Who has DIYed an addition? (Thinking out loud)

[IHDiesel73L]

I'm planning on adding a 16' x 26' addition to the rear of our one story ranch which is currently two bedroom/one bathroom. The addition will make the home a three bedroom/two bathroom home. We'll be combining the existing bedrooms into a "master suite" (bedroom, dressing area/closet, full bathroom) and adding two bedrooms in the back which will have access to the existing full bathroom. We want to keep the additional as small and as simple as possible because our long term plan is to sell this home in 5-8 years and we don't want to price ourselves out of the market or get into debt expanding the house. I have a pretty good grasp of construction having worked in residential construction and remodeling during summers through high school and college and my father-in-law used to have his own business (he now works as a project manager for a large design/build firm that remodels homes whose "guest cottages" are larger and nicer than my house :laughing, so I always will have him to help me out in a jam, etc... He's also spoken with one of the architects at the firm who is willing to draw up a set of plans and seal them (required in NJ) for nothing which will be a big help.

I'm trying to envision how the project is going to go in my head and what I won't be able to physically do myself so that I know how to budget for it. The addition is going to be a simple three sided box, so lets start with the foundation. Initially I thought about just doing a crawl space underneath the addition as we already have a pretty large (30' x 45') full basement under the existing house, but since this is New Jersey the walls/footings will need to be located at least 50" below grade for frost depth anyway. Going down that far at the rear of the house will get me within a few inches of the existing basement slab anyway, so maybe it would make more sense to do a full basement under the addition as well? With the existing slope of the grade I could probably make it a walkout while I was at it. I already have a lot of space in the basement, both finished and unfinished, so this new space would be an ideal storage area for power equipment (lawn tractor, snow blower, generator, push mower, weed trimmers, chainsaws, etc...) that is currently clogging up my attached garage since there is currently no outside access to the basement. Having conditioned space to work on all of this stuff would be great, plus it would also make feeding the wood furnace easier. Currently I have to store wood on my deck and then carry it through the kitchen and down the basement steps

Regardless of whether I go full basement or not, one question remains-poured concrete or block? My existing foundation is block. I can frame, hang sheetrock, do wiring/plumbing, etc...but laying block is something I was never really good at and I would need to contract it out. I've done some reading on the new insulated concrete forms (ICFs-the styrofoam forms that stay in place post-pour) and they look pretty user friendly though I've heard that they require A LOT of bracing and vibration to ensure no blowouts and a good solid wall. The caveat to this the fact that you can't get a concrete truck into my backyard due to the tight space between other houses, fences, etc...so I'd need a boom or conveyor truck and according to my calculations I would need three deliveries for the footings, walls, and slab (19 yards)-it's tough to figure out which would be cheaper. I'd be interested to hear what others have done.

The rest is pretty straightforward. I'd contract out the "shell" (outer wall framing, roof framing, and sheathing) and finish everything else myself-anyone else tackle a project like this lately?

 

[moeh1]

I used precast walls (from Superior), 10 years ago they were very competitive with poured or block and really quick. They should be able to crane them into the backyard - they were willing to come out to my place for a free assesment. I was going ICF otherwise, but I had a tough time finding anyone to rent all the stabilizer jacks from. I'd definitely go full basement for all the reasons you suggested, the cost delta is pretty small.

 

[WVBill]

I think a 16 x 26 addition can be pretty much a DIY project for you.

A couple of years ago, I built a 24 X 24 building for a studio for my wife - 90% myself. I just needed help for the following:
1) Concrete company to pour the footers ( I dug the trench 32" deep and laid the re-bar myself). The foundation is concrete block to 18" above grade for a crawl space)
2) My son-in-law to help me stand up the walls (I built and sheathed them laying on the floor deck)
3) My son-in-law to help me fly the roof trusses in and secure them place (we used a towable "bucket lift" to get them up there then I secured the trusses to the walls while he secured the truss-to-truss bracing)
4) I was running out of time so I hired out the siding or I would have done that myself too.

I started in late April and finished in mid-November (of the same year)

I keep having the same thoughts as you about putting an addition onto one end of my house... maybe one of these days.......

Best of luck to you.

