Chads Design Build
About us
Chads Design Build (formerly Chad's Carpentry) is a full-service residential remodeling company, specializing in sustainable design and historic renovations. Established in 1992, Chads is committed to providing knowledgeable, well-trained professionals, who create durable, energy-efficient, and beautiful renovations, including additions, kitchens, bathrooms, basements, windows and doors. We partner with Home Performance with Energy Star to assure quality and to lower your energy bills. Building a better world! LIC#:680471
Business highlights
33 years of experience
Services we offer
Energy-efficiency and air sealing; Additions; kitchen remodeling; bathroom remodeling; Bungalows; second floor additions; dormers; skylights; windows and doors; screen porches; attic remodeling; basement remodeling; fiber cement siding; CARPENTRY-WOODWORKING, REMODELING-GENERAL., Residential remodeling; Design and consultation; Home Performance with Energy Star partner
Accepted Payment Methods
- CreditCard
Reviews
4.424 Reviews
| Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 75% | ||
| 4% | ||
| 13% | ||
| 4% | ||
| 4% |
Showing 1-24 of 24 reviews
Kathleen K.
Mar 2016
We had a very hard time working with Chad's Design Build. Chad is very responsive when you first contact him for a quote, and also when he is seeking payment. However, he is not very forthcoming when there are issues with project management. When we first met, we mentioned that we were planning to replace our roof and that we had already signed a contract with another contractor to do that work. Chad wanted us to see if we could break our contract so that his subcontractor could do the work (we did not break the contract). His invoices were very vague, and when we asked for more detail, the details didn't make much sense. For example, he charged a 20% subcontractor fee for work that his own crew did. Also, the project manager was pushy and difficult to work with. After much back and forth, we finally decided to part ways with Chad's Design Build because we felt like we couldn't get a straight answer out of them and we didn't feel comfortable working with them. Our general feeling was that if you are wealthy and you don't need to know what your money is being used for, Chad's is probably just fine. Our experience was that if you start asking billing questions, they will get very annoyed. We had hired Chad's several years back to do some smaller projects, and they did quality work. But with larger projects, they seem very interested in getting as many subcontractors involved as possible.
Response from Chads Design Build
"We tried very hard to cooperate with multiple subcontractors on this jobsite. There were 2 guys whose business was called something like "two old farts" who were asking our staff questions and needing guidance. Our dumpster was used by other tradespeople on the jobsite. Everything about this job was unusual and atypical. We prefer to work with our clients to clarify job scope and cost prior to initiating a project, and I was simply trying to help the client and contain the chaos. I think it is ironic that this client questions our professionalism, but the situation speaks for itself."
Jody L.
Nov 2015
unknown
Michael R.
Sep 2015
unknown
Kelly M.
Apr 2015
They did a very nice job. It turned into quite a project. They had to take down some siding on the outside of the house to check and diagnose where water had gotten in around a big picture window. They rebuilt the frame round my good picture window, leaving the window in place. Then they painted it so you can't even tell. The owner came to the house and gave the estimate. The employee he sent out whose name was Scot was on time in the morning, he was friendly, he cleaned up after himself and they did a good job. The work had to be done in stages to let materials dry at different times. They were good about communicating when they needed to be in the house. He was efficient. We used them because he was available and had a business relationship with my husband. I think they were fair.
Mary M.
Nov 2014
unknown
Kathryn L.
Aug 2014
unknown
Dirk M.
Feb 2014
Terrible. Poor communication, many redo's, could not hold a schedule.
Bill F.
Feb 2014
Chad's Carpentry finished our 650 sq ft attic in the spring/ summer of 2013. While this project sounds simple and could have been performed at 1/3 of the cost by others we wanted the best quality and to meet very high performance standards.
I am an engineer by profession and I was impressed with the attention to detail and knowledge of the Chad workers in implementing a conceptually simple construction project that in practice required skill and in-depth knowledge of building systems. Our goal was to take an uninsulated attic and covert it to conditioned space with the highest level of energy efficiency and without expanding the home HVAC system. We therefore needed the highest level of insulation and envelope sealing to maintain a comfortable living space with very little demand on the house furnace or air conditioning systems. Our house also had a pre-existing whole house fan that we use to cool the house in the summer months where cool night air is drawn into the house at night that keeps the house cool during warm days and greatly reduces our air conditioner and electric use. The whole house fan previously vented to the unconditioned attic. A design challenge to Chad was to insulate and finish the attic and to maintain the function of the whole house fan.
