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Upstairs bedroom with new wallpaper above blue painted beadboard wainscot
Belfast, Maine · One builder, start to finish

Carpentry, remodeling and repairs in Belfast, Maine

I’m John Gudgel, and Gudgel General Contracting is just me. The person who looks at your job, prices it and does the work is the same person, whether it’s a sticky door or a whole room.

New paper, blue wainscot, doors and trim in an upstairs bedroom.
  • One personThe same guy from the estimate to the last coat of paint.
  • Free estimatesI come out and look at the job before I price it.
  • Small jobs welcomeFrom changing a light bulb to remodeling a kitchen.
  • Belfast + MidcoastNorthport, Lincolnville, Thomaston and nearby towns.
John Gudgel, owner of Gudgel General Contracting, on the Maine coast
John Gudgel, owner.
Who you’re hiring

Hey, I’m John. I like fixing things the right way.

I’ve been building for a long time, and I started Gudgel General Contracting so I could take on work the way I like to do it: one job at a time, done carefully, by me.

Most of my work is inside older Maine houses. Papering a bedroom and painting the wainscot. Turning a bare attic into a room with a wide pine floor. Setting a bathroom floor. Outside, I build cedar decks and fences, and I’ll frame a new bulkhead entry when the old one gives out.

I’ve also done boat work: teak grates, varnished mahogany doors and cabinets, some of it at Great Island Boat Yard. Boat joinery doesn’t forgive a sloppy measurement, and I bring that habit to houses.

John GudgelOwner, Gudgel General Contracting LLC · Belfast, Maine
Recent jobs

Some of my best work lately.

Real jobs, photographed on my phone as they went. Tap any photo for a closer look.

Bedroom with blue double closet doors, wallpaper and beadboard wainscot
Finished: closet doors, wainscot and paper
Blue painted doors and trim under fresh wallpaper
Doors and trim in blue
Laser level set up for hanging wallpaper on a sloped wall
Laser layout on the slope
Job 01

The blue bedroom

New wallpaper above painted beadboard, with the doors and trim brushed out in a soft blue. Every strip went up off a laser line, so the pattern runs true across the sloped dormer walls instead of wandering.

Wallpaper · Interior painting
Wide pine floorboards installed in a finished attic room
Wide pine floor, laid and done
Attic with old roof boards and beams, new drywall going up
Drywall in under the old roof
Brick chimney and timber beam in an attic being finished
Working around the chimney
Job 02

Attic into a finished room

A bare attic under the old board roof. Drywall went in around the hand-hewn beams and the brick chimney, then a wide pine floor went down one board at a time.

Finish carpentry · Drywall · Flooring
New cedar deck railing with stepped post caps beside a shingled house
Railings and post caps
Built-in cedar benches along the edge of a deck
Benches built into the deck edge
Job 03

Cedar deck with built-in benches

Cedar posts with stepped caps, railings and benches built right into the edge of the deck, so there’s seating without crowding the table.

Decks · Exterior carpentry
Long upstairs hallway papered in a small red pattern
The upstairs hall
Stairwell papered in a red pattern beside a white stair rail
Down the stairwell
Job 04

Papered hall and stairwell

A long upstairs hall and the stairwell below it, papered in one pattern and matched around every door casing and the turned stair rail.

Wallpaper
Finished bulkhead entry with a low roof on the side of a white house
Roofed and closed in
Pressure-treated framing for a bulkhead entry at a house foundation
Framing at the foundation
Bulkhead entry sheathed in green ZIP panels with a door
Sheathed, door in
Job 05

A new bulkhead entry

Framed off the foundation, sheathed in ZIP panels with a new door, then roofed and closed in. A job that has to be right the first time.

Exterior carpentry
Curved teak grate with dark seams, finished on the bench
Teak grate, finished
Varnished teak and mahogany cabin door on a boat
Cabin door
Mahogany cabinet doors and a rounded corner post on a boat
Mahogany cabinetry
Job 06

Boat work

Teak grates glued up on the bench, plus varnished mahogany doors and cabinets. It’s some of the tightest fitting I do.

Fine woodwork
How a job goes

No crew to schedule around. Just me.

  1. 01

    Call or request an estimate

    Tell me what’s going on and where you are. Use the estimate form or call me directly.

  2. 02

    I come take a look

    I measure, ask questions and tell you straight what I’d do and what I wouldn’t.

  3. 03

    You get a clear price

    A price for the work we talked about, before anything starts.

  4. 04

    I do the work

    Floors get covered, layout gets done with a laser, and I’m the one on the job until it’s finished.

Bedroom floor covered in paper and tape with a ladder ready for work
Floors papered and taped first
Wallpaper laid out on a pasting table in a room being papered
Paper cut and booked on the table
What people say

Two fences. Two happy neighbors.

I’m still new to asking for reviews, so here are the ones I have, word for word.

Recommends on Facebook
“We had hired John for a fencing project to help enclose a space for our dogs and build off an existing style of fence. He made it out to discuss the project very quickly and his availability to start the work was quick as well! The project came out amazing and he was very thorough with every step of the job. He quoted us a great price that was significantly better than our other quote. Without a doubt would recommend working with him and my wife and i know a dependable contractor for any other future projects. Extremely nice and friendly guy!”
Andrew SingerFacebook · May 2025 · Fence for a dog yard
★★★★★
“Was very happy to hire John for 100' cedar fence project. Showed up on time, worked a long day, made great progress in short time, and was easy to get along with. Polite and respectful too”
Eric M.HomeAdvisor · Sep 2024 · 100 ft cedar fence

Worked with me? A few words on Facebook or HomeAdvisor helps a small business more than you’d think.

Where I work

Belfast and the Midcoast.

I’m based in Belfast and take jobs around town and across Midcoast Maine. The towns I work in most:

  • Belfast
  • Northport
  • Lincolnville
  • Thomaston
  • Waterville
  • Bangor

Not on the list? Call and ask. If I can get there and do it right, I’ll take it.

Questions
Do you give free estimates?

Yes. I come out, look at the job and give you a price before any work starts.

Do you take small jobs?

Yes. Small repairs are a big part of what I do, from a sticking door to a rotted piece of trim. If you have a list of them, even better.

Who actually does the work?

I do. Gudgel General Contracting is a one-person business, so the person you talk to is the person on your job.

What kinds of projects do you take on?

Wallpaper, finish carpentry, interior painting, tile, bathroom and kitchen work, decks, fences and exterior carpentry, plus general repairs around the house.

How do I get an estimate?

Click “Get a free estimate” on this page or call (207) 505-8444.

Free estimates

Got a project, or a list of small ones?

Tell me about it. I’ll come take a look and give you a straight price.

John GudgelGudgel General Contracting LLC · Belfast, Maine
Wide pine boards being laid in an attic room
Pine floor going down, one board at a time