Design Problem: Home Renovation

A potential client has approached you to submit a preliminary design for a residential house renovation. If your design is accepted, you will develop the drawings necessary to begin construction. The details pertaining to this project are listed below.

The clients are a husband, wife and two children. They are not looking to break the bank on the construction of the house, but are looking to add a master bedroom suite and rearrange some of the existing layout to create more living and storage space for their growing family. The property is a 1/3-acre lot located in Bucks County.

Some things you must consider are as follows. According to the local zoning codes the maximum building coverage is not to exceed 2,300 square feet of the property and the maximum impervious surface coverage is not to exceed 35% of the property. The conditions on the site do not allow for a full basement; however, a three-foot deep crawl space is acceptable. There is a maximum height restriction of 25 feet. The client would like a centralized design and have requested that the design not exceed 70 feet in length or 45 feet width. The client has asked for at least two and a half baths, an eat-in kitchen, windows that are energy star approved, an entry area closet, as much storage space as possible, and an insulation value of R-19 in the exterior walls. The clients do not care for a square or rectangular building and would like some sort of pitched roof, no flat roofs. The clients have read articles referring to studies on efficient room placement and would like those concepts included in the design.

The firm has already been in contact with the client's builder and the local township officials. Most of the issues concerning zoning have been worked out; yet don't be surprised if your design has to be modified as a result of some overlooked zoning restriction. If the client accepts your conceptual plan (with exterior sketches) before building, they have requested: elevation drawings, a finished floor plan, an exterior perspective, and a model of the exterior assembled into a design portfolio with descriptions of the projects and design principles that were incorporated. A meeting is scheduled for you to present your preliminary floor plan design one week from today. You will be notified of any additional meetings as they are scheduled.

Existing Floor Plan: 2140 Square Feet

The first step in designing anything is to come up with the concept for the design. Our conceptual plan for the house design starts with drawing boxes to specific sizes. These boxes later will become different rooms for your house. The room sizes will change during your planning of the house design. The original measurements of the boxes are just a starting point, and are expected to change to fit your individual plan. Later we will draw these boxes in the ¼” = 1’ scale to build the conceptual plan.

the following sizes arE AVERAGE SIZES SO DO NOT WORRY IF YOURS DIFFER

12’ x 12’ Bedroom (144 SQFT)

13’ x 14’ Bedroom (182 SQFT)

15’ x 18’ Kitchen (270 SQFT)

22’ x 18’ Master Bedroom (396 SQFT)

18’ x 25’ Recreation Room (450 SQFT)

24’ x 24’ Two Car Garage or 24’ x 10’ One Car Garage

12’ x 12’ Dining Room (144 SQFT)

15’ x 18’ Living Room (270 SQFT)

6’ x 10’ Utility Room (60 SQFT)

8’ x 10’ Mud Room (80 SQFT)

3’ x 5’ Utility Closet (15 SQFT)

6’ x 8’ Walk-in Closet (48 SQFT)

3’ MIN, 4’ MAX HALLWAY WIDTH

2’ x 6’6” Closets (draw 4 of these) (13 SQFT EACH)

A ½ bathroom (3’x6’ Min.) (18 SQFT)

A full bathroom (6’ x 8’ Min.) (Draw 2 of these) (48 SQFT EACH)