What options do we have available to us?

First, Brusco Design & Renovation asked about repurposing the dining room and/or living room to take on double duty.  The clients like the idea of having a separate formal areas for adults, where kids and all their stuff are not allowed.

The clients had the idea to put a bedroom in the basement, but to have a legal and safe basement bedroom you need to have a second egress and adequate ventilation and sunlight.  Brusco Design & Renovation could have put in a walk-out or an approved (large) window well, but the family wanted a deck in the back of the house.  OK, how about a walk-out or an approved window well on the side of the house?  Too close to the property line;  it wouldn't be allowed by the city.

Obviously, they would need more room to accomplish the goals.  So, we started talking about an addition.  That quickly turned to discussion of a 2-story addition, because the second floor is cheap when you consider that much of the expense is in the foundation and the roof.  A new master bedroom could go on the second floor;  this would allow the current, greatly oversized master bedroom to be converted into two rooms -- a guest room and a permanent bedroom for their son.  Their son's old bedroom space was now available to use as part of a master suite, complete with his & her closets, a master bathroom and a 2nd floor laundry room.  Well, several iterations of designs later, we gave up on trying to accommodate a laundry room on the 2nd floor.  We settled on using the space for the master bathroom and a walk-in closet.

The first floor of the addition is used for a multi-purpose room -- a family room for the kids to play and do their homework right next to the kitchen so Mom and Dad can see them.  The family room has a medium-size table for homework, projects and casual dining -- the kids also have the option of eating at the bar that separates the kitchen and family room.  Since the walls were open, we wired for a flat screen TV on the family room wall.  In fact, almost every room of the house was wired for internet, cable TV and telephone.  Brusco Design & Renovation was able to do build these two rooms and a storage area in the basement by only taking 168 square feet from the back yard (a 12'x14' footprint).

The clients had the chance to see all of the design concepts from any angle with the 3-D computer model that Brusco Design & Renovation built on the computer before anything was built with wood.

Admittedly, this is a small deck, but that was fine with the clients.  They did not want the deck to take over their back yard.  They just wanted something to have dinner with the family outdoors and maybe to have a couple of friends over to enjoy a drink on summer evenings.  Actually, we could not have made it any larger if we wanted to.  City of Cranston zoning does not allow homeowners to build on more than 30% of their lot in this part of town.  This policy has its benefits too, otherwise houses would practically be on top of each other.   But it demonstrates the need to know municipal restrictions and the need for a survey -- two topics that Sam Brusco addresses in his class "How to Avoid a Renovation Horror!"

The real attraction here is the double French doors that open onto the deck from the dining room.  This will make for wonderful indoor/outdoor parties on warm afternoons and hot summer nights.  There is also a single French door that allows access to the family room.

Note the recessed light on the side of the addition.  Brusco Design & Renovation realized that the steps would be in shadow at night, so we added that light specifically for safe passage to and from the deck.

Their son's old bedroom space was now available to use as part of a master suite, complete with his & her closets, a master bathroom and a 2nd floor laundry room.  Well, several iterations of designs later, the clients wanted a closet outside of the main bedroom, so we gave up on trying to accommodate a laundry room on the 2nd floor.  We settled on using the space for the master bathroom and a walk-in closet.

master closet, concept

Green aspects of this project

1.  Instead of "stick building" the addition in the conventional way of using 2x4's and then insulating in between, the entire structure was made from SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels), which can retain heat twice as well as customary construction methods.  The cost difference between the two methods was just about nill.  Click here to read more about SIPs used in this project.

This was the first SIPs structure built in Cranston.  But as is common with being first, Brusco Design & Renovation paid the price for being a trailblazer.  It took an extra month to demonstrate to the building department that the proposed building was sound and would meet or exceed the then current code.   Unfortunate, but the next client who asks for a SIPs home or addition from Brusco will reap the benefits of this experience.  SIPs have since been recognized as their own section in the 2010 building code.

How does one build an addition without needing a bigger furnace?
The answer is to apply green building principles... build a well-insulated structure that does not leak air around windows and doors or through walls.  Sam Brusco grew up in a home where a porch had been converted to a family room -- it was always freezing in that room despite having an extra large radiator.  He was determined not to have that happen to this family.  Brusco Design & Renovation used highly efficient windows and doors and SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels).  SIPs have an R-25 insulating value to the walls, and the cost difference between the two methods was just about nill.  SIPs are constructed by sandwiching 3.5 inches of foam insulation between 2 pieces of 1/2 inch plywood, no studs (2x4's) to conduct heat straight through the wall every 16".  A standard 2x4 wall with fiberglass insulation has a theoretical R-15 value, but after accounting for all the air leaks and sagging insulation, you'll be lucky to get R-10.  Additionally, any wall that was opened during the renovation process was insulated -- the existing house was built with zero insulation in the walls, as was typical in the U.S. before 1960.

2.  New low-E doors and windows were installed in the addition.  This reduces heat loss and summer sun heat gain from these openings, making the new areas more comfortable year-round

3.  Existing vinyl replacement windows were removed and used elsewhere in the house.  Previous owners had replaced some but not all of the originial single-pane glass windows.  Narrow windows from the kitchen were moved to the new master bathroom and to the stairway to bring visual balance to the side of the house.

4.  Low VOC paints were used in all the rooms that were painted.  It performed about as well as regular paint and there were no fumes.

5.  All of the concrete that was removed during the project was recycled.

6.  All of the cardboard that came to the home during the project was recycled.

7.  Most of the paper, metals, glass and plastic was recycled.  Did you know that iced coffee cups are made of #1 (recyclable) plastic? 

8.  Much of the wooden moldings were repurposed.  They were taken off old walls, windows and doors during demolition, and used on new walls, windows and doors.  It saved the family money, it saved some trees, and it maintained an architectural consistency in the house making old and new seamless.

9.  The water heater was wrapped with insulation and put on a timer to reduce energy usage.  Now the water heater only works during the hours that the family normally uses hot water —  in the morning for showers and in the evenings for the kids' baths.  The tank is off for more than half the day.  In between cycles, the water is kept hot with the extra blanket.  The exposed hot water pipes are insulated as well.  This allows the water heater to last longer too.

10.  When you think about it, the hot water tank is one of the biggest wastes of energy in the average American home.  We heat and store hot water instead of making it when we need it.  This would be like leaving the car running in case we want to go somewhere later in the day.  Then we don't put the tank near the point of use;  we put it in the basement.  In some houses, there is 50 feet of pipe between the water heater and the upstairs shower — which is usually not insulated by plumbers.  We had planned to use a tankless hot water heater on this project for the second floor laundry room and master bath, but when the laundry room was nixed, the clients chose not to have the on-demand water heater either.

11.  All of the existing interior doors and three doors that were found in the basement were repurposed.  Not all of the doors fit their new applications, so we either cut or lengthened doors as necessary.  As a result, not one new interior door was purchased, and all of the doors were a perfect match for the remaining doors, saving trees, landfill space and the fuel needed for transportation of raw materials and products.  It was another way Brusco Design & Renovation was able to combine old and new seamlessly.

back of the house, at night

click here to see a 360° video of the kitchen concept (2.3 MB)
3-D computer modeling

master closet