Bathroom Remodel
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Bathroom Remodel
Tub/shower install--bathroom with slanted ceiling
Oct 2011
We are looking for a contractor to install a basic, modern
tub/shower combo in the space where a club-foot tub now
sits(with a shower attachment) in our upstairs bathroom.
Our house is over 100 years old and the bathroom has a
slanted ceiling with a skylight in it, installed many years
ago by the previous owners. The shower curtain set- up that
we now have is quaint, but a mess. We are on a tight budget
but hope there are some contractors out there who have dealt
with similar situations. Karen
Our house is 90 years old built in 1921. Most of the walls
and ceilings in our home are slanted from what I believe to
be settling due to the age of our home. A portion of our
master bathroom use to be a triangle shaped closet prior to
our remodel. Our contractor, Amir was fantastic, came up
with solutions that worked and stayed within our budget.
Call Amir of Integral Home Improvements at (510) 904-2786.
Berkeley Home Owner
Great Contractor for Tub/Shower Remodel
Sept 2011
Can you recommend an affordable and reliable contractor to
do a simple tub/shower remodel in our modest home and ONLY
bathroom? We just need a new tub/shower with either tiles on
the walls or a tub surround if the space permits. We're also
desperate for the job to be done quickly and reliably -
we're expecting our second child in November! Thank you
much! Tubfanatic
For a great contractor, call Robert Leitz at Decade
Construction. I used him for a small job and he's
excellent. They are also green and also certified to do
no-lip shower installations. You can get an excellent sense
of him and how he works by looking at the photos and videos
on his website: http://www.decadeconstruction.com/ Best
I suggest you give Dan Martinez Construction a call. You
say you want it done on time - Dan's guys show up EVERY DAY
and get the job done on schedule. (I know, shocking.) He
is reasonably priced. You can call 510.893.0485. Feel free
to say I recommended them. Dawn
Bathroom Designer for bathroom remodel
March 2009
Hello, we are about to have our 1970's pink tiled bathroom
remodeled (full tear down/remodel) and are looking for
recommendations on designers to help us provide a sketch to our
contractors, as well as help us with materials
selection/purchasing. We are working with a very limited budget
for a designer ($1000-1500), so any recs for affordable, great
designers would be most appreciated. Thanks! Catherine
I'm in the process of remodeling a very old bathroom with the
help of interior designer Francis Combes. He is a very
telented designer who was able to help me pick out all the
components I need, such as the tile, fixtures, color, faucets,
and design elements. He was able to modernize our bathroom
with hardly any additional cost. His plans were well done and
understandable for the contractor. Best of all, he was very
reasonable and professional. Check out his website at
http://www.combesdesign.com/
A very satisfied client
We just finished a bathroom remodel that we love! We got help
from Isabel Tsang at Albany Cabinets and Design
(www.albanycabinets.com; 510.526.2288). She was very helpful in
working out the design and suggesting resources. She has a
showroom in Albany, which I found very useful when trying to talk
about style and consider different options. I always felt like
she listened to our needs and opinions, but wasn't pushy about
using the businesses that she has relationships with. And she
would definitely fit into your budget. Good luck.
Ruth
I am an Architect who specializes in small remodels and am
flexible about how to facilitate a project. A budget as small as
yours will buy some good professional help, getting a design and
input on related matters, but is insufficient for a remodel that
requires a building permit. Some remodels only require plumbing
and electrical permits. I call these ''upgrades''. AB
I highly recommend Bonnee Elterman. You can reach her at
bonnee.elterman@gmail.com or 510-593-3466. She helped us with a
kitchen and living room update/remodel, but she has quite a bit
of experience with whole house remodels, and I wouldn't hesitate
to have her help you with your project. She's great at making
excellent design recommendations within your budget constraints.
Feel free to contact me if you'd like to hear more about our
experience working with her.
Kara
Hi Catherine, I highly recommend interio designer Benjamin
Dhong. He had helped me with my office space last year. I
really love his style. He is very easy to work with. He truly
cares about his clients and pays attention to details. In fact
he was featured in SF Chornicle on 3/8/09. Here's the link:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/08/HOMM1660TO.DTL
You can check his website too. (www.benjamindhong.com). His
email: ben@bd-interiors.com; or phone# (415) 595-2582
Have fun w/ the remodel...
Lan
Where to start on complete bathroom remodel?
April 2007
Hi all
We need to do a complete bathroom remodel. Can anyone give advise on how to start?