The work involved two-part epoxy foam insulation installed in the rafters and collar ties of the attic trusses. Extensive preparation work was involved to maintain a 1 inch air gap under the roof decking to provide for airflow from the soffit vents to the roof ridge vent. This detail was important to keep the underside of the roof deck vented to manage heat and moisture and to prolong the life of the asphalt roof shingles. Gables on the attic were prepared for insulation by constructing thermal break wall studs to prepare a wall cavity to accept the foam insulation. The portion of the attic floor which was over an uninsulated porch were opened up and foamed between the floor joist to complete the exterior insulation envelope. These were all essential details to get the project right.
The function of the whole house fan was maintained by venting the fan to a constructed air plenum in the attic trusses above the existing collar ties. This was a conceptually simple but complex design that required careful separation of conditioned and unconditioned spaces and provide for venting of 1,700 cubic feet per minute (the fan's flow rate, and yes that is a lot of air to move around) through the roof ridge and soffit vents.
I am providing some of the details on the project to illustrate that what may seem to be a simple project can actually be a complex undertaking to achieve the project goals. As an engineer I was in a position to be involved in and to evaluate the many design decisions and I was impressed with the knowledge and skill of the Chad team. The air sealing performance of Chad's work was independently verified by a 3rd party energy auditor using a blow door test. All materials used on the project were of the highest quality.
Chad was not inexpensive but we are very pleased with our comfortable attic space that in 15 below zero weather; 650 square feet of space can be heated with a small electric heater and for much of the year requires no heat of air conditioning.
With any contractor one has to be clear with direction and expectations. Once a contract is approved later change orders will add to cost and the owner has to be careful make sure the charges fit the work.
Chad was not the cheapest contractor we could have worked with but we are pleased with the project and if we had to do it again we would definitely hire Chad.
I am an engineer by profession and I was impressed with the attention to detail and knowledge of the Chad workers in implementing a conceptually simple construction project that in practice required skill and in-depth knowledge of building systems. Our goal was to take an uninsulated attic and covert it to conditioned space with the highest level of energy efficiency and without expanding the home HVAC system. We therefore needed the highest level of insulation and envelope sealing to maintain a comfortable living space with very little demand on the house furnace or air conditioning systems. Our house also had a pre-existing whole house fan that we use to cool the house in the summer months where cool night air is drawn into the house at night that keeps the house cool during warm days and greatly reduces our air conditioner and electric use. The whole house fan previously vented to the unconditioned attic. A design challenge to Chad was to insulate and finish the attic and to maintain the function of the whole house fan.
The work involved two-part epoxy foam insulation installed in the rafters and collar ties of the attic trusses. Extensive preparation work was involved to maintain a 1 inch air gap under the roof decking to provide for airflow from the soffit vents to the roof ridge vent. This detail was important to keep the underside of the roof deck vented to manage heat and moisture and to prolong the life of the asphalt roof shingles. Gables on the attic were prepared for insulation by constructing thermal break wall studs to prepare a wall cavity to accept the foam insulation. The portion of the attic floor which was over an uninsulated porch were opened up and foamed between the floor joist to complete the exterior insulation envelope. These were all essential details to get the project right.
The function of the whole house fan was maintained by venting the fan to a constructed air plenum in the attic trusses above the existing collar ties. This was a conceptually simple but complex design that required careful separation of conditioned and unconditioned spaces and provide for venting of 1,700 cubic feet per minute (the fan's flow rate, and yes that is a lot of air to move around) through the roof ridge and soffit vents.
I am providing some of the details on the project to illustrate that what may seem to be a simple project can actually be a complex undertaking to achieve the project goals. As an engineer I was in a position to be involved in and to evaluate the many design decisions and I was impressed with the knowledge and skill of the Chad team. The air sealing performance of Chad's work was independently verified by a 3rd party energy auditor using a blow door test. All materials used on the project were of the highest quality.
Chad was not inexpensive but we are very pleased with our comfortable attic space that in 15 below zero weather; 650 square feet of space can be heated with a small electric heater and for much of the year requires no heat of air conditioning.
With any contractor one has to be clear with direction and expectations. Once a contract is approved later change orders will add to cost and the owner has to be careful make sure the charges fit the work.
Chad was not the cheapest contractor we could have worked with but we are pleased with the project and if we had to do it again we would definitely hire Chad.
Kristin D.
Dec 2013
The carpenter was very meticulous and easy to work with. The end result was, therefore, quite good. The insulator was pretty good, but left some messes behind for someone else to deal with. The drywaller was OK but left a lot of mess which he didn't want to take care of himself. The carpenter lost interest toward the end to some extent, and it took forever for him to finish the last details. It was over 6 months for the job to be completely done, and Chad had promised the job would be done in a month. In retrospect, this was clearly unrealistic, but 6 months was rather a long time to wait for completion. Chad only seemed interested during the money discussions. I expected him to be more hands-on. I rarely saw him except when he was trying to get the business at the beginning (and he was always late to our meetings) and at the end when he wanted to be paid. Bills came before the work was finished, which didn't seem right to me.
