An electrical contractor who had outgrown a rented bay. Fourteen-foot doors, a small office at the front, and enough service to run a bender and two compressors at once.
Warren, Washington & Saratoga counties
We build garages, shops and barns. We do not build houses.
Nine people, one shop on Dix Avenue, and a 45-mile radius. Ray Ostrander started Iron Ridge in 2008 after fourteen years framing for somebody else, and the crew has built outbuildings and light commercial ever since.
A detached two-car garage runs $48,000 to $72,000 and takes five to seven weeks. The full range is below, because you should not have to ring up to find out whether you can afford us.
What we build
Outbuildings and light commercial. That is the whole list.
We pour our own slabs instead of subbing the concrete out. At nine people that is unusual, and it is the reason our garage timelines are shorter than most quotes you will get.
- New house construction
We framed houses for years and we are not going back. If you are building a home, ask us and we will give you two names of people who do it properly.
- Kitchens and bathrooms
Remodel work inside an occupied house is a different trade with different scheduling, and we are bad at it.
- Roofing on its own
We roof what we build. We do not take roofing-only jobs, because a roofer will do it faster and for less.
- Anything we would sub out entirely
If our crew would not be on site doing the work, we are just adding a margin to someone else's quote. That is a referral, not a job.
What things cost
Real ranges, including the high end.
These are what jobs actually closed at over the last two years, not a starting figure that doubles once you talk to us. Site conditions move the number, and a bad slope or a long utility run moves it a lot.
| Build | Cost and duration |
|---|---|
| Detached two-car garageSlab, framing, siding, roof, one service door and two overhead doors. The most common thing we build. | $48,000–$72,0005 to 7 weeks |
| Garage with workshop aboveSame footprint with a usable second floor, stairs and insulation. Heating it is a separate conversation and a separate trade. | $86,000–$130,0008 to 11 weeks |
| Three-bay trade shopLight commercial. Fourteen-foot doors, a small office, and the electrical capacity to run equipment. Permits and inspections included. | $180,000–$320,00014 to 20 weeks |
| Equipment barn, post-framePost-frame rather than stick-built, which is why it is quick and why it costs what it does. Good for tractors, trailers and hay. | $65,000–$110,0004 to 6 weeks |
| Covered storage or lean-toRoof, posts, gravel or slab. The cheapest way to get equipment out of the weather. | from $28,0002 to 3 weeks |
| Full drawingsCredited against the job if you go ahead with us. The site visit and the ballpark number before this are free. | $450about 2 weeks |
Licensed and insured
Ask every contractor for these three things in writing.
If one of them hesitates, that is your answer. Ours are printed here so you do not have to ask.
HIC-04417
Warren County Home Improvement Contractor licence. Current, and checkable with the county.
$2,000,000
General liability cover. Certificate goes out with every contract, not on request.
All nine
Workers' compensation on every employee. Nobody on our site is carried as a subcontractor to dodge it.
We pull the permits and we sit through the inspections. That is included in the number you are quoted, and it is not a line we add at the end.
How a job runs
Four stages, and you can stop after either of the first two.
01
Site visit
Free · about an hourRay walks the ground with you and gives a ballpark number the same day. Plenty of these end with us saying the budget will not reach it.
02
Drawings
$450 · about 2 weeksProper drawings you could take to another builder. Credited back if you build with us.
03
Permits and scheduling
4 to 8 weeksWe file with the town and get you a start date. This is the part nobody enjoys and it is why the wait is what it is.
04
Build
2 to 20 weeksOur own crew and our own slab, start to finish. You get a weekly call on Fridays whether or not anything interesting happened.
Service area
Forty-five miles from the shop on Dix Avenue.
Past that the drive eats the margin and the job suffers for it, so we say no rather than quote high and hope. If you are outside the line, call anyway and we will point you at someone closer.
- Queensbury
- Glens Falls
- Lake George
- Hudson Falls
- Fort Edward
- Saratoga Springs
- Corinth
- Bolton Landing
- Warrensburg
- Argyle
- Greenwich
- Gansevoort
Recent work
Two from last year, with what they cost.
Two bays below, a woodshop above, and a staircase wide enough to carry sheet goods up without taking the handrail off. The owner had been planning it for nine years.
Illustrative projects and imagery for this concept website.
Starting a project
Tell us what you are thinking about and roughly what you want to spend.
Those two things are enough for a useful first phone call. You do not need drawings, dimensions or a decision. Most of the people who call us have been thinking about the building for years.
- Shop
- 118 Dix Avenue
- Town
- Queensbury, NY 12804
- Booking
- 5 to 7 months out
- Radius
- 45 miles
- Licence
- HIC-04417
- Crew
- 9