 

[MarkV]

If it were me and I had a FIL in the business I would hire out the foundation, get the FIL plus maybe one labor and frame the addition using manufacture trusses. A three person crew with one good experienced leader should be able to frame the floor system in a day, fame the walls the next day and set trusses a third day. At that point you and a labor could sheath the roof and set window and doors. You are dried in then and can work at your own pace. 416 sq. feet isn't that big of area to frame and put trusses up.

MarkV

 

[IHDiesel73L]

If it were me and I had a FIL in the business I would hire out the foundation, get the FIL plus maybe one labor and frame the addition using manufacture trusses. A three person crew with one good experienced leader should be able to frame the floor system in a day, fame the walls the next day and set trusses a third day. At that point you and a labor could sheath the roof and set window and doors. You are dried in then and can work at your own pace. 416 sq. feet isn't that big of area to frame and put trusses up.

Never thought of it that way-thanks!

 

[dave1949]

I've not done an addition but I think the tricky parts are getting the roof right and making the exterior where the old and new join look seamless. Adding on to the backside of a ranch probably means running a peak that is perpendicular to the existing peak. That would add considerably to the new roof area - beyond the addition itself.

You know your neighborhood, so I assume you have estimated the cost vs potential return on this. 5-8 years is a short window unless your ranch is one of the few in your area that has not been improved. If you are bursting at the seams now, of course it would be priceless to you. Master suites are very popular and I don't see that going away. If you have one bath now, and the addition brings you up to two, that's a huge plus.

You will need to extend your heat/AC, electrical, and modify your plumbing. To be economical, the 16x26 add-on shouldn't force you into major upgrades in those areas.

The walk-out basement sounds good if you keep the addition floors from feeling cold in winter. Shouldn't be a problem. For user friendly-ness, a doorway through your existing basement wall might be needed.

About 30 years ago, a friend re-vamped his small ranch over basement by bumping out the back wall to enlarge the kitchen and dining area, made space for a new full bath, plus adding a 3-season room behind that with a nice deck next to it. They left the existing bedrooms and bath as they were. It made a tremendous difference in that house, all positive. They still live there I don't know what is driving your decision to move 5-8 years from now, but if doing a little more with this new addtion would allow you to stay longer, it's another angle to think about.

Good luck with your project.
Dave.

 

[IHDiesel73L]

I've not done an addition but I think the tricky parts are getting the roof right and making the exterior where the old and new join look seamless.

I've given this a lot of thought but haven't come up with a solid idea on how to deal with it yet. The house has vinyl siding right now that is probably 10+ years old and in decent shape-I've never been a big fan of vinyl myself-I just don't like the way it looks. I've considered re-doing the entire house in Hardi-plank as its quick and easy to put up with just two people, it looks great, and it's not that expensive. I also thought about doing a cultured stone veneer starting at grade and going up about four feet, then transitioning to Hardi the rest of the way. That would definitely add some $$$ though.

Adding on to the backside of a ranch probably means running a peak that is perpendicular to the existing peak. That would add considerably to the new roof area - beyond the addition itself.

Exactly-I'll essentially be turning a plain ranch into an "L" shaped ranch. I chose this option over tearing off the roof because the previous owner put on a brand new roof at no cost to us as part of the purchase agreement-it's only 3 years old at this point and they're 40 year shingles-not to mention DIYing such a project would be nearly impossible.

You know your neighborhood, so I assume you have estimated the cost vs potential return on this. 5-8 years is a short window unless your ranch is one of the few in your area that has not been improved. If you are bursting at the seams now, of course it would be priceless to you. Master suites are very popular and I don't see that going away. If you have one bath now, and the addition brings you up to two, that's a huge plus.

The development we live in was constructed during the mid to late '60s. My house was built in 1968 as a run of the mill 2 bedroom/1 bath ranch with an attached garage and full basement. Though various things in the house have been upgraded over the years by previous owners (the hot water heater, oil furnace, central air, vinyl windows, and roof are less than five years old) and I've made improvements myself (new wood add-on furnace, refinished hardwood floors, new interior doors and trim, and I'm slowly-emphasis on slowly :laughing: finishing the basement) the basic structure of the home has never been changed. The bathroom was updated at some point in the '80s and the kitchen is vintage early '70s.