Michael C.
Oct 2013
Chad was excellent to work with on the estimate. He explained things very well. He estimated a few things for us that we didn't end up doing.
Scheduling the actual work took some effort. There were a number of very long waits in the process. But to his credit Chad acknowledged this.
We agreed on a flat fee. Eric came over and did an excellent job in just two hours. I do not mind that this made the per-hour rate very high. That's the chance you take for the security of a flat fee, and the finished product is well-worth it to me. So an A on Price.
By the way, I appreciate that Chad's Carpentry is a sponsor of Wisconsin Public Radio.
Scheduling the actual work took some effort. There were a number of very long waits in the process. But to his credit Chad acknowledged this.
We agreed on a flat fee. Eric came over and did an excellent job in just two hours. I do not mind that this made the per-hour rate very high. That's the chance you take for the security of a flat fee, and the finished product is well-worth it to me. So an A on Price.
By the way, I appreciate that Chad's Carpentry is a sponsor of Wisconsin Public Radio.
Patricia H.
Sep 2013
Chad is very user-friendly, explains things well, his workers are professional, neat and punctual and everything came out fine. The only hitch was the subcontractor forgot to do the basement wall insulation after finishing the attic (cost of removing zeolite was substantial--had to subcontract that to certified asbestos removers). I called Chad and they returned and finished the basement insulation the next day. I was on a budget (city low interest home rehab loan) and the cost of the electrical (rewiring to remove knob and tube--required before any wall insulation could be done--ended up not doing because money ran out) and attic insulation removal prevented me from doing everything I'd hoped to. Chad respected that, although I think his advice (e.g. get the Corian countertops instead of formica, undermount sink) was generally good in terms of resale value. He used to have some great radio commercials, too.
Emily S.
Nov 2012
This project started on time and went smoothly from start to finish. There were several subcontractors involved, and Chad's crew did a great job coordinating these folks and keeping them on schedule. I was always kept in the loop on scheduling. Workers showed up when they said they'd show up, were responsive to any questions I had (responding via phone and email), and kept the house clean and orderly. All the carpenters and subs were also really nice to my dogs and made sure doors and gates were closed at all times. Overall, I really appreciate their professional and friendly approach to the job. Finally and most importantly, I am completely pleased with the quality of the work- my bathrooms look great and the house is in much better shape.
Brent C.
Jun 2012
The carpenters missed several appointments -- I waited a number of mornings for them to come and they would call late with excuses. The insulator they contracted was a nightmare! Our house was full of dust -- the holes he drilled in the side of the house have never been adequately taken care of; he filled one of the air chutes in the wall with insulation. We have asked Chad's a number of times to repair the damage done to the wood and it has never been done adequately. We will have to reside eventually. the owner was glacially slow at responding to our concerns. We would never use this company again
Response from Chads Design Build
"We responded numerous times to this client's particular concerns. The cedar siding was not in good condition and needed to be repainted prior to our insulation improvements. We replaced some of the siding, and painted many other areas, but because the existing paint is old and faded, color matching was difficult. We feel that we responded twice with substantial warranty "repairs" which went beyond the scope of the original project. The client claimed to be happy at that time, and did not contact us again with further concerns. Yes, the house probably needs new siding, but this was true prior to the work we performed, and remains true today. We responded to every complaint of this client at the time of the work, and so reading this review now is a little discouraging."
Robert K.
Apr 2012
The interior finish work on the door and windows was first class.
The exterior work left much to be desired. I am left wondering if the crew ever worked with cedar siding before. The caulking used cracked and pulled away from the joints on the exterior. I had to recaulk many of the joints this spring. Some of the cedar boards cracked on installation and were left in place. I had to drive several nails in deeper as they protruded well above the boards. The primer used on the cedar boards did not seal the natural stain in the wood, requiring me to use two finish coats to cover.
The work commenced much later than we invisioned. The contract was signed in August, work never got finished in the fall as weather turned cold by Thanksgiving.
.
The exterior work left much to be desired. I am left wondering if the crew ever worked with cedar siding before. The caulking used cracked and pulled away from the joints on the exterior. I had to recaulk many of the joints this spring. Some of the cedar boards cracked on installation and were left in place. I had to drive several nails in deeper as they protruded well above the boards. The primer used on the cedar boards did not seal the natural stain in the wood, requiring me to use two finish coats to cover.
