With so many contractors offering their services to households and businesses, it’s understanding if you get a bit dizzy thinking about who to hire for your repair needs. But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. In this article, let’s take a look at some of the most popular kinds of contractors and when you should be hiring them.
1. General Contractors
General contractors are the main men of construction sites because they handle mostly everything that needs to be done from start to finish. The general contractor is the one who inks a prime contract with the homeowner who gets fully paid for the services done in a home. This could include anything from structural and interior design to material procurement and actual carpentry work.
In other words, you would be hiring a general contractor if you want to build a new home or establishment or if you have a major repair that needs more than a few days to get done.
To become a general contractor, a company or individual must be licensed in his or her service area. This typically means he or she must have trained and worked for a long time before getting licensed.
2. Specialty Contractors
Not all direct contractors are general contractors. There are also those who are hired to fix a specific part of a home. Take Kansas City deck builders, for instance. They focus primarily on installing or repairing decks and anything related to it. They can build decks from a variety of materials like composite or wood. At the same time, they can be hired to make pergolas, too.
Deck builders like that one are part of what we call specialty contractors. Technically speaking, they get licensed just like a general contractor, but they choose to limit their expertise to a specific home or building structure for various reasons. Perhaps they have found their niche market or simply because they’re exceptional at doing such projects.
3. Mechanical Contractors
Mechanical Contractors meanwhile are just like specialty contractors. But their work revolves around mechanical components of the home like heat, ventilation, and air conditioning system contractors or HVAC contractors who are responsible for making sure that such systems in your home are in tip top shape.
Some mechanical contractors also dabble in plumbing and piping work like fixing water and gas pipes indoors and outdoors. They also deal with refrigeration systems and sometimes other electrical systems, too.
4. Electrical Contractors
While mechanical contractors can do a bit of work for electrical components of your home, there are still those we call as electrical contractors. Electrical contractors work hand in hand with general contractors when it comes to building structures. General contractors lead the construction of a building foundation and everything related to its actual brick and mortar structure and the electrical contractor deals with electrical work including design and layout, installation, and even maintenance.
But do not confuse electrical contractors with electricians. The latter only concerns himself with repair work, although both can be licensed and insured, too.
5. Independent Contractors
In a nutshell, independent contractors provide an extra set of hands for any kind of work. The same is true for construction and repair services. Usually, those who hire them are construction companies that need more workers due to tight deadlines or need workers with a specific set of skills. Some independent contractors also do freelance work and can be hired as a repairman but most often than not, they won’t be highly-trained in particular areas like plumbing, HVAC repair, and electrical issues. It’s best to leave those to the professionals.
Wrapping it Up
Whether you’re renovating your home, needing repairs, or building it from the ground up, there are different types of contractors you will need to hire. With this guide, you now have the ability to make better decisions when it comes to doing repair work, flipping a house, or even who to call when you want to add a new deck to your home.
Let this be your guide in choosing the right contractor that would give you the intended results in the most efficient way possible.