Based on what we can see from the street and what we know of our neighbors' homes we're in the minority in terms of updates. You can tell that many of the homes on our street began their lives as small capes or ranches and were either expanded out or up. Also, of the four families on our street that we socialize with, we're the only ones with an "untouched" kitchen. The kitchen and main bathroom will be my next projects. I can get by with simply putting new doors on the kitchen cabinets/drawers and swapping out the formica countertop for something snazzier. The bathroom will be a bit more expensive, but should be worth it provided I don't go overboard.

You will need to extend your heat/AC, electrical, and modify your plumbing. To be economical, the 16x26 add-on shouldn't force you into major upgrades in those areas.

These will all be easy. Since the master suite will be created by reshuffling the layout of the existing house, delivery and returns will just need to be re-routed. One delivery and return for each new room should be adequate I think. Electrical will be simple as well-a couple of fixtures and enough outlets to meet code.

The walk-out basement sounds good if you keep the addition floors from feeling cold in winter. Shouldn't be a problem. For user friendly-ness, a doorway through your existing basement wall might be needed.

Yep-the layout can actually work so that I'll be able to walk into the basement from the outside, through the old basement wall, and end up right in front of my wood furnace :thumbsup:

About 30 years ago, a friend re-vamped his small ranch over basement by bumping out the back wall to enlarge the kitchen and dining area, made space for a new full bath, plus adding a 3-season room behind that with a nice deck next to it. They left the existing bedrooms and bath as they were. It made a tremendous difference in that house, all positive. They still live there I don't know what is driving your decision to move 5-8 years from now, but if doing a little more with this new addtion would allow you to stay longer, it's another angle to think about.

Thanks for that anecdote. 5-8 years is indeed ambitious, but I think we can do it because we bought at a fairly low point and since with few exceptions, if I can't do it myself, I don't do it, we'll hopefully stay ahead of the curve in terms of cost. Our long term desire is not so much more house but more land. We don't have kids yet, but when we do, having three bedrooms and and two bedrooms will be a godsend! When we finally do sell we'll be looking for a house of the same size, just on a much larger piece of land. We live in a development on 1/3 of an acre which, to me, is sort of like living in a cage. I'd like at least 5-10 acres in the future-and perhaps if there's enough left over from the sale of this home, a primitive camp up in your neck of the woods-we love Maine! Your post also proves that Mainers are some of the mostly neighborly and helpful folks around :thumbsup:

 

[RadarTech]

One question-- are you on a septic system or a sewer system?

If septic, in my area you can't sell the house with X bedrooms until the septic permit states that...

If sewer-- no worries...

J

 

[dave1949]

I've given this a lot of thought but haven't come up with a solid idea on how to deal with it yet. The house has vinyl siding right now that is probably 10+ years old and in decent shape-I've never been a big fan of vinyl myself-I just don't like the way it looks. I've considered re-doing the entire house in Hardi-plank as its quick and easy to put up with just two people, it looks great, and it's not that expensive. I also thought about doing a cultured stone veneer starting at grade and going up about four feet, then transitioning to Hardi the rest of the way. That would definitely add some $$$ though.



Exactly-I'll essentially be turning a plain ranch into an "L" shaped ranch. I chose this option over tearing off the roof because the previous owner put on a brand new roof at no cost to us as part of the purchase agreement-it's only 3 years old at this point and they're 40 year shingles-not to mention DIYing such a project would be nearly impossible.



The development we live in was constructed during the mid to late '60s. My house was built in 1968 as a run of the mill 2 bedroom/1 bath ranch with an attached garage and full basement. Though various things in the house have been upgraded over the years by previous owners (the hot water heater, oil furnace, central air, vinyl windows, and roof are less than five years old) and I've made improvements myself (new wood add-on furnace, refinished hardwood floors, new interior doors and trim, and I'm slowly-emphasis on slowly :laughing: finishing the basement) the basic structure of the home has never been changed. The bathroom was updated at some point in the '80s and the kitchen is vintage early '70s.

