For this project, we removed a rotted fence, rotted deck, and unused hot tub, replacing them with a new concrete patio, fence, and gate.

The patio directly adjoins our clients’ master bedroom via existing french doors. Now, in place of their unusable deck area which collected leaves and critters, they have a private courtyard retreat which they are excited to use. In fact, they’ve already picked out some furniture for it!

Below are some pictures– The fence and gate materials are red cedar and treated lumber, which look beautiful now and will weather beautifully as well.

Adding a screened-in porch to your home is a great way to bring fresh air, daylight, and natural views into your daily living. Here are some things to keep in mind when dreaming up your porch!

Location

If you want your porch to be a social spot, locate it near your family room or your kitchen. This makes the porch an extension of these rooms, creating an additional space for your gatherings of family and friends. Connecting your porch

to a bedroom implies that it is a private area. If you want your screened in porch to be a secluded retreat, this would be the ideal location.

Also make sure that traffic flow doesn’t interfere with the activity in your porch and its adjoining rooms. Appropriately place doors to keep movement along one side of the porch or interior room, not through seating areas etc.

Sizing

Remember to think about the function of your screened in porch during the design stage. Deciding what size table, or what kind of storage you need (etc.) will help you appropriately size your space. Try to scale your porch size based on adjoining rooms and of course your house. This will ensure the addition blends well with your home.

Connection

Your screened-in porch should flow well and act as a transitional space that connects your home and nature. Think about connecting your porch to your yard with an outdoor uncovered space or series of terraces, especially if there is a dramatic height difference.

Bring daylight and fresh air into your home through your porch. Leaving rafters exposed is one way to increase ceiling height and reflect light. You could also consider adding skylights to help increase the amount of light received by connecting rooms. Align your porch design with existing doors and windows so that breezes can flow through the space into your home in pleasant weather. Adding more windows to adjoining rooms is another way to increase the presence of light and wind flow, while adding to the sense of indoor-outdoor connection. Keep the color scheme and wood stains on the lighter side in your space to help reflect light and create a truly refreshing space.

For some inspiring ideas and images, take a look at this article.

Additions, large or small, are an extension of your home. They should reflect you and your needs while benefiting the rest of your home in terms of connection, size, flexibility, efficiency, and green and natural elements.

Connection: Think about how your addition connects to the rest of your home. Try to select a design that disturbs the existing site as little as possible.  Think about other effects your addition will have on the rest of your home, including things such as solar orientation and roof planes. Your addition could potentially add passive heating and cooling to your home, and optimize rain water collection.

Size: Make sure that the size of your addition fits its function. You should tailor the space to your needs, so as not to waste material or increase costs with excess or over-sized space.

Flexibility: As you design your addition to suit your needs, also try to plan for the future. With a little forethought, future changes can be easy to make. For example, make exterior walls load bearing so that interior walls can be easily shifted, allowing for the rearranging of spaces.

Efficiency: Create a well sealed and thermally efficient building envelope for your addition. This will decrease the heating and cooling loads that will be added to your home with more conditioned space. Remember that the building envelope is the entire enclosure of the addition, and is affected by the method of framing you choose, as well as the insulation, siding, windows, etc. that are used.

Green Elements: Research and incorporate green features into your addition. This may be through construction material (like certified or reclaimed lumber), or finishing material (like recycled glass countertops).

Natural Elements: Nature should be a part of the design of your addition. Incorporate natural views, or perhaps create new outdoor spaces. You can even plant some new trees. Not only will they add shade to your yard, but they will also help to shade and passively cool your home. Bring some landscaping into your addition design. This will add beauty and will help control water run-off displaced by the added footprint of your home.

Additions that include an entire, but modest, living unit are becoming more popular and necessary in today’s family homes. They are essentially like an apartment flat or mini-house, and include a living area, a small kitchen, a bedroom, & a bathroom.

Reasons for creating this space include a need for an in-law suite for older parents who want to be near family, a desire for a guest suite for visiting friends, family or perhaps for adult children who have moved back home, or a wish for potential income as a rental unit.

This kind of addition can utilize underused space such as a garage, expand on existing space within your home, or be a completely new structure. To ensure your addition is a usable and enjoyable space, here are some key things to keep in mind.

• Keep it private:
  • Your addition should have a separate entrance, even if you want another entrance connected to the rest of your home. This entrance allows the occupant to feel independent, an especially important aspect if he or she is an aging parents or adult child.
  • Having a separate outdoor space creates privacy and allows a nice place for window views. This outdoor area can even be integrated with the unit’s separate entrance.
  • Sound-proofing is another important part of privacy which improves the livability of your addition and existing home.
• Tailor the space:
  • An additional dwelling space isn’t a call for excess, but of well-thought compact design.
  •  Creating a modest unit can include an open kitchen/living area that will prevent a closed-in feeling for the overall space, even with a private bedroom and bath.
  • Focus on thoroughly using space in the unit with room dividing bookshelves or multifunctional pieces of furniture. Take time to think about what really needs to be included in each room for function and comfort, so that room sizes can be designed appropriately.
• Make it accessible:
  • Designing a unit that takes into account the potential for limited mobility is a great way to keep the addition functional for all users. Some characteristics of such a space include smooth thresholds, wider doorways and hallways, and easy to operate door handles, easy to reach kitchen/bathroom fixtures.
  • Keeping your addition on the ground floor allows for accessible entry. Ramps can create easy access for elevated additions, but you’ll need to identify the space requirements for the ramp to decide if this is a viable option.
  • For a few accessible bathroom ideas, check out our  two-part blog.

We hope this post has helped you realize that additions are a great way of customizing your home to fit your needs. They can be as house-changing as creating a separate, new living unit or as small as adding on a few extra square-feet to better arrange interior spaces.

Have more questions about your idea for an addition? Don’t hesitate to contact us to discuss your project! And of course, keep reading our blogs for more information.