Carpentry in Vancouver
Carpentry covers everything from a repaired stair tread to a wall of built-in shelving. What the jobs share is that they are measured and made for your house rather than bought off a shelf.
Custom work vs. repair
Repair work restores something that exists — a rotten section of trim, a loose tread, a sagging shelf. It is generally quicker, cheaper and decided on site once we can see how the original was built.
Custom work is designed and made to fit a specific space. It costs more and takes longer because it involves measuring, drawing, material selection and often shop time before anything is installed, but it fits properly in a way that flat-pack in an old house never quite does.
Wood species and cost
For anything painted, a stable paint-grade material is the sensible choice — it costs less and, once finished, nobody can tell what is underneath. Spending on hardwood for a painted cabinet is spending on something invisible.
Where the grain will show, species drives both cost and character. Fir and hemlock are locally common and suit the era of most Vancouver homes; oak and maple cost more and are harder-wearing. We will talk through what suits the room and the budget before ordering anything.
How we quote carpentry
Carpentry is quoted after seeing the space, because the two things that decide the price — how square the existing structure is and what is behind the surface — cannot be judged from a photograph. An old house that is out of true takes longer to fit to, and that is real work rather than padding.
Quotes separate materials from labour so you can see what a change in specification actually costs. As a bracket: trim and baseboard runs start around $1,400, a fitted alcove built-in scribed to an out-of-square wall runs to $14,000 at the top end, and decks are quoted separately from about $22,000.
Shop-built vs. built on site
Building components off site gives a better finish — cutting, assembly and sometimes spraying happen in a controlled environment rather than in your living room, with far less dust and disruption for you.
Some work has to be done in place, particularly in older homes where nothing is square and pieces must be scribed to the actual walls. Most projects end up a mix: carcasses made off site, trim and scribing fitted on site.
What this costs
$1,400–$14,000 for built-ins, trim and stair work
Quoted after a site visit, materials separate. Trim and baseboard runs start around $1,400; a full alcove built-in in a heritage home, scribed to out-of-square walls, runs toward the top of the range. Decks are quoted separately and typically start at $22,000.
Materials are always separate from labour and passed on at cost. Quotes are free and written, and the full rate card is published rather than given out on request.
Common questions
How is custom carpentry priced?
By materials plus labour, quoted after a site visit. The two variables that matter most are how square the existing structure is and what is hidden behind the surface — neither can be assessed from photos. Most built-in and trim work lands between $1,400–$14,000, with labour at $145 an hour where the job is small enough to be charged by time.
Which wood is best value for built-ins?
For painted work, a stable paint-grade material — money spent on hardwood you then paint over is money spent on something nobody will see. Where grain shows, we will discuss species against budget before ordering.
How long does a custom piece take?
Design and measurement, then material lead time, then build and install. The material wait is usually the longest single element and it varies with what you have specified, so we establish it before quoting rather than after. You get dates at quote stage rather than discovering them once the job has started.