Once you find one or two good trades people, you can also ask them to recommend others. That has worked well for us. We joined Angie's list recently because we were going to do a pool remodel. My husband handled that so I don't know if he found it worthwhile, but there was one creepy aspect to Angie's list. A few months after joining, we got a phone call from them soliciting reviews on areas where they need more reviews - the list of what they were looking for started with neurologist, went through a bunch of medical specialties. Quite personal information to ask someone to reveal - I told him that after he had asked about the first few that I wasn't going answer questions about which medical specialists I've used and so he moved on reading the list. The next category wasn't any better and I told him that if I had a review I wanted to post, I'd go to their website and put it in, but I didn't care to spend any more time on the phone with him and didn't want to be quizzed about what services I use.

We had trouble finding contractors for our remodel until a member from this Gardenweb site recommended Angie's list to me. It turned out it was a sound advice. I read every review of contractors in the category we were looking for. I picked out ones who had done projects of similar size and dollar amount. It helped me to compile a list of questions and contractors to call. We set appointments with contractors who sounded promising in the phone conversations. We met these contractors in person and presented scope of work. We then made final decision based on their quotes, personality, feedback from their references, work style and starting time. Angie's list provides a starting point; there is fair amount of work afterwards to screen contractors. We know there is risk involved because good contractors work out with other clients may not guarantee they would work well for us. We like to spell out details and specifications, a contractor may think we are difficult. We figured, at least we made informed decisions. We liked the contractor we chose so much while half way working the first project, we asked them to plan for another one. We are very happy with both projects, and had great working experience with the contractor and all of his subs. I left a glorious review for the contractor and his company on AngieâÂÂs list. I also mailed him my review so that he could use it as a reference. On a different subject - we had used Consumer Report for almost 30 years, but in recent years, we are not so sure about their ratings....

I live on Long Island and I signed up for Angie's list for one month just to give it a try. I am disappointed with the subscription as only one of the contractor's I am considering (at least 5) are reviewed on AL. The one contractor that was reviewed received an "f" rating only based on one review and that reviewer only met with the contractor for an estimate. I did not like that AL shows an overall rating as a severe "F" without actual work having been performed. I did look up my plumber, electrician and others who I have used in the past, and the reviews, though minimal in quantity, were quite accurate. I think AL is a good service if the local users submit reviews. My advice, go for the monthly subscription so you can see how useful it is in your area before committing to a longer term subscription. I doubt I will renew mine. Good Luck!

I disagree with hollysprings. The installer generally knows how much overage to allow for edges and pattern, but the people in stores can and do make those calculations too. They haven't seen the space and may allow a bit extra to make sure there isn't something they aren't seeing that would require a bit extra, but 9 boxes is extreme. I have always checked the calculations myself. Stores that are doing the installation (carpet) can be bad about over ordering, and on a 12 foot roll, you pay a lot for the extras. You get nap that doesn't match if they under order. I would make a BBB claim and let them help you try to get your refund, then file with Angie's and any others based on what is or isn't resolved, noting the errors and extreme rudeness. Anything you post doesn't need to be nearly that long -- just that they did the calculation and over ordered the field tile by 9 boxes, ordered the wrong trim, under ordered the grout, charged restocking fees on their over order and wrong order, and were rude beyond belief about it all. A couple of lines says it all and makes you appear far less emotional and more credible.