is subcontracted: Joe does the work himself.

Summer · Handyman

Every service, with its job sites.

Not finding what you are after in the list? Call anyway: the answer is usually yes.

Painting and staining

Painting and staining are the same job and the same prep work, often on the same building. The wood has to be ready before the colour goes on.

Cottages, houses, sheds, porches and fences
Scraping, primer, two coats
Staining for staircases, decks and docks

Long new wooden staircase down a slope, still unstained, with hemp rope handrails — A hillside staircase, from new wood to cognac red, rope handrails and landing included.

The same staircase stained a cognac red, seen looking up from the bottom of the slope — A hillside staircase, from new wood to cognac red, rope handrails and landing included.

The same corner repainted bright blue with white frames and pale parging below — A home repainted. Same corner, same view: the siding goes back to blue, the frames to white.

Upper part of a home before painting: dull siding, peeling window frames, ladder against the porch — A home repainted. Same corner, same view: the siding goes back to blue, the frames to white.

The same home stained an even deep brown, from the posts up to the roof — A home on posts, from washed-out grey wood to deep brown, right up to the roof.

Two-storey home on posts before staining, washed-out grey wood, ladder leaning on the porch — A home on posts, from washed-out grey wood to deep brown, right up to the roof.

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Bare wood fence on a corner lot, horizontal boards and a slatted gate, in spring — A fence repainted white, seen from the yard and from the street.

The same fence painted white, seen from the yard, with the wooden steps of the house — A fence repainted white, seen from the yard and from the street.

Close-up of a porch: turned balusters freshly stained, golden logs, wood ceiling — A log home, porch and turned balusters stained: the close-up, the front, the overall view.

Log front, the stained porch wrapping the home, concrete steps — A log home, porch and turned balusters stained: the close-up, the front, the overall view.

Decks, porches and sanding

Grey wood becomes wood again, and what is too far gone gets rebuilt instead of patched.

Sanding and washing grey wood
Stain or oil, your choice
Damaged boards replaced, structure rebuilt if it is done

Close-up of the wide new stairs, a black steel frame and cognac-coloured wood — A deck rebuilt from the frame up.

The old deck torn down, the frame bare, new lumber stacked and the saw table set up — A deck rebuilt from the frame up.

Wide view under the porch toward the lake, the sanded posts brightened and the flagstone slab — A porch post sanded, the grey gone.

Porch post sanded on one half: bare grey wood on the left, old flaking brown stain on the right — A porch post sanded, the grey gone.

Pool deck

The deck around an above-ground pool takes sun, rain and chlorine: it ages faster than everything else.

Full sanding, steps and privacy screen included
Soft boards replaced
Stain worked in right under the handrail

The same pool deck stained cognac, same pool and same garage behind — The same pool deck, from washed-out grey to cognac.

Above-ground pool deck in washed-out grey wood, tools lying on the boards — The same pool deck, from washed-out grey to cognac.

Dock

He works with both feet in the water when he has to.

Building and repair
Spring launch, fall haul-out
Dock stained while he is at it

The same dock fully stained, running out into the lake to the posts at the end — The brush at work, and the dock once it is finished.

Dock being stained: bucket and brush on the boards, the foreground still bare wood — The brush at work, and the dock once it is finished.

Parging and foundations

Crumbling stoops, foundations that need redoing: he scrapes and preps before he rebuilds.

Foundations and concrete walls
Parging over the whole surface, no patching
Drain and ground levelled back

The same foundation parged an even grey, the drain buried and the ground levelled back — Foundation redone and parged its whole length, drain buried.

Exposed concrete block foundation wall with a plastic drain pipe running along the house — Foundation redone and parged its whole length, drain buried.

Concrete and stone

Concrete gets poured in one go. Stone goes down by hand, one piece at a time.

Slabs poured: formwork, gravel, membrane, finish
Flagstone paths, joints filled
Walls for slopes, flower beds and shorelines

The same slab from the other end, the concrete poured and floated smooth in its formwork — A lakeside slab, from the formwork to the pour.

Wooden formwork, membrane and packed gravel along a black lakeside home, before the pour — A lakeside slab, from the formwork to the pour.

The same flagstone path finished, joints filled, bordered by flower beds — Flagstone path in front of a house, joints filled and flower beds redone.

Flagstone path being laid in front of a house, joints still open and a garden hose on the ground — Flagstone path in front of a house, joints filled and flower beds redone.

The same front, the slab entrance finished up to the door, boulders and flower bed — A modern house entrance, from bare dirt to laid slabs.

In front of the black-brick house's glass door: bare dirt, the slabs stacked on their pallet, the blue wheelbarrow — A modern house entrance, from bare dirt to laid slabs.

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Side of the house in bare dirt, big boulders and stone steps, before the path — The side path in three steps: bare dirt, crushed stone, slabs up to the door.

The same side path in crushed stone, before the slabs went down, up to the glass door — The side path in three steps: bare dirt, crushed stone, slabs up to the door.

The lower path at the foot of a tree: broken slabs, sunk and half hidden in the grass — A stone path redone in two stretches: the lower part at the foot of the tree, the upper part along the hostas. Each time, the loose slabs and the joints redone in parging.

