Tips from a Designer

These are days of frugality and getting the most for your money. We need to look at what we can do to our homes that will be cost effective, make an impression, and have a lasting impact.

Even second-home buyers are looking more at pre-built homes that might be adapted to their needs rather than building. Often you don’t need to build a new home to get your dream home.
Remodeling your home provides an excellent opportunity to think about what small expansions you can make to your home to suit your needs for years to come. But sometimes it’s hard to visualize how existing spaces can be transformed to meet your needs and dreams. The walls and patterns of your existing residence seem fixed in your mind from years of habitual use.

This is where an architect or designer can be very helpful. A good architectural and engineering team can explore the possibilities within the constraints of the existing structure, and present ideas in a way that allows you to see the possible changes to the space.

If you decide to remodel or add to an existing home, keep in mind that once you expose any building system such as electrical or plumbing and any structure that does not meet current regulations, you will be required to bring the non-compliant building systems up to today’s building codes. Please check with your local building department before any remodeling. Don’t worry, this can be a big advantage to you down the road, making your home systems operate more efficiently.

If you are going to open your walls for new wiring or wall materials, consider adding insulation while you’re in there. Maybe you’re not planning interior changes but might be replacing your siding or roofing. This is an excellent opportunity to increase the insulation efficiency of your house in the form of rigid board insulation, which can have as much as R7 per inch and is very easy to install.

Consider using recycled products in your remodeled home. Mohawk incorporates used plastic bottles into their EverStrand carpet line, www.mohawkflooring.com. Recycled glass countertops are stunning, as durable as granite, and can be obtained locally at Legacy Building Specialties, www.legacycwd.com/home.

Local mills are now producing kiln-dried dead-standing pine for flooring, siding, and even structural materials. Wood is a renewable resource, and using locally milled dead-standing beetle kill ensures that living trees are spared during the construction of your project.

Thinking of remodeling or starting from scratch? Or do you just want to get an idea? Contact Munn Architecture,
www.munnarch.com, (970) 887-9366.