Friends! We have made some changes to my website to allow me to post articles more easily. I am also developing my Facebook page, which does the same, so I will be discontinuing this blog page as of this page (subject to whim, fate and circumstance, of course).
Please visit blackdogarchitects.com or Facebook and let me know what you think.
Thanks.
Don
215-886-6916
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
New Silver Spring addition
Black Dog is now registered in Maryland and is working out of Silver Spring! Work requirements have led us to get an apartment in DC, and my sister and her family live in Silver Spring, so it was a natrual! And to celebrate (actually, to make my decision for me!) that self same sister and husband (http://www.onthemarkpr.com/) decided to build the addition we have been designing for 7 years! (Insert reminder for clients to plan ahead...).
Their house is a modest post-war house typical to the older Silver Spring neighborhoods. Small, but great neighbors, close to the Metro and parks, good schools, et al. They were lucky in that their corner lot is bigger than most and they already had a one-story family room added on previously. 
With her office overflowing the bedroom, a terrific southern exposure but very poor access to the back yard and a small and isolated kitchen, we decided to remove the back wall and bump out the back, treating it like a sunroom, but with windows locates to it still feels like a living room. A new office "bookends" the sunroom, a wider door opens the old dining to the new family room, and the kitchen wall was removed and the kitchen expanded and updated. A new deck connects it all. Since we are providing a new roof, we took the opportunity to super-insulate the roof, as well as the basement and new walls. Expanding the HVAC system has let us rectify old inefficiencies and properly service that area.
In the family room we removed old run down closets and are putting in a pair of large closets for storage and hiding the TV, with a counter between and the HUGE fish tank as the room's visual axis. Plans also called for relocating the house's front door to recognize the primacy of the new space, but the budget wasn't there. Likewise, we looked long and hard at a new 2nd floor which would have offered a nice master suite and an additional bedroom, but for a small family we couldn't justify the costs. It remains an excellent idea for future owners,though.
Construction starts in a couple of weeks. Stay tuned!
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Rooftop decks
Just in time for spring, my South Philly rowhouse renovation is nearing completion. The weather played havoc with the schedule since you don't want to open up a roof with rain expected! One of the last issues is the rooftop deck. We have run into a few issues that are worth exploring.
The first, surprisingly, was to have an arbor or not. In this case the roof orients dead south and August in Philly is tough, so I suggested one. It will also shade the new family room. Some folks just like having umbrellas which will open the sky a bit in those in between months. New new cantileverd umbrellas are a bit more flexible for this.
I had hoped to reduce costs and complexity by using a reinforced vinyl roofing that is common on condo decks (Duradek). The builder (Springfield Construction) also proposed fiberglass, which is also common down the shore. The vinyl proved unexpectedly costly and the problem with both was integrating the arbor posts. With fiberglass you stood a chance of cracking at the posts and the detailing for the vinyl was trickier, although still doable. Now, there are different ways of attaching posts and rails that will work well, but for our layout, these were the issues.
For the decking we are probably going with PT wood, the best quality we can find, since the costs for Trex etc are too high for this budget. This will add a maintenance factor to it, but so does having to clean a synthetic deck. For access, we are considering a substructure with removable 3' square sections. This will give us a nice pattern for the deck as well.
The first, surprisingly, was to have an arbor or not. In this case the roof orients dead south and August in Philly is tough, so I suggested one. It will also shade the new family room. Some folks just like having umbrellas which will open the sky a bit in those in between months. New new cantileverd umbrellas are a bit more flexible for this. 
I had hoped to reduce costs and complexity by using a reinforced vinyl roofing that is common on condo decks (Duradek). The builder (Springfield Construction) also proposed fiberglass, which is also common down the shore. The vinyl proved unexpectedly costly and the problem with both was integrating the arbor posts. With fiberglass you stood a chance of cracking at the posts and the detailing for the vinyl was trickier, although still doable. Now, there are different ways of attaching posts and rails that will work well, but for our layout, these were the issues.
We finally went back to the tried and true rubber roof (EPDM) which has a monolithic application good for water control on flat roofs and a good life expectancy, with a wood deck above. The two remaining issues are decking material, and access to the roof for maintenance.
For the decking we are probably going with PT wood, the best quality we can find, since the costs for Trex etc are too high for this budget. This will add a maintenance factor to it, but so does having to clean a synthetic deck. For access, we are considering a substructure with removable 3' square sections. This will give us a nice pattern for the deck as well. There are a lot of considerations, including safety for children (higher rails, no benches at the side rails) furniture sizes and view, let alone privacy. But the views of sunsets and fireworks, the breezes in summer and a bit of outdoor space in the city are worth it!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Vaulted Ceiling continued!
When we last met, I was undertaking sliding a 2nd floor into a vaulted ceiling space of a development home. What with everyones schedules, things are taking longer than expected, but so far we have nailed down a plan.
On the first floor, we are removing the stairway, and running the lower wall all the way up. On the first floor, the extra room from the stair is being put into the exisitng pantry/laundry/office to create a kids homework/craft/wash-the-dog and pay-the-bills office space.
We are putting in a shed dormer (wide flat roof) to gain a full floor headroom on the 2nd floor. This has let us put in a regular bedroom and a skinnier one that will likely get used for a small den, office or baby's room.
On the first floor, we are removing the stairway, and running the lower wall all the way up. On the first floor, the extra room from the stair is being put into the exisitng pantry/laundry/office to create a kids homework/craft/wash-the-dog and pay-the-bills office space. |
| Side elevation |
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| 2nd Floor |
Because the owner also wants to move the laundry upstairs and add a bath for the kids, we are stealing room from the old humongous master bath and creating a new kids bath and separate laundry room. The new master bath still has a generous layout, but is a bit more reasonable and has less wasted space. Taking room from the attic for a linen closet brings it all together.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Vaulted Ceilings, 2nd Floor Infill and new family spaces
Lots of folks have high-ceilinged bonus or family rooms in the large homes that sprang up over the past 20 years and have probably wondered about how to get extra living, bedroom or even just an upstairs laundry or bathrooms out of it. A project I am just starting looks at doing just that.
This family has a beautiful home, extensively updated, and another child on the way. The high ceilings in the faily room and redundant stairway are difficult to heat, unnecessary and create acoustical problems. The vaulted ceiling has been nice for a sense of volume, but feels wasted. Plus the existing 9' ceilings will keep a sense of roomy-ness when closed off for a new 2nd floor. At the same