Amicus Green Building Center

Amicus Green Building is a wonderful company to work with. One of the principals, Jason Holstine, designed our kitchen remodel project, helped us pick out the best «green» materials, and provided us with the name of a contractor who, not only did beautiful work, but was a breeze to work with. He worked within our budget, and everything arrived in good shape and on time. When I have another project, I will certainly use Amicus again, and I recommend them with no reservations. Tops!

Undertaking a kitchen renovation is a huge task… One I don’t think we fully understood until we dived in and started. Our architect recommended Amicus to us, and we’re very glad she did.
We visited a couple of kitchen design places, but ultimately decided to go with Amicus for a few reasons –1) they were focused on helping us understand the environmental implications of the choices were were making; 2) they listened, gave us options, and helped us make choices; and 3) they spent time getting to know us… and ultimately working as partners with us as we navigated the design and building process.
As we got into the actual building process, they spent countless hours working us with to tweak designs, try out different materials, and make sure the project met our expectations – helping us find FSC certified products that were often very difficult to source. Moreover, when we ran into some difficulty with countertop options, they helped us select a new countertop and then worked with the installer to replace the countertop after a crack emerged shortly after installation.
As a result, we not only have a beautiful, environmentally friendly new kitchen, we also have trusted friends and advisors. If you are looking for green materials, they have an excellent supply of those. But more importantly, if you need a partner as you work through the design and installation process, Amicus service and and knowledge are unparalleled. We worked with Jason extensively, but also had wonderful interactions with Sam and other staff members as well.

We live in Baltimore and drove 1.5 hours to Amicus’ warehouse… and it was absolutely worth the trip! Purchased about 1000 sq ft of hardwood and 500 sq ft of wool carpeting. These were huge investments but I’m confident we made the right choice. Knowing we were going to spend quite a bit, I was very selective about quality, eco-​friendliness and most importantly non-​toxic products. The customer service was responsive, attentive, reliable and most of all extremely knowledgeable about their products. The sales staff answered all of my (MANY) questions and went out of their way to help find products that would work for our project. We are so glad to have this resource and will absolutely use them again for future projects. And just a last note on pricing… I got 4 estimates from various vendors on the exact same products and Amicus had the best prices by far.
UPDATE ⁶⁄₂₀₁₃: Once again I want to sing the praises of Jason and Amicus. We are now on our second large project (total home renovation) and there is NO ONE in the VA, DC, MD area who has the extensive knowledge or selection of green products as Amicus. Sure there are other places you can get «green» products but chances are the sales folks barely know anything about them On the other hand, at Amicus they make every effort to understand their products and will guide you in selecting the best items for your needs. They are truly committed to helping customers have a cleaner, greener and sustainable environment. What a great local resource!!!

As a toxin-​phobe it has been great having a location nearby where I can find low-​VOC paints, solvents, stains, etc and other green home supplies. The staff were always friendly and helpful when I’ve been by to purchase these types of items.
However, I’ve recently renovated my kitchen and with these larger items my experience was not as positive. We (attempted to) enlist their help with the marmoleum flooring. First of all, we went there in search of formaldehyde-​free plywood for the subfloor, which they said they sometimes keep in stock, though not regularly, but they were not going to order it just for us – only for someone with a larger order. Okay…
Then they gave some pretty bad advice about floor installation. We decided to order the marmoleum from them anyway but were surprised to find that they charge $ 70 to have the flooring delivered… to their own store. We had to come pick it up. We had to arrange to get a different car large enough to fit all the boxes. If they are charging us that much for shipping, shouldn’t it come straight to my house? I have ordered plenty of furniture and my entire kitchen from other stores, and I’ve never heard of such a thing.
With few other comparable stores in the DC area, I guess they don’t have much incentive to attract and retain customers with excellent service. But again, I am generally glad I have a resource for green home supplies nearby.

