Doug and Joan Swan are veterans when it comes to remodeling.

When the Fountain Hills couple decided to redo the master bathroom in their home, they were prepared for the “usual remodeling nightmares.” They also are fairly new to Fountain Hills and didn’t have a lot of resources for referrals. They did, however, get a referral from a plumbing contractor who had done some work for them. They were directed to Patrick Benkowski of Roadrunner Remodeling. They talked with him at length before choosing him to redo their bathroom.

“We have been through tons of remodels,” Doug said. “Typically we have selected people through referrals. This was no exception. He did an excellent job.”

Doug said he did the advance work in choosing the contractor, but Joan is the one who lived through the work.

“Since this was not our first remodeling job, we were a little bit reluctant to get in to it,” Joan said. “I thought it might be better to wait until we were a little more settled.”

She said she needn’t have worried.

“We were absolutely thrilled with the whole process,” Joan said. “Patrick and Dan (Roadrunner’s job superintendent) were unbelievably professional. I could not be more pleased.”

Joan said that Benkowski was always available for questions and updates. Dan did most of the work himself, and he was prompt and reliable.

“If he said he would be here at 8:30, he was here at 8:30,” Joan said. “And if he was going to be even 10 minutes late, he called. They did everything they said they were going to do and more.”

Joan marveled that Dan even carried in the huge new bathtub by himself.

Joan remarked that another factor she liked with the work was there were few workers in the house.

“In our other experiences, there have been four or five or six people working in this little space,” she said. “You felt overrun. Dan just came in, did the work, cleaned everything up every day and left. It was so pleasant.”

Dan continues to check in with the Swans. He is friends with their neighbor, so when he is visiting his friend, he stops at the Swans to make sure they are still happy with the new bathroom.

“Dan is really wonderful,” Joan said.

Doug said there is no question they would use Roadrunner again.

“This was a pretty big remodel, and it went according to plan,” he said. “Patrick kept us informed of the progress, and he was happy to answer questions and let us know what was going on through the whole process.”

The remodeling job took about six weeks. Joan called the process “painless. Dan and Patrick made it look effortless. We absolutely would use them again.”

Benkowski is a certified remodeler (CR) and past president of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, Greater Phoenix Chapter. He is also a member of the Fountain Hills Association of Licensed Contractors and Central Arizona Better Business Bureau. He has been in the remodeling business for 32 years and has lived in Fountain Hills nine years.

He can be reached by calling (480) 816-0788. To view before and after photos, customer testimonials and other useful kitchen and bathroom remodeling information, visit www.roadrunnerremodeling.com.