The work commenced much later than we invisioned. The contract was signed in August, work never got finished in the fall as weather turned cold by Thanksgiving.
.
Response from Chads Design Build
"We performed this work in late fall, as we agreed to do when the contract was signed. The homeowner was doing all painting himself, and so we offered to provide factory primed cedar. We were not informed or contacted by the homeowner with his concerns until after he "fixed" the problems himself. We certainly would expect to have an opportunity to address any concerns or complaints, but we were not given that opportunity. We are committed to providing quality products, professionally installed. We have restored and replaced cedar siding on many homes, and we typically oversee the finish painting and caulking of the project. I would have gladly visited the job site and offered to address the homeowner's concerns had we been contacted."
Lucy G.
Feb 2012
Bathroom vent fan: They did a good job. It took a while, but now I don't have to worry about mildew on the walls and ceiling, which had been a problem for quite a while. The price was kind of high, but it was worth it.
Garage back door: They did a good job on that, too, but couldn't get something we wanted on the door, so the job was incomplete for a week or more (I don't remember exactly). It was also pricey, but well done. I have peace of mind that we won't need to fix it again soon.
Garage back door: They did a good job on that, too, but couldn't get something we wanted on the door, so the job was incomplete for a week or more (I don't remember exactly). It was also pricey, but well done. I have peace of mind that we won't need to fix it again soon.
Bill S.
Nov 2011
Our home sustained substantial damage due to an early fall hail storm. A wood bow window that we knew had water-issues was severely damaged in the storm and needed to be replaced. I had heard of Chad's Carpentry before and choose them due to their reputation for quality and professionalism. Chad, the owner, worked with us throughout the project and suggested that one possible, lower-cost option would be to keep the frame of the existing bow window and simply replace the 5 window sashes. He assured us that the frame of the existing bow window was undamaged by the water issues we knew existed, so we chose this lower-cost option. When the sashes of the existing window were removed it was obvious that the frame had extensive water damage and could not be salvaged. At this point Chad suggested that he use the 5-replacement sashes that had already been purchased and delivered to our home to build a custom, bow-window. Although Chad indicated that the final product's quality would match that of a window coming out of the factory, I was skeptical and insisted that a new, factory-built bow window be ordered. To Chad's credit, he absorbed the cost (~$2,000) of the five previously ordered replacement window sashes and, at the end of the day, we had a factory-built bow window installed.
My disappointment with our experience is two-fold. First, had Chad taken a little extra time to diagnose the health of the existing window, he could have easily determined that the frame could not be re-used. Secondly, once the frame was discovered to be damaged, Chad's solution would have resulted (in my opinion) in an inferior final product that we would have regretted installing.
At the end of the day, Chad did hold up his end of our relationship, so I would use him again...but the experience is not one that I would describe as having, and quot;...gone smoothly.and quot;
My disappointment with our experience is two-fold. First, had Chad taken a little extra time to diagnose the health of the existing window, he could have easily determined that the frame could not be re-used. Secondly, once the frame was discovered to be damaged, Chad's solution would have resulted (in my opinion) in an inferior final product that we would have regretted installing.
At the end of the day, Chad did hold up his end of our relationship, so I would use him again...but the experience is not one that I would describe as having, and quot;...gone smoothly.and quot;
Response from Chads Design Build
"Wow. I guess no good deed goes unpunished. There are a few facts that need to be made clear. I had removed some trims initially to determine that the window frame was sound; leading us to order the insert windows. Upon removing all of the sashes on the day of installation, a small blemish led my staff to a substantial area of rot which was otherwise hidden. I think most companies would have simply ignored this, installed the new insert windows, and ironically, I probably would have earned a stellar review and a happy customer. Instead, my staff alerted me and the customer to the damage that was previously hidden, and I made an unusual offer. I would rebuild the old window and install the new inserts; to deliver an even better finished product than originally offered, OR I was willing to order a new unit and install that, as originally priced. We ordered the new window, and it is beautifully and professionally installed at the price originally quoted. We received no additional compensation for our time dealing with the unexpected rot, or for the windows that now sit in our warehouse. Having gone the extra mile, the least I would have expected is a great review. I had no contractual obligation to honor the original price or to alert the client to the problems we uncovered; but we are thorough and honest to a fault. Since I had looked for rot and been unable to find it originally, I made an unusual offer once the rot was uncovered. The companies that hide or ignore problems get the A; the company that goes the extra mile without charging anything extra compared to the original price quote get a C. This is the problem that plagues our industry. Most consumers assess home improvements by the aesthetics, with no knowledge or concern for the hidden details which can cause lots of heartache and expense in the long run. We pride ourselves on getting the hidden details right, and on earning the trust and long-term happiness of our clients. Ongoing maintenance problems are the hidden cost of "a great deal" We hear it all the time from our clients, who hired someone who came highly recommended, only to learn that their beautiful renovation would quickly start to fail and fall apart. The initial reviews and work product were great, but the long-term value was not. Go figure."