I found Amicus’ products, knowledge and customer service to be a perfect fit for me and my bathroom renovation. If I want the cheapest mass market towel bar, the right place to buy might be Home Depot. But at Amicus I learned about all of the following that I ended up actually buying from them: two new bath vanity cabinets made of Forestry Stewardship Council certified wood, a recycled glass bathroom countertop, three FANTASTIC Toto toilets, crown molding made of recycled styrofoam, and wood stain made from soy… odor free. I recommend visiting them when you are thinking of starting a project to look at their environmentally sensitive options in things you might not expect… carpet, tile, showerheads, paint, rain barrels. If you can take a work day off to visit in the morning or afternoon you can expect one on one service. On a weekend remember you’ll be one of a few weekend warriors trying to get stuff done. You can follow up with email questions and get great advice. I am so happy with my new bathroom and I plan to be a customer for life.

We are doing a major home renovation and just about everybody in the process has exasperated me EXCEPT the Amicus employees I’m working with. The level of customer service is great — prompt and polite replies to emails/​phone calls, remembering to do what they’ve promised, being proactive about pointing out things I might not have thought of, treating me like a person instead of Client Number 4237… These sound like common, basic things, but sadly, I have learned they are NOT. Working with Amicus has been a pleasure, and my house looks great. I appreciate their knowledge of the different green products out there and their ability to explain it all to me. I haven’t gotten any of the green-​snob vibe another reviewer complained about.

A year back we got a recycled glass counter top for the kitchen– yes it was very expensive but we love it! It came pre sealed but seemed to allow moisture to penetrate the surface anyway. We explained the problem to Amicus and they gave us several products to remove stains, seal, and clean our new counter… FOR FREE. It was very nice. They have the best selection of green products in the area and be sure to check out their samples of 3Form.

I really wanted to love this place, but the people who work there are less than helpful and super annoying. I went in with a couple simple questions about carpeting (needed to redo a room) and the salesman couldn’t be bothered to explain what made they actually had available, couldn’t be bothered to show me samples, and then proceeded to lecture me about energy efficiency. Also their prices are through the roof. Run, run, run away from these folks.

I live in a small space, so installing a beautiful counter top was a priority. I bought Ice Stone at Amicus Green, and the service was prompt and reliable… if not very expensive. I went back to look at tile for a backsplash and had a different experience. Other than there being fewer samples to pick from than I had hoped, everything was expensive IMO. Not enough of a range of options — they showed me a web site I could order from in my price range, but that’s not the same as looking at it in person.
An employee brought out a box of tile that I liked, but he was sort of rudely told by another employee that they don’t carry it anymore because it’s only 5% recycled. The way he said it was a bit harsh, like «GOD DON’T YOU KNOW!»
Additionally, I feel that one of the failures of the Green movement has been to make it accessable to a variety of people. The same sort of rude employee (however unintentional, that is how he came across) informed me in an exchange between me and my boyfriend that the items weren’t overpriced, they were out of my price range and there is a difference. Yes, which makes them overpriced to me. I told him I thought green design for young people was about compromise — some things I can afford, some I can’t.
I probably will not be going back to Amicus Green for my future renovation needs. i’m apparently too poor to buy what they’re selling, literally and figuratively, so I’ll stick to Home Depot until green is for the masses.

Going to the Green Festival this past weekend got me psyched to be more conscience of being green. I spoke to someone from Amicus at the festival about a product I was looking for and she said they carried it. Touch ‘n Seal is a polyurethane foam sealant which I hope will keep the mice out of my home for good.
I did not peruse the store to see what other products/​services they offer, but they have the most adorable dog that greets you at the door. I am a fan of any place that has their pooches come to work with them.

«The Amicus Green Building Center is a one-​stop source of genuine „green“ products, resources, and expert support to help you create a healthy, environmentally friendly, stylish, energy smart and sustainable building.»
We bought your efficient water saving toilet here… they were OK on the service. Not the fastest or most knowledgeable but I have to only take off 1 star because of the green mission they have, just don’t expect great service. Also, it’s not cheap as you might have guessed. Green is not for the price concious consumer. They have environmentaly friendly flooring, tiles, countertop, paint, etc. I wish I could do my whole house but it would cost a fortune of which I do not have so small things… it’s about doing what you can.