Carpentry

Trim, doors, built-ins, stairs, and framing repair from one carpenter working in Buncombe County, in the trade since 1985.

Serving Swannanoa · Black Mountain · East Asheville · Oteen · Asheville and Buncombe County

Over 40 years of experience
One carpenter, start to finish
Free written estimates
Based in Swannanoa

Rob Stimson Carpentry is one carpenter, Rob Stimson, working in Swannanoa, Asheville, Black Mountain, and the rest of Buncombe County. Rob has been a carpenter since 1985 and has worked in this county since 1991, and he handles every job himself from the first phone call to the last piece of trim.

Most of the work is trim and casing, crown, interior and exterior doors, built-ins and bookcases, stair treads, handrails, and framing repair. Rob measures the opening in place rather than working off a standard size, and cuts each piece to fit what is there. Where a run of trim or siding is sound apart from one damaged section, he replaces that section and matches it to the existing profile instead of pulling out the whole run.

Estimates are free. Rob comes out and looks at the job the same week you call, then sends a written estimate that day or the next. There is no crew and no subcontractors, so the person who quotes the job is the person who shows up to do it.

Framing and structural work are part of what he does, not just the finish side. Beams, posts, and walls that carry weight need a permit pulled in your name first, and he will say so on the phone before either of you spends an afternoon on it. He does not do plumbing, electrical, roofs, gutter cleaning, or garage doors.

How it works

What happens after you get in touch.

Tell him what stopped fitting

A split joint, a door that drags, a rail that moves when you lean on it. A sentence over the phone usually tells him whether it is his kind of job.

He measures it in place

Nothing here is a standard size, so he takes the measurements off your house rather than off a catalog. That visit costs you nothing.

You see the price first

Written down and agreed before he cuts anything.

Questions

Questions about carpentry

How do estimates work? +

Rob comes out, looks at the job, and gives you a price before any work starts. Estimates are free. If it turns out to be something he does not do, he will say so on the phone first rather than driving out and wasting your afternoon.

What does Rob charge? +

Small jobs are hourly with a minimum. Larger jobs get a written price before work begins, so you know the number up front.

Does Rob do plumbing or electrical work? +

No. He is a carpenter, not a plumber or an electrician. He will swap a light fixture or a switch for the same kind of thing, but he does not run new wiring, add circuits, or move pipes. If that is what the job needs, you need a different trade first.

What areas does Rob serve? +

Swannanoa first, since that is home, then Black Mountain, East Asheville, Oteen, Fairview, Montreat, Ridgecrest, and Asheville. Further out is possible depending on the job. Just ask.

Do I need a permit for my project? +

Not always. Replacing boards, rails, treads, trim, siding, and like-for-like doors and windows on a single-family home in North Carolina usually needs no permit. New decks, new openings, and structural work do. When one is needed, it goes in your name as the property owner, and Rob tells you what the job needs before it starts so nothing is a surprise. He does the work and coordinates around the inspections. Plumbing and electrical are a different trade entirely, not a permit question.

Will the new work match what is already there? +

That is the point of calling a carpenter instead of replacing a whole run. Rob cuts to match the profiles that are already in the house. Older homes in this county are rarely square, so the fit matters more than a catalog piece.

Where the line is

What needs a permit, and what doesn't.

Rob would rather tell you now than find out in your driveway.

No permit needed

✓ Trim, baseboard, casing, and crown
✓ Door hanging and like-for-like replacement
✓ Built-ins, shelving, and finish carpentry
✓ Stair treads, handrails, and railings
✓ Matching repairs to existing woodwork

Needs a permit first

The permit goes in your name as the property owner. Rob tells you what the job needs before it starts, then does the work and coordinates around the inspections.

◆ Framing repair and structural wood
◆ Beams, posts, and load-bearing work
◆ New door or window openings

Matching trim, hanging a door, and repairing what is already there needs no permit. Framing, beams, and new openings do. Rob takes both kinds of work, and he tells you which one you have before he starts.

Not his trade, at any size: plumbing, electrical, anything on a roof surface, gutter cleaning, garage doors, and lawn and yard work. He will usually know who to call.