A-1 Builders and Adaptations Design Studio

They just completed a major remodel for us --Thank you we are very happy with the result.. I would have given them stars, but they have been slow to provide all of the product manuals and warranties.for our project.

Our remodel required both design services (provided by Adaptations Design Studio) and construction services (provided by A1Builders). After an initial contact through Rick Dubrow, Shawn became the project overseer and estimator, and stayed with our project from start to finish. Sharon, our designer has the ability to listen carefully to our requirements and suggestions, and distill them into a design that worked for us. Mike, as our on-site project manager, went out of his way to ensure that the work caused us as little inconvenience as possible. And given that the work took place in three parts of the house -- master bath, kitchen, and laundry, often at the same time -- that was no mean feat. The subcontractors were obviously very carefully chosen, and they all gave us what we wanted, not what might have been easier for them. Communications via email and phone were excellent, and the final cost estimate came in very close to the actual final cost. There were no surprises. We are very happy with the results of the remodel, we have recommended A1Builders/Adaptations Design Studio to friends, and we will use them again for our next project.

We are undertaking a remodeling of our wonderful 1916 home, and we chose A-1 for the project for many reasons: 1 - Having built a custom home using separate designers & general contractor, we knew we did not want to do that again. So the concept of One Team was a very strong appeal. 2 - Remodeling is their bread & butter, it is not a means of getting them from "real" project to project. 3 - When we met Rick at our house, we knew he was the one & he gained our trust immediately. Everything was explained verbally & in writing, in a straight forward easy to understand way, & with a sense of humor. We are currently finishing up the design aspect of our project & it has taken us almost a full year. Our original ideas have changed several times, we have spent quite a bit of money on design, and it has been well worth it to us to end up with the design we love & can afford. Our assigned designer, Maggie, has been absolutely marvelous. She's taken the effort to really understand what we want to achieve and we could not have found a better designer to work with. If you are more clear, grounded & firm in your project, your design time & costs will be far less. I have no idea how our time & costs compares to others who undergo similar remodels. For us, it was a messy process, & we very much understood that from the very start. Our project is now scheduled to start the end of October and estimated to be completed just before Christmas ... further review to follow!

A-1 has completed several major projects for us and we are so pleased with the results. Maggie Bates , who works hand-in-hand with A-1, has been our designer. She designed the new cover for our deck. After an ancient moss-covered fiberglass cover was removed that was on the right-side of the house, a new soaring fir beamed cover was installed. It partially covered our existing deck, allowing Gary to stay dry while barbecuing during a rain, the rest of the deck receives the south-east sun exposure. The cover has thinner fir panels, with a clear finish, to allow the beauty of the wood to show through. There are 2 sky lights ! in the southeast roof side, allowing even more light to come through and a feeling of touching the sky. They also installed a small stone patio to the left of the deck. The project manager was meticulous and every detail is perfect. There are two square glass lantern-type lights in the beams for evening, and all the wires are invisible. We can listen to seasonal Austin Creek, below in the greenbelt, and watch the deer nibbling the ferns from our deck area. We recommend A-1 to anyone considering home improvements in our area. Gary and Peg Mertl

A-1 Builders and Adaptations remodeled our kitchen in 2004-5 and did a splendid job so we hired them again to do a complete remodel of our downstairs basement. We worked closely with Adaptations designing a master bedroom, a study and a large family/entertainment room. Then A-1 built it and we could not be more pleased. These folks do wonderful work.

Complete crawlspace cleanup and overhaul to conditioned space. Excavation of existing external drainage and major upgrade to higher capacity/more durable/redundant drainage system. Earthquake retrofit. Heating duct upgrade. This work involved the coordination of multiple contractors, including insulation removal/installation, electrical, excavation, heating, ductwork, and crawlspace conditioning team. I have hired A-1 for several large jobs, primarily because their design work and implementation is always top-of-the-line. My only complaint is that A-1's lead person on-the-ground missed a couple of potentially costly mis-steps that were subsequently identified by the owner and corrected. This happened early in the 3+ weeks project, when he was familiarizing himself with the multi-step process. On the other hand, the on-site lead did an excellent job coordinating all of the contractors and went out of his way to perform some unexpected repairs. For any major work, especially involving critical infrastructure, we will not hesitate to hire A-1 again. Their professionalism, knowledge, and integrity are unbeatable.

A-1 Builders and Adaptations Design Studio are simply the best; great staff who care, experienced, helpful, friendly and know what they are doing. They represent the highest of quality from design to build.

