Whatcom Falls Construction

We hired Whatcom Falls Construction to build us a replacement deck. The contractor offered to finish demolishing our old deck. While this was a goodwill gesture, he broke a pane out of our sliding glass door when a loose 2×4 hit it. He did not place a piece of plywood as a barrier which would have prevented this. We asked him to be careful using the Sawzall as we chose to dismantle it piece by piece rather than risk a broken window. He offered to replace it but since we needed new windows anyway, we agreed to have him perform another project in lieu of pane replacement, We suggested replacing the edges of the eaves which he said would be about even. When he completed this project, he said the billing would be small. Imagine our surprise when it was over $ 300.
The deck was well-​built and it very simple but sturdy as we wanted. He did choose good lumber and the deck is beautiful. But, there are several issues. While he specified an all-​terrain forklift because the delivery area was near our very recent former drain field, the supplier didn’t bring one on a subsequent trip. The large flatbed sunk in the soft ground and the second one that came with more supplies also became stuck. After the tow truck removed them, there were deep ruts in the grass plus big clumps of mud in our driveway (400′ long). The supplier finally filled in the ruts and cleaned up the mud but midway through when the supplier was procrastinating, Whatcom Falls Construction told us that we, as homeowners, needed to deal with it. This involved several phone calls and a 3 month delay.
Because the weather was typically rainy in May, the contractor used deep pencil lines to mark where to nail the decking to the joists rather than snapping a chalk line. When I mentioned this as something that detracted from the deck, the contractor told us that it would wear off in time. When I replied that it was very evident and I didn’t want to wait, I was told to use an eraser. I looked up some references to pencil lines on visible construction, the general feeling was that it was unsightly and that a conscientious contractor does not leave any. I really do not want to spend hours on my knees cleaning up pencil marks I didn’t make. I feel that this was a careless attitude and was not professional.
UPDATE: three years plus later, in the rainy PNW, and pencil lines are still evident. They have not worn away. Also, the wood was not joined well and is separating. The caulking looks like sh! t where the boards didn’t join properly. Avoid this contractor. Also, he will beg for lunch.