Home Improvement Education

Holiday

Arguably the Most Delicious (and Perhaps Most Dangerous!) Turkey One Could Possibly Have!!

Recently I was in attendance at an all-day meeting and during a break in between sessions, a couple of colleagues and myself started bantering about a number of Holiday mishaps which we have been witness to over the years. Whether somewhat comical or extraordinarily serious, ...
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Shingles

What is the Difference Between Red Cedar Shingles & White Cedar Shingles?

On the outside of our homes there are clearly a wide variety of what exists in terms of siding options. Over the years, many have opted for vinyl, cement board, masonry, or some other alternative style of sided home. Traditionally in New England, when a ...
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Drywall

What is the Difference Between Drywall and Blueboard?

When it comes to building materials there are some items that I have always noticed Clients seem to refer to one when possibly actually referring to another. One classic example of this is gutters and downspouts. I have had many occasions in the past when ...
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Smoke Detector

How to Stop that Annoying Chirp from the Smoke Detector

If you have not had the pleasure of being woken up from a cozy sleep by a seemingly annoying chirp that you just can’t seem to initially recognize where it is coming from, let me assure you, you have no clue of the enjoyable experience ...
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Gutters

What Causes Gutters to Leak?

Leaking gutters can be caused by a variety of phenomena. For the purposes of our conversation here, we will be referring to aluminum gutter systems (vs. copper, wood, etc.). When discussing a leaking gutter, I am alluding to the actual gutter (the horizontal piece of ...
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Informational

Why Re-hanging Things is Often More Involved Than it May Seem…

Have you ever taken down a nail used to hang a picture, shutter, or like item and the nail that you initially used to hang it up with did not seem to quite do the trick when you went to re-hang the item? This can ...
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Informational

2 Traditional Societal Norms that Have Transitioned into Modern Day Superpowers

One of the more interesting by-products of my 3+ decades being involved in business, is the ability to have a chance to reflect on consumer behavior over this time period. These days this observational privilege is compounded by the number of different businesses I am ...
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Basement Flood

What is a Water Table on a House?

Any time there is some type of flood showcased in the news, while digging deeper into the event, you might notice the mention of the term ‘water table’ somewhere amidst the context of the story. Perhaps you have heard this phrase in conversation with a ...
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The Secret Power of Underutilized Shoes

Chances are the majority of us have some old shoes kicking around that are not doing much but gathering a bit of dust or holding a place within our minds that is saying that we will wear them “someday” and that having them in our ...
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Painting

Can I Paint Without Sanding?

Finish painting is the easy part. Many folks say that painting is extraordinarily therapeutic, peaceful, almost Zen-like. Chances are those saying this are not referring to the prep portion of their projects. It is not unusual to contemplate whether sanding should be involved with the ...
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Exterior

Exterior Decking Floors – To Coat or Not To Coat

When the majority of folks have a natural wood deck as a feature on their home, at some point in time, they will most likely come to a crossroads. The question will pass through their mind as to whether they should treat their deck floor ...
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Crown Molding

Crown Molding

One of the decorative features of homes that I have seen homeowners get most excited about over the years is crown molding. I don’t know if it is the way the word ‘crown molding’ slides off one’s tongue, or the vision that folks think of ...
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Leaking Problems

Unintentional Damage by the Well-intentioned

Recently I had a situation with a Client that was truly heartbreaking to work through. The Client had lost her husband within the past year and is currently fighting health challenges of her own. Since her husband had passed, a mysterious leak had developed within ...
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Exterior

Opening Pandora’s Box

Anyone that owns a home with even a little bit of age to it (and quite many times, even much newer homes!), is susceptible to the idea of opening ‘Pandora’s Box’ any time they go to repair a piece of rotted exterior wood on their ...
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Caulk

Caulking Your Foundation

If you have a home in New England, there is a good chance that you have some type of “foundation” associated with your home. Foundations are found at the base of your home and serve as a solid structure for your home to be built ...
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OUR HISTORY

LOPCO Expert

While looking for a way to pay his way through college, Tom Lopatosky started LOPCO Contracting in 1995. Since then, when Tom began the company with less than $100 in his pocket, LOPCO has grown to become the Home Improvement Contractor of choice for a wide number of people throughout Rhode Island and Southern New England. Tom learned many valuable lessons as he grew the business while attending college. Ultimately Tom (in the year 2000) graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree with a Concentration in Marketing, a Bachelor’s Degree with a Concentration in Finance, and a Minor in Computer Information Systems from Bryant University (Bryant College at the time) in Smithfield, RI. 