Would it be best to hire a designer first and then a contractor? Or has anyone had
success with a design/build contractor? If so does anyone have any recent
recommendations for a contractor, designer or both? Archives are a couple of years
old. Thanks.
julie
We had our master bathroom remodeled in 2006 and Jason White
did a great job! It was a part of a larger project but he made
some design recommendations in the bathroom that really changed
it from good to great! For example, he recommended putting in
radiant heating. It's on timer so that when I walk in in the
morning, the tiles are toasty warm and so is the entire
bathroom! I was still pumping for my baby then (6am, before
the baby was up) and nothing relaxed me more (could almost get
8-10oz!) than pumping in a warm bathroom. He's currently
designing a master bathroom and doing the work too. He's
really excellent, listens to you, makes recommendations and
understands your budget. He knows where to get good deals and
is probably one of the best tilers I've seen. Call him at 510-
866-5516 and let him know that Susan recommended you.
Love my new bathroom!
We recently did a re-model of our bathroom. We had a good
contractor who was decent and got the job done ''on time on
budget''. Our house is kinda old, so making the best of it was
basically as good as we could do it with new flooring, toilet
and cabinets.
What made a really big difference was adding a few decorative
bathroom furniture pieces we got from an online furniture store.
The biggest thing was adding a new vanity sink and mirror set
that replaced the old school one we had in there. Here is a
link to the one we bought:
http://www.everythingfurniture.com/md-vanity-set-3.html
It is a metal and marble one; the existing plumbing attached
easily and was hidden once we put a few things on the bottom
shelves like extra TP and some accessories.
The cool glass sink gives off a custom decorator touch, but
without the custom price tag.
Overall keep an eye on your contractor, keep them honest and
look all around, especially on the web for checking out ideas
and contractors as well.
Check this link to check out a contractor you are thinking
about using before signing anything.
http://www2.cslb.ca.gov/CSLB_LIBRARY/license+request.asp
Many times after you sell your house prior work will need to be
validated that it was done by licensed / insured contractors,
so be careful what you do and who you use. It's worth paying a
little extra t get it done by the right contractor.
Scott
Need a reliable and affordable contractor for bathroom remodel
Oct 2006
Hello. We're fairly new to the Richmond area and we're starting
to plan a bathroom remodel in our small home. We're open to
suggestions on good, reliable, and affordable contractors (w/ or
w/out permits) and places to go for fixtures.
All postings are dated, so hopefully someone out there has
recently gone through a successful remodel.
Thanks in advance
Elaine
I have someone absolutely great to recommend for your bathroom
remodel (and he does other stuff, too!): Gabriel Ortiz Kobban
(cell: 510-228-7924). Last year, we re-did an existing bath
and added a new one. He and his crew did a great job on both.
Also, I was very pregnant when we started, and they got
everything done in time for our baby's arrival. His pricing
was very reasonable, too. He also was really helpful in
finalizing scope to fit in our budget. He is a licensed
contractor, and he managed the inspections with the city. Also
really important is that he's bilingual (Spanish and English),
so he could communicate well with us as well as with his
Spanish-speaking crew. He lives in Oakland. Feel free to call
me for more details: 415-846-2207
Laura
Need help with designs for bathroom remodel
Aug 2006
I need to take three bathrooms in my 1924 Berkeley house down
to the studs to remodel them. I need help with designs - it's
overwhelming. I'd like someone who can come to the table with
ideas/designs and move things along.
I had help redoing me entire house including 3 bathrooms.
Jeanette Patterson
http://pshomesd.com/
decor[at]pshomesd.com
510-271-0191
Jeanette helped the entire way. She was easy to work with and
worked at various budget levels depending on how much we were
spending on each bathroom. She did the designs I found the
labor. She can help with as much or as little as you need. For
example, to save money I did the leg work after she picked out
the items. I can't say enough great things about her!
Jennifer
Hi - Beverly Wilson in Berkeley (510)524-0990 is an excellent
bathroom designer. (She also does kitchens.) Beverly designed 2
of our bathrooms & our kitchen/dining space (essentially half
our home) as well as my in-laws kitchen. We have a 1906
Berkeley Bungelow home which was added onto in 1915 (kitchen &
bath) & again in the '80s (masterbed & bath). She did a great
job with our kitchen & bathrooms making the house flow better &
making the home look more cohesive. I'd be happy to show you
her work, if you're interested. Just contact me via email.
Good Luck.
deborah
JB Turner and Sons design and remodel kitchens and bathrooms.
They do excellent work and have many references. The designer
Marilyn Gardunio was featured in the latest Oakland Magazine.
They are located at 3911 Piedmont Ave Oakland, CA. Phone
#:510-658-3441
Good Luck!
We are currently working with Samantha Sullivan of Atmosphere
Design Collaborative on a bathroom remodel (in our '30s house
with an '80s addition). She is friendly and extremely
experienced. Her ideas are in keeping with our style and
budget--but she has come up with looks and solutions that never
would've occurred to us. In Walnut Creek, 925/935-9147
Sarah in Montclair
I used Sara Jaffe (Sara Jaffe Designs) for our master bath/closet remodel.
