Hiring the right contractor can be the difference between a remodeling nightmare and realizing your bathroom dreams. Remodeling is a journey and everyone could use a guide, especially if you’re unfamiliar with accessible renovations. While our Freedom Showers team is your all-in-one guide for any of your accessible bathroom product needs, you’ll still need someone to install your shower, grab bars, and/or bathtub once it’s been delivered.

Our accessible products are incredibly easy to install, so any contractor with plumbing experience should be able to help. Still, this step can seem overwhelming if you’ve never hired a contractor before. Luckily, we have a few tips to help you find the man or woman for the job:

1) Are they licensed?

Make sure the contractor you hire is licensed in your area. Check what your local/state requirements are and confirm that the company has a registered license number. As tempting as it is to hire your neighbours’ nephew‚ or a family member to save some money‚ if they are not licensed they probably don’t do construction for a living‚ or have a lot of experience. Sometimes you get lucky, but more often it leads to additional expenses trying to fix incorrect installations.

2) Registered with NAHB (The National Home Builders Association)

This NAHB is a national trade association that is highly regarded across the United States. Members are put into the directory‚ and have access to the newest news‚ information and networks to keep them up to date in their field. If your contractor is registered with the NAHB, you know they are serious about keeping their skills and techniques up-to-date.

3) CAPS certification (Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists)

Contractors who have CAPS certification have taken courses that educate and train them to specifically understand the needs and challenges of accessibility and aging-in-place. They have a better understanding of what is going to work for you in the long-term than contractors without this certification. They are also familiar with ADA (American Disabilities Act) requirements in their state. They’ve likely installed accessible products before and know about the best and latest products to fit your needs.

4) Do they have references?

Experienced and competent contracting companies will have a recent list of references and photos from previous jobs. Make sure you contact a few of those references and if possible go and see a recent job that is similar to what you need.

5) Can you get along with them?

It’s important that you feel comfortable with your contractor. They don’t have to be your new best friend‚ but you should be able to communicate with the people doing work in your home‚ and be able to ask questions‚ giving you confidence in their abilities.


What next?

The directory on the NAHB website is a great starting place to look for contractors.

Also, Freedom Showers we deal with hundreds of contractors every year. We keep many of them in our own database. Visit freedomshowers.com to find the answer to all of your accessible needs and call one of our expert customer service representatives to find out if a recommended contractor works in your area.

Do you have any tips to add? How about questions for our experts? Any contractor stories? We’d love to hear from you.

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