TDS Custom Construction

TDS managed several big house projects for us over the last 10 years: installing a deck, adding a screened-in porch, re-building the front porch, remodeling a bathroom, and adding insulation and new siding. Because we were thrilled with all of those we knew we wanted them to do our kitchen makeover. That room in our 1898 house was taken down to the studs, the floors made level, and 4 floors of an unused chimney removed. Even though nearly every room in the house was affected and there were many contractors, the process was low-stress for us and some parts were even fun. The TDS staff is great to work with. The carpenters are personable and they tidied up every day. The design is appropriate to the house’s age and our use of the space. Despite serious setbacks of an ancient electrical line blowing, and also finding an asbestos-covered heat duct, TDS responded quickly to fix them, and the kitchen was finished on time and within budget. We love the final product!

TDS was outstanding to work with from design phase through post-completion questions and follow-up. One of the best features is their online project management calendar which gave us full transparency into the sequence and timing of the work. The other best aspect was the caliber of their people, both office and job-site daily project management, as well as the sub-contractors they utilized and carefully supervised. We continue to recommend them at every opportunity and would not hesitate to use again.

We are writing to describe our satisfaction with the exceptional Summer 2015 experience we had with TDS, especially Steve Pipson, in the follow-up work to his earlier thorough energy audit. The project was planned with information from the blower door test and camera. This project is in an older home and it involved very detailed prep work prior to adding insulation in the main attic, the attic above the garage, the space above the ceiling in our front entry-way, and walls in the back hallway plus installation of a new whole house fan and bathroom ceiling fan and venting system. Steve managed the project and worked with others from TDS to the highest level of performance of any contractor we have ever employed. He even planned ways to work through the ceiling of a closet between floors to maintain historic wallpaper. He stood behind the project budget as well. Our experience with Steve/TDS can be described as: * timely and prompt in addressing issues in detail; * thorough in his explanation of work and dates and times for the plan of work; * exceptional in attention to detail, communication, and courtesy; * extremely knowledgeable on codes, products and processes; * flexible and understanding of the customer's needs, questions, and requests; * meticulous in the care of our home and clean-up. We recommend Steve Pipson/TDS to you highly and without reservation! You will not be disappointed in the outcome or the process.

Our kitchen was horribly outdated and we needed help. After considering a number of proposals we chose TDS; Nancy worked closely with us to design a whole new one! TDS coordinated the entire project, from gutting the kitchen all the way to the studs, removing asbestos; installing new electrical and underfloor heating, walls, beautiful and functional flooring, cupboards, countertops, and sink, lighting, appliances, a window and some shelving. Brian, our main carpenter, was a delight to work with; even when the rare glitch came up, he handled everything efficiently and to our satisfaction. Throughout my husband and I were guided through a process that led us to having our dream kitchen . Everyone at TDS was a professional gem!

TDS remodeled our kitchen and both bathrooms, with much needed energy saving additions, new exterior siding and much more. They were respectful of our needs and did a wonderful job, which we are continuing to enjoy immensely! Well done!

We have had TDS work on our house numerous times in the last 8 years. They did five different large projects and the house is completely transformed. We have been extremely pleased with the quality of the work, the pleasant and flexible employees, and their willingness to come back and correct any problems that arose along the way. I would highly recommend them to anyone considering home remodeling.

TDS Custom Construction did a fantastic job on the remodel of our shed, deck and renovation and replacement of a bay and related windows. As the owner of a 100 old year historic structure, we needed to replace a deck and garden shed attached to our home. In additional we had experienced water damage on the bay in which historic windows needed to be restored and siding replaced. TDS has always found a way to not only add modern feature but integrate a team of professional craftsmen who care about their trade. The result is a structure that is functional but is also historically integrated into our home. Their team was always on time and work diligently. They also had the utmost respect for our personal space. They also managed subcontractors in a proactive way that extended their value. We are very pleased!

My wife and I hired TDS Custom Construction based on their excellent reputation and their proven expertise with historic homes. We were not disappointed. Sam and his team helped us design a modest addition to the back of our 1920 Colonial Revival brick home near downtown Madison (details below). Our experience over the planning stage and the five-month project are that TDS is the best in the business. They were willing to listen carefully to our desires, help us retain as much original material as possible, and knowledgeably advise us when that was not practical. They laid out a detailed project timeline and kept to it. Their team was on site Monday through Friday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. without fail. The project manager was invaluable, saving us thousands of dollars with helpful tips in language we could understand. Their 12-month warranty and willingness to fix anything or complete anything that had gone overlooked is nothing short of amazing. They are a local company that cares about its reputation and relationships. We would hire them in an instant and would recommend them to anyone. Brief project summary: The project involved adding a four-season room over new basement space, a beautiful deck and a half bath to our home which is an official city of Madison landmark. This meant attending a landmarks commission meeting to have the project plans approved, which Sam happily did with us. It also involved removing a couple interior walls, replacing non-original picture windows with French doors, adding ductwork and rewiring the whole house. They had our bathtub retiled and replumbed, and rotten wood replaced underneath. Also: asbestos was removed, original wood floors refinished and plaster patched. TDS removed all the original windows and had them stripped, reglazed and repainted, reusing the original hardware. They had wood-framed storm windows and screens built, replacing the aluminum ones. Their energy-effiency specialist on staff helped us greatly improve the home's performance as well as securing numerous green energy rebates.