Domistyle has enjoyed working with and referring clients to A1 Builders for over ten years. Their attention to detail and devotion to sustainability make A1 Builders an excellent choice for the Green Community.

Rick Dubrow, A-1 Builders, and Cindi Landreth, Adaptions Design Studio, met with me to plan for remodeling my master bathroom. Both Rick and Cindi made valuable suggestions to accommodate aging in place. I worked with Tristen Greybill, a designer with Adaptions, on the layout and selecting tile, plumbing fixtures, paint, etc. Her expertise was invaluable. I first worked with Patrick Martin, A-1 Builders, and later Mike Gill, project manager. My experience working with the staff at both A-1 and Adaptions was very positive. All were responsive to both email and telephone calls. In addition to replacing the bathtub with a tiled walk in shower other work included replacing all the plumbing fixtures throughout the home, electrical work, replacing outside ground lights, and replacing bathroom light and exhaust fan. Based on their recommended, they did a whole house inspection which resulted in replacing the back door and surrounding wood due to moisture damage, replacing dryer vents, adding insulation, etc. I enjoyed working with all the staff at both Adaptions and A-1, they were very responsive and kept me informed of what to expect throughout the project. I am very happy with the results and recommend them to anyone wishing to do a home renovation.

The job included both design services and construction. Remodeling including quartz countertop, new lighting and refinished cabinets in the kitchen, completely refinished oak flooring throughout the house, interior painting and various aging-in-place improvements such as grab bars in the tub, widened doorways, a wheelchair lift and exterior railing. They also did a few miscellaneous repairs around the house as necessary. Rick from A 1 Builders and Cindy from Adaptations Design Studio (an affiliate company) arrived at our house in Bellingham, WA in September 2014 to hear our proposal and provide their suggestions. Both Rick and Cindy were excellent listeners and they made valuable suggestions that showed their expertise in general construction and in aging-in-place environments. It was convenient and efficient that A 1 Builders and Adaptations Design Studio work together under the same roof so that communication between the designers and the builders could be enhanced. When we expressed an interest in working with them, our second meeting included Maggie, the designer that we would actually be working with, and Shawn who would manage the job. We walked them through our requests and we immediately established an excellent rapport with both of them. We found them both to be clear and sensitive to our needs, and it was a pleasure working with them from start to finish. Initially, they provided a "wild guess" proposal just to give us a pretty good idea of the costs for each item that we wanted to accomplish. This was a great approach as it allowed us to better prioritize the improvements so we could remain within our budget. We were introduced to each subcontractor onsite before the job began and we were able to provide a detailed description of our job in order to keep everyone on the same page. As we worked through the plan with A 1 and their subs, we found them to be extremely detailed which was a delightful contrast to other contractors we had worked with in the past. Their plan was to work together with us to make all design and construction decisions prior to any work commencing so that everyone entered the job with exactly the same expectations and with no surprises. This plan proved to be effective as the job began because nearly all plumbing fixtures, light fixtures and kitchen materials were brought onsite, and implementation was simplified due to their high degree of organization. We were ultimately provided with a detailed calendar of exactly when each piece of the job would be done and by whom, and we received a firm financial proposal which was in line with our expectations. The job progressed on schedule and the home was always treated with respect from beginning to end. Billing was just as organized as the actual construction process, and we never encountered a hiccup or an unwanted surprise. We had the impression that this renovation was a bit more expensive than we may have encountered with another builder, but the quality of the work and the reliability of this contractor was such a high value that the price was justified. In the end, we were very happy to have worked with A 1 Builders and with Adaptations Design Studio. We would recommend them to anyone seeking a home renovation, and we would choose them again in a heartbeat.

We needed home and deck repairs to be done before start of the rainy season. Other contractors that we contacted for bids did not inspire confidence. We were fortunate to find A-1 Builders here in Bellingham. The owner Rick Dubrow promptly responded to our call and gave us a preliminary estimate. Based on our positive impression of Rick and good reviews on Angie's List, we entered into a contract. His standard contract is very comprehensive and clearly written in plain English. He patiently reviewed contract terms with us and answered all of our questions. The A-1 construction crew, consisting of foreman Adam Yost, superintendent Patrick Martin, and a small crew properly manned the job and kept us closely advised at each step as the work proceeded. These are first class individuals. They did a beautiful job.

A-1 Builders took on a few projects for us and did an excellent job on each one: removing an external chimney chase and installing new wood siding on a few walls; replacing a bathroom sink, countertop and faucet in a small space; recommended a different gutter situation and a painter who could come on short notice at the busiest time of year. The workers were professional and did a thorough job. We enjoyed having them at our house.