Prior to earning his degrees, Tom graduated from Classical High School in Providence, RI (where Tom won the ‘Al Morro Award’ for Football in 1994). After High School, Tom left for the University of South Carolina to pursue his dream of playing football. Soon after his mother passed away in 1997, he relocated back to RI and completed his college career at Bryant. Tom continued to play minor league football for 9 years and was part of 4 championship-playing football teams. 

As the demands of the company grew, Tom decided to retire from football in 2006 and focus on LOPCO full time.
Under Tom’s leadership, the company culture of striving to overdeliver on every project they undertake has led to much repeat business and their clients are often very happy to tell their friends and families about their experiences with LOPCO. This has helped tremendously as LOPCO has sought to further increase their customer base. Tom’s long-term goal for the company is “To lead LOPCO Contracting in continuing to paint and build the way to social consciousness while becoming the largest painting and repair company in New England.”

Tom lives in East Providence, RI with his girlfriend Leslie and his daughters Tamara & Ivelisse. Tom has held a variety of titles over the years including President of LOPCO Contracting, Regional Board Member of the PCA’s (Painting Contractors Association) Northeast Council, President of the RI Chapter of the PCA, Board Member of RIBA (Rhode Island Builders Association), and Building & Property Trades Advisory Committee Member for MTTI (MotoRing Technical Training Institute in Seekonk, MA).

Tom has been a RIBA member since 2008 and a member of PCA since 2006. In 2013 Tom received the PCA’s National “Humanitarian of the Year” Award, a “40 under 40” Award from Providence Business News, and his BNI (Business Network International) Warwick peers voted him “Member of the Year”. Tom has been involved with BNI for a number of years as well as quite a few other networking organizations.

In 2006 Tom was inducted into the Classical High School Athletic Hall of Fame. Over the years Tom has been a contributing writer and/or columnist for ExpertBeacon.com, RI Local Magazine, ShopInRI Magazine, The Jewish Voice, The Rhode Island Echo, The RI Wave, the East Providence Reporter, and The Smithfield Times and also has had weekly Home Improvement Tips that have run on the radio (630AM & 99.7FM WPRO in the RI area) and on television (WPRI 12 in the RI area). 

Tom is Roman Catholic and is a firm believer that success is often correlated with a person’s faith, not necessarily a particular religion, but faith in a greater power. 

Roman 12:12 is his favorite Bible verse which reads, “”Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.” Tom is very involved with his Church (St. Adalbert’s Church in Providence, RI) – Tom served as Chairperson of St. Adalbert’s Church’s Polish-American Festival for 6 years – and really tries to make it a point on attending service at least once per week (Tom also spends 30-45 minutes in prayer prior to beginning each day).
As a fun sidenote, Tom made it as a Semi-Finalist in the second season of “The Apprentice” (the round right before the finalists are on the show!).

Tom has been featured on the Real Estate Radio Network, the ‘Discover Rhode Island’ TV show, and on The Strongpreneur Nation Podcast. Today, Tom has his own weekly Home Improvement radio show on 630AM & 99.7FM WPRO in the RI area – ‘PROTALK Home Improvement’. Tom feels VERY fortunate to have been involved with a number of terrific community organizations over the years, such as: Amos House, Children’s Wishes, Clinica Esperanza, Goodwill Industries of Rhode Island, Habitat for Humanity of RI – Greater Providence, The Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, The Town of Johnston, RI Police Department, Junior Achievement of RI, One Neighborhood Builders (formerly Olneyville Housing Corporation), Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, YouthBuild Providence, and YMCA of Greater Providence. Two of the biggest community initiatives that Tom has been involved with are being a lead organizer of ‘Clean Day’ on the Woonasquatucket River Greenway for nine years and a lead organizer for YouthBuild Providence’s annual ‘Build-a-Bed’ event for four years.

In addition to LOPCO, Tom also owns Cheer UP Athletics – an All-Star Cheerleading Gym located in East Providence, RI – and The Smithfield Times. Tom is an avid New York Yankee, University of South Carolina (ALL of their sports!), and Providence College Basketball fan. Tom’s extensive experience and overall industry knowledge have made Tom one of the most sought-after experts in the Home Improvement Industry. Remarkably, Tom is often even called upon by other contractors to help them through challenges in their businesses (often speaking at National Industry Conferences). Because he has made it a focus to delve into and solve problems that others in the industry simply want nothing to do with, Tom has become an invaluable resource for homeowners near and far. With all being said, it confidently is safe to say that Tom Lopatosky truly is – The Home Improvement Expert!!!

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