Spring Time is Construction Time!
Spring is an exciting time of year in the construction world because things get busy! All the planning inside warm cozy offices moves outside and the action begins! I have many projects under construction right now and I thought I’d share some tidbits of what’s going on.
Construction is a stressful part of the architectural process. As the architect, my role is advocate for the Owner – making sure the project is built the way we both envisioned it, while meeting the Owner’s expectations of design, cost, and schedule. My regular presence during construction reduces risks and ensures a smoother work flow. During periodic site visits, my role during construction is more as an “administrator” — making sure any questions regarding details and design intent are answered and serving as a communicator between the General Contractor and the Owner. At a minimum, I like to stop by a job site two or three times during construction. Some Owners ask me to come by more often than that.
For this family room addition, we have a big room taking shape inside, and on the outside, the addition blends right in with the existing house! A great patio is being framed, ready for a concrete pour, just outside the big sliding glass doors. The Owner is facing a quandary: what color should the shingles be? Light gray, red brown or teal?
How did we get to this point in construction?
Lots of hard work developing the drawings gets us to this result. I create permit/construction drawings that the General Contractor works from to understand design intent and construction parameters. Here are the technical drawings of the elevations of the addition above.
Some fun during the construction process is reviewing samples. Here, the Owner is comparing luxury vinyl plank flooring for an addition to their existing house.
The screened porch project below has just begun! The Owner had an existing deck and wanted to extend and convert it into a screened porch with a fun roof shape. We developed the design of it together in these renderings. 3D renderings like this help the Owner to see what I’m (virtually) “building” in the computer and help the General Contractor see how the end result will look.
In the photos below, we’re taking a peek at the underside of the platform of the deck extension where new footings are being prepared for a concrete pour into the ground to hold the new posts into place. The second picture is taken on top of the deck platform where lumber is being pulled up to start framing the walls and roof of the new screened porch!
A Main Level Master Bedroom Addition under construction is moving quickly! The Owner planned on converting an existing family room into a new main level master. We decided to extend the length of this room by about five feet to get a more comfortable master suite. Below is a picture showing the remaining portion of the room with the former floor prepped for a new concrete slab.
Just a few weeks from when the picture of the dig was taken, we have newly framed walls and roof extension. Windows and doors were recently placed and siding was being installed today!
Check out the video below of the concrete pour from the project pictured above.