Based on what we can see from the street and what we know of our neighbors' homes we're in the minority in terms of updates. You can tell that many of the homes on our street began their lives as small capes or ranches and were either expanded out or up. Also, of the four families on our street that we socialize with, we're the only ones with an "untouched" kitchen. The kitchen and main bathroom will be my next projects. I can get by with simply putting new doors on the kitchen cabinets/drawers and swapping out the formica countertop for something snazzier. The bathroom will be a bit more expensive, but should be worth it provided I don't go overboard.



These will all be easy. Since the master suite will be created by reshuffling the layout of the existing house, delivery and returns will just need to be re-routed. One delivery and return for each new room should be adequate I think. Electrical will be simple as well-a couple of fixtures and enough outlets to meet code.



Yep-the layout can actually work so that I'll be able to walk into the basement from the outside, through the old basement wall, and end up right in front of my wood furnace :thumbsup:



Thanks for that anecdote. 5-8 years is indeed ambitious, but I think we can do it because we bought at a fairly low point and since with few exceptions, if I can't do it myself, I don't do it, we'll hopefully stay ahead of the curve in terms of cost. Our long term desire is not so much more house but more land. We don't have kids yet, but when we do, having three bedrooms and and two bedrooms will be a godsend! When we finally do sell we'll be looking for a house of the same size, just on a much larger piece of land. We live in a development on 1/3 of an acre which, to me, is sort of like living in a cage. I'd like at least 5-10 acres in the future-and perhaps if there's enough left over from the sale of this home, a primitive camp up in your neck of the woods-we love Maine! Your post also proves that Mainers are some of the mostly neighborly and helpful folks around :thumbsup:

Hey, I try for friendly, doesn't always come out that way. :laughing:

Sounds like you have thought out and considered the pros and cons pretty well. That's good. You have a plan. I can sure understand wanting to get a larger lot in the future.

No land rush going on in Maine for now, I'm sure you could find a camp or place to build one in the future without much problem. The lakefront land is scarce and mostly built up already unless you are a two hour drive from a grocery store on summer-only roads. But there are lots of nice areas besides lakes and much more affordable for purchase and property taxes.

The footer, about 2 yards if I calc'ed right, should be easy enough to do with a power wheelbarrow. Concrete contractors should have one of those or rent as needed.

If you pour the walls, about 12 yards, a pump truck might be the way to go. They can reach over your house if they can get into position. Does add to the expense. No experience with pre-cast or ICF. Concrete trucks are heavy and generally make a good mess, something to think about with an existing driveway and lawn. A pump truck and concrete feeder truck take a good bit of space to set up. Pre-cast might avoid some damage and save your landscaping, which costs something if you have to fix up.

Don't know what to say about the Hardi plank vs vinyl. I'm sure the Hardi is nicer, but maybe not nice enough to get your money and time back out of it when you sell. Anything but paint or stain is my motto. I'm thinking people are interested in low maintenance primarily.

Dave.

 

[PA hayseed]

My brother lives in south jersey, around the Mt Laurel area. He had a two story addition added with poured concrete walls. Very nice when done. The basement was kinda expensive, but you'll have just as much probably hiring out block masons with their helpers and they will take awhile (unless it is a large crew). By code they have to rod and core every so many feet (which adds to the cost). I think I would steer clear of the tying to match the vinyl thing, and go with something complimentary, but different (example stone veneer, cedar shakes, or another color). My white crane board siding was two years old to three years old when I added the addition, and it doesn't match quite right. I see it everytime I step outside. I put a 32x30 addition on my house, sub out some stuff, and two years later I am still working on it. I would plan on at least three to four setbacks. For me, a little had to do with contractors and the inspector. They never seemed to mesh with times for inspections. I also had one sub contractor pull out on me (their finances). I didn't lose any money with them, but it did set me back on my timeline. My landscaping is taking me forever. I have the equipment and the know how, but doing it as I go (to farm out costs).

my single biggest issue in the whole thing was not planning on family time. My wife and kid would not leave me alone when I was working on things. It ate up so much time. Plan on having perfect weather outside, you feel good, you are ready to go get something done, then BAM! You have a family meltdown, injury, or problem child.

Just thought I would throw it out there for general info.