I had strong
ideas of my own, and she respected them as well as coming up with lots &
lots of great
ideas I never would have thought of. She does all aspects of the design
(including
electrical, HVAC, plumbing, etc.) and gives you a finished set of plans
that can be taken
to the city for permit approval. She is excellent at what she does, and
she happens to
be a pleasure to work with. We are using her for another project now!
Please let me
know if you want more information. Her contact info:
www.sarajaffedesigns.com,
510.834.8716
j.s
2001
I recommend Jim Zwaal for bathroom remodeling. Jim is in the middle of
remodeling my bathroom, and so far, he has been very meticulous and a
provider of great/practical design ideas. I got Jim's name from this
list and I have not been disappointed. Jim can be reached at
510-652-8258.
Cathy
I second the recommendation for Jim Zwaal for bathroom remodeling. Jim did
our bathroom from the ground up last spring/early summer, and was a godsend.
He's meticulous, skilled, personable, creative, and reasonably priced. The
bathroom is unrecognizable as the mildewy hole it used to be, and we remain
very satisfied.
Wendy
1999
I can recommend a contractor named Jim Zwaal, who has done a lot of work
for my
parents in berkeley and can do big and small jobs. He is scrupulously
honest,
does excellent work (and takes pride in his work) and is very reasonable.
He
works on his own. His home number is 652-8258.
Karen
For the person asking about bathroom remodeling - Bob Bernal is a great
person to call. He's in El Cerrito.
Donna
I've used Springwood Builders for work on our house. The owner, Karam
Khalsa, is a
wonderful person who stays open and honest with you, which is highly
valued in the
contractor world.
Toby
David A. Thompson is a Licensed General Contractor who has been doing
residential
remodelling in this area for 18 years and can provide numerous glowing
references. He
is dependable and a pleasure to work with, and can help with design. The
one drawback
is that he is often booked ahead though so it's best to contact him a
while before you
need the work done. He can be reached at (510) 843-5100.
Ronald Rivers, ph 510-2906036, is a general contractor who renovated my
home and is now
working on renovating a friend's 4-plex, unit by unit. He is reasonably
priced and lives in Berkeley.
March 1999
I love our remodeled bathroom which is quite small, but turned out quite
lovely. We had wonderful help on both our kitchen and our bathroom from an
architect: Ann Marie Celona 420-1128 She is brilliant and easy to
work with, unlike several others we consulted.
Our contractor for the bathroom was Jesse Young 527-8143 who I also
recommend very highly. Very high quality work. I have seen several
other jobs he has done and they are superb. I am happy to let anyone look
at the work.
Sherry
For bathroom remodeling, I recommend Alameda Structural (in the phone
book in Alameda.) We just moved and had two bathrooms redone including
structural, tiles and floors and we were very happy with their work. Randy
A friend of mine had her bathroom remodeled by Steve Schliff of
On the Beamcontracting company in El Cerriro (Tel:
(510) 832-0144) last summer, and is very happy with the job. Though I don't
know if Steve is accepting new jobs at the moment, it is worth talking to
him for an estimate. Marie-Josie
I've known Steve for the past two years, in his capacity of coach
for my
daughter's softball team. Seeing how well organized, on top of his job,
and in control of the team he is, I would trust him with any contractor job!
Sept 1998
We have a lot of confidence in Mark Manske and Steve Tiffin, who have recently
formed a contractor partnership after working for over 15 years each for other
contractors. They've done a variety of work for us, very competantly and VERY
reasonably (they significantly underbid the major contractors). We used to
rent Steve's house, which had a beautiful kitchen that Steve and mark did
together. They do all the work themselves which eliminates dealing with
multiple sub-contractors. Mark's particular specialty is tile work. They are
both very pleasant, timely and honest. They rely on word of mouth for their
business, so they will make sure you are happy and satisfied with their work.
They will also work with you on how to reduce costs if that's an issue. You
can reach Mark at 526-4428 and Steve at 655-1591. Good luck! --Raissa +
Denis
About the bathroom contractor.
We just had an addition of a new bedroom and were very happy with our
contractor. His name is Joe Jensen and his phone number is 524-4665.
Unlike many other contractors we interviewed he only takes one job at a
time and only has one, very nice, employee. Kirk. He was fair honest and
very reliable. He specializes in cabinetry as well. Good luck!
Elizabeth
Regarding your request for a contractor for your bathroom, we highly recommend
John McCrane Construction. He was the general contractor, recommended by our
architect for a kitchen remodel. He worked on several other smaller jobs for
our house too and was terrific. He is bright, has high standards, is ethical,
and conscientious.
Denise
this page was last updated: Feb 14, 2013
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