The same lower path redone: slabs re-jointed in pale parging, stone steps, cedar hedge behind — A stone path redone in two stretches: the lower part at the foot of the tree, the upper part along the hostas. Each time, the loose slabs and the joints redone in parging.

Yard opening and closing

In spring, you fix what winter left behind. In fall, you get the yard ready for the next one.

Winter road gravel raked up and hauled out
Driveways and interlock pressure-washed
Leaves cleared, tarps laid and weighted down before winter

The same strip raked out, the gravel removed, the lawn showing again — The strip along the fence, raked from plough gravel back down to lawn.

Strip of ground along a wooden fence, buried under the gravel thrown by the snowplough — The strip along the fence, raked from plough gravel back down to lawn.

The same yard cleared, green lawn and the stone border along the woods visible again — The leaves out, the lawn and the stone border showing again.

Yard buried under fallen leaves at the edge of the woods, blower on the ground — The leaves out, the lawn and the stone border showing again.

The same wooded slope blown completely clear, the forest floor visible again — The wooded slope blown clear, right down to the forest floor.

Wooded slope buried under a thick blanket of leaves, a child in a yellow toque at the edge of the yard — The wooded slope blown clear, right down to the forest floor.

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The foot of the same shed fully cleared, the stone border and bare soil showing again — Spring opening: the foot of the shed cleared, the stone border showing again.

The foot of a reddish-brown shed buried under dead leaves, a large pale stone block beside it — Spring opening: the foot of the shed cleared, the stone border showing again.

The edge of the same driveway cleared, the asphalt visible again along the street — The edge of the driveway cleared, the asphalt showing again.

Edge of an asphalt driveway covered in winter road gravel, bins at the curb — The edge of the driveway cleared, the asphalt showing again.

Landscaping

Hedges trimmed with a pole trimmer or by hand, flower beds and yard corners put back in shape.

Hedges and cedars trimmed
Flower beds redone
Corners of the yard rebuilt

Cedar hedge trimmed square along a driveway, brown house and stone edging — A cedar hedge cut with a pole trimmer, straight the whole length of the driveway.

Joe trimming a tall cedar hedge with a pole trimmer — A cedar hedge cut with a pole trimmer, straight the whole length of the driveway.

Gutters

Pine needles, leaves, moss: what clogs a gutter under big trees.

Gutters emptied and rinsed
Downspouts checked
He tells you straight what needs changing

The same gutter emptied, aluminium bottom showing, same gravel strip and same white wall — A gutter packed with pine needles, emptied and rinsed.

White aluminium gutter packed with pine needles, green scraper set in it, gravel strip at the foot of the wall — A gutter packed with pine needles, emptied and rinsed.

Pressure washing

Water under pressure takes off what no soap will.

Vinyl walls, sheds and outbuildings
Interlock and driveways
Decks and stairs before staining

Pressure washer sitting in the middle of a big wet wood deck, hoses uncoiled across the boards, the black-and-stone house behind

The same shed pressure-washed, seen at an angle, the wall back to white — A shed wall green with moss, back to white.

Beige vinyl shed wall, dirty and streaked with green, in low raking sunlight — A shed wall green with moss, back to white.

The same interlock pressure-washed, the joints clean and the stone noticeably paler — An interlock driveway, the joints washed back to the stone.

Interlock driveway with weeds growing through all the joints — An interlock driveway, the joints washed back to the stone.

Firewood

Dumped loose in the driveway, the cord ends up where you want it: against the wall, under the porch or on both sides of the door.

Carried in and up by hand
Stacked straight, ready to last the winter
Before the first snow, or during it

The wood stacked in its rack against the white parged wall of the house, on the stone patio — The load dumped loose, stacked straight against the wall.

Long row of firewood stacked straight on the ground along a cedar hedge, trailer and wheelbarrow beside it — The load dumped loose, stacked straight against the wall.

Front of a Canadian-style house under snow, the wood stacked neatly on both sides of the door — A second cord, stacked on both sides of the door.

Loose pile of logs on the snow in front of a snow-covered cedar hedge — A second cord, stacked on both sides of the door.

Tempo shelter

He brings his own ladder and he knows the assembly by heart.

Put up in fall, taken down in spring
Anchors set to suit the ground
Tarp stretched without a wrinkle

Galvanised steel frame of a Tempo car shelter assembled on the gravel, the tarp still folded on the ground

Shed assembly

The shed bought in a box, assembled at your place in one visit.

Floor, walls, roof, doors and windows
Set level on its skids
Box, offcuts and packaging leave with him

The same shed finished, shingled roof, brown doors and two windows, sitting on its skids — The same shed, from bare walls to a shingled roof, doors and windows included.

Olive-green vinyl shed part-way through assembly: floor and walls up, no roof and no doors yet — The same shed, from bare walls to a shingled roof, doors and windows included.

Spa trenching

The spa is coming and the wire has to get there: he digs the trench and closes it back up behind him.

Trench dug to the right depth
Wire run and ground closed back
Finishing included, one contractor

PHOTO COMING

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