Bruce S.
Nov 2011
We found Chad on Angie's list and invited him over to discuss a renovation project. We ultimately did not use him for the project, but did engage him for several miscellaneous repairs to the 85+ year old house we bought last spring. He sent a carpenter/handyman who completed the work over several days. The work was excellent quality and the carpenter was very personable, flexible and easy to work with.
Kai T.
Nov 2011
In the spring of this year, we discovered some and quot;soft spotsand quot; in the oak trim surrounding some of the windows in our sunroom. I attempted to make a repair, but as I got into the project, I quickly realized that it was going to be more involved that I first thought. I contacted Chad's (through Angie's List) for a quote. Chad showed up at the appointed time and spent almost an hour looking over the situation with me. He provided an estimate with a range of costs because of the uncertainty of the cause of the water infiltration. He guaranteed that the project would not exceed the upper number and that we would otherwise only be charged for the actual work and materials. He also did a good job of helping me understand that the situation was not as dire as I was imagining it to be.
The project went very well. It took some time to find where the water was coming from - we had to wait for rain with wind from a particular direction in order to find the leak. Other than that, the work proceeded quickly and looks great! We're very happy with the final results and look forward to working with Chad's in the future.
The project went very well. It took some time to find where the water was coming from - we had to wait for rain with wind from a particular direction in order to find the leak. Other than that, the work proceeded quickly and looks great! We're very happy with the final results and look forward to working with Chad's in the future.
Janet B.
Oct 2011
Chad's team of coordinator, general crew, and carpenter worked well together and the project went smoothly from start to finish. They were a joy to work with and I am pleased as punch with the results.
Michael R.
Aug 2011
The job was completed on time and the end result was high quality. They really took pride in their work. Fabulous!
Daniel E.
Jul 2011
They did a great job. He was listed No1 on Angie's List. Chad was personally involved. The work was done quickly and professionally. They deserve a No1 place as far as I'm concerned.
Myrna S.
Mar 2011
The carpentry work done by Chad's Carpentry is excellent. All other work was done by sub-contractors. They took time for discussions with me and time to do a very careful job. They worked around my desire to do painting, staining, varnishing and wallpapering myself. I was told that, unlike other general contractors, they inform the client that they charge 20% for handling dealings with the subcontractors. The honesty is nice, but 20% seems excessive to me. They did a bit of carpentry for me at no charge, namely, constructing an arch over a path so that the rain downspout will not lay on the path.
Jeanne G.
Jul 2009
It went very well. Chad provided us with a time line and started pretty much on time, though it took longer than planned. We moved all our furniture out of the second floor and slept in the attic for the duration of the work. I was able to work in my downstairs office throughout. Everything was done very professionally and efficiently. I especially admired the expertise of the painters who applied the fiberglass reinforcing mesh to our walls. Other contractors had told us that it would be better to rip out all the plaster and start over with drywall. But the Pro-Cote Painting, LLC guys (who subcontracted to Chad's) did an amazing job: they repaired all the cracks and then sealed the walls with the fiberglass mesh. None of the cracks have re-opened, even to this day -- 4 years later. And I was very pleased with the suggestion Chads made for the door to our porch. Since it is used rarely and usually only to allow cool air into the house, he suggested that we have a roller screen door installed in addition to the solid door. This has worked out extremely well for us and I hadn't even heard of this kind of door before. The cost of the final work was more than initially bid and the work took longer than originally planned, but we were not surprised that there were some "surprises" in the walls of our old house. Also we asked for a few additional things done before the project was complete. We plan to call them back to help us with renovations on the ground floor.
MITZIE G.
Sep 2008
They are a good company. They work very hard when they are here, as well as clean up well. They are very easy to work with. We had a question on our bill, they adjusted it for us.
Licensing
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FAQ
Chads Design Build is currently rated 4.4 overall out of 5.
Chads Design Build accepts the following forms of payment: CreditCard
No, Chads Design Build does not offer free project estimates.
No, Chads Design Build does not offer eco-friendly accreditations.
No, Chads Design Build does not offer a senior discount.
No, Chads Design Build does not offer emergency services.
No, Chads Design Build does not offer warranties.