Time for a Wellness Exam?

On January 14, 2016 By PETS

No, not for you! Nor your kid. I’m talking about your house. When was the last time someone knowledgeable was in your crawlspace or attic? What… you don’t hang out there and know its current condition? C’mon now… That’s my point… for the same reason that annual wellness exams are recommended for you, someone experienced [...]

A New Covered Back Porch Brings Life To An Under-Utilized Backyard… and ‘THIS OLD HOUSE’ magazine featured it in their September 2015 magazine!

On August 20, 2015 By PETS

Our relationship with this client started on a golf course when our Project Manager, Shawn, got to talking with another golfer, Al, whom he didn’t know. Al started talking about his older home and the need to attend to some siding repairs. Al, and his wife Margo, decided to hire Adaptations in order [...]

Their New Home Allowed for a Far More Energy Efficient Living Environment

On June 15, 2013 By PETS

Years after having us alter their existing home on the adjacent property, our repeat clients asked us to design and build them a new home in 2002. So we designed and built their home and detached shop/garage, gaining far more energy efficiency than could be had with their existing home. What a great [...]

Very Green, Energy Efficient Home in a Private Skagit County Setting

On May 29, 2013 By PETS

A home weatherization guru and his wife, a wetlands specialist, wanted us to design and build them a small, practical, energy efficient new home perched atop a knoll on their rural lot in the Skagit River drainage… a birders’ paradise. We could do that… and did! The resulting green aspects included: 50-year composition roofing A [...]

Significant Damage Results From Substandard Waterproofing in Exterior Walls

On May 15, 2013 By PETS

This is a story about a repair project we did in the spring of 2012 for Piper Mertle at 617 Marine Drive in Bellingham; it’s a story we hope you don’t have to repeat. That’s why we’re going to describe it in detail; that’s why Piper agreed to include her name and address… so that [...]

Remodeling a Family Rental Into The Shaughnessey’s Retirement Home

On May 1, 2013 By PETS

Jack and Judy’s son and daughter-in-law actually owned this house first and were very sad they had to sell it when their family started to grow. So Jack and Judy bought it from them to use as a rental, never realizing that several years later they would actually get to live in it. Yes, they [...]

A Very Small, Green Home Nestled Among the Trees

On April 29, 2013 By PETS

Our challenge in 2004 was to build our greenest home to date while impacting as few trees as possible. The new home site was an infill lot and the optimal building site was the former rear lawn of the seller’s home. Surrounding this idealic building footprint were the live Christmas trees the seller had planted during [...]

Low Price and Best Practices — Are They Mutually Exclusive?

On November 29, 2012 By PETS

Savvy consumers understand that low price doesn’t incorporate best construction practices; they are mutually exclusive. Isn’t this why, when a price seems too good to be true, it usually is !?! No doubt: low prices are appealing; we’re drawn to, and motivated by, low price. As we should be… if all else is equal. Stephen [...]

Codes That Shape Our Homes and Neighborhoods

On November 21, 2012 By PETS

‘If a builder builds a house for someone, & does not construct it properly, & the house which he built falls in & kills its owner, then that builder shall be put to death.’ From the Code of Hammurabi, Babylonian law code, 1772 BC “I have to do what?” … is a frequent response from homeowners [...]

Re-Purpose a Swim-Spa Room Into a Fitness Center

On November 16, 2012 By PETS

Their existing room was dominated by a large swim spa that was no longer used. Hence the entire room, gorgeous as it was, became wasted space. Whereas most homeowners have to add on an addition to achieve additional space, this was more about space planning, or re-purposing existing space. More specifically this was about demolishing [...]

Bellingham, WA