HARTMAN CONSTRUCTION STARTED IN  1984

Born in Waterloo, Iowa, I am the son of an auto mechanic.  Since my father was an auto mechanic, when he came home from work he had no interest in home repairs.  So at a grade school age my mother made me the home repairman and learned I had a natural talent at home repair and remodeling.

So in grade school, neighbors learned of my handyman abilities and I became the neighborhood handyman.  I worked by way through collage at the University of Northern Iowa working as a part-time handyman service.  My interests in college were business and art design.

After college I had several construction jobs, and later in 1978 a relative with a construction business in San Jose, California offered me a job as he wanted to retire and said I could take over his business when I learned it.  Working for my Uncle Lawrence’s construction business we got a contract to build a Sewage System at a Summer Camp/ Educational Facility in the Redwood Mountains in Saratoga, California.


Working at this 220 acre camp, the director noticed me and offered me a job there as Physical Plant Superintendent.  I received a salary, a house, a truck to use, and a credit card to make purchases.  I was responsible for everything physical at this facility.  Working there my job was to keep everything maintained during the summer, and for the rest of the year I would work doing major remodeling projects.  My emphasis was carpentry, so as needed I hired electricians and plumbers to work with me and my crew.  I worked at this camp until 1984.  My main object in working here was to learn all aspects and trades of construction remodeling, and because I had almost no expenses, to save money.

In 1984 my wife was missing her family living in the Des Moines area, so we moved to Redfield, Iowa, a town close to Des Moines, but still with a small town atmosphere.  In Redfield I started Hartman Construction and Remodeling as a one man company working from a garage.  While I was in California I had saved as much money as possible so I could start my construction business.

My wife Linda Hartman was working at Homesteaders Insurance in Des Moines and had an interest in Interior Design, so she went to Sheffield School of Interior Design and became a Certified Interior Designer and  started working for Hartman Construction and Remodeling where we began specializing in Designer Kitchen and Bathroom Remodeling, using her Interior Design services and my design education from the University of Northern Iowa.

We have since done hundreds of kitchen and bathroom remodels since starting in 1984.  We now have two crews of 3 men in each crew, and an Estimator who goes to customers homes to look at their projects and bring this information back to the office where we do a design and estimate.  We work year round and each crew does one remodel at a time from start to finish.