Over several years, we have hired TDS Custom Construction for three major renovation/restoration projects in two different homes, both of which were designed by regionally well-known architects of the early 1900’s. The first project included a kitchen, garage, and powder bath in a prairie-style home; the second two full bathroom restorations in the same home. The excellent design work, workmanship, attention to detail, architectural and environmental sensitivity, professionalism of the team across the board, and the fact that they are fun to work with gave us confidence to hire them for the substantially more complex third project, a full house restoration of a colonial revival style home. I will provide some details below for those who are interested, but in summary, we will hire this team again if we take on yet another large (or small) restoration or renovation project with confidence that the process will be professional, the outcome will be excellent, and the experience will be fun. The full house renovation/restoration, completed over the 2013-14 winter, included massive amounts of carpentry, full insulation of a leaky home in a cold and windy setting, conversion of a massive hot water heating system to a creatively designed and environmentally conscious two zone force air system – that did not create awkward room shapes!, complete modernization of the electrical system, restoration of the original wood flooring, conversion of bedroom/bathroom/laundry unit back to a garage, construction of a second floor deck, a powder bath, major redesign and reconstruction of three key rooms: a kitchen, a full bath, and a sun porch; and then a bunch of little stuff and of course the stuff I forgot to list here. You get the picture: the whole house! The TDS team was realistic in their estimates of how long it would take to coordinate and complete all of the renovations, many of which had to be done sequentially or in a coordinated fashion. They completed the project on time and exceeded our expectations with regard to attention to detail and quality. The cost was as proposed during the planning stage. The TDS kitchen designer designed a beautiful and functional kitchen for a relatively small space. We both enjoy cooking and experiment in our cooking, and therefore are thrilled to have a kitchen that is both beautiful be in and expertly designed for cooking function, be it for just ourselves or for a crowd. In a remarkable part of the project, the lead carpenter worked from an old photograph of the house’s sun room to restore it to its original beauty, function, and prominence in the house’s design. This room had been “modernized” in the 70’s to a style that was highly inconsistent with the original design. Those of you who remember those years know what to imagine. The lead carpenter researched and developed substantial expertise in the characteristic design features of the architect who designed the home, through study of features remaining in this home and in other properties, and then reproduced them throughout the home. This aspect of the project was amazing, unexpected, and really fun. The result is a home in which every room both has its own character and also feels like it fits with the others. I can’t help but repeat that this was a complex, detailed, and really big project that was completed expertly and professionally in every aspect. And on top of that, we learned a ton lot from the team who worked on the project – about insulation, environmentally sensitive renovation, the architect, the characteristic design feature of the house - and had a blast working with them.

We have worked with TDS for many years, and we have seen them consistently provide their customers with thoughtful, high-value home improvements. Professional staff, an intelligent approach, and a respect for clients are the hallmarks of this company and the reasons for their success and longevity in good times and in challenging market conditions. We enthusiastically endorse them.

This is my second project with TDS. I would not hesitate to hire them again. They are not the lowest bid, but you get excellent value for what you purchase. Their construction standards are high. Their people are stellar: trust-worthy, capable, responsible, caring, detail-oriented, reasonable and responsive to questions & feedback. The first project I hired them for, they were perfectly on schedule. The second time, we had an unavoidable delay so I didn't fault them for it as they did their best and that was good enough for me. My project was quite small from their point of view, but they never treated me as a "lesser" client. I have the highest possible regard for TDS.

This past fall we completely gutted and remodeled our bathroom with TDS Custom Construction, and had a great experience with them throughout the entire project. We interviewed and received bids from four contractors, and while all of the bids were more or less the same, TDS was by far the most thorough in both their understanding of the project and their project delivery method. I have had on occasion less than ideal experiences with contractors given my line of work (architecture) and was in all honestly hoping for the best but bracing for the worst with this project, but TDS (project manager, lead carpenter, green energy advisor and office manager) and all of their subs were professional, considerate and willing to go the extra mile to make the project a huge success. As much as living through a remodeling project can be challenging, we are looking forward to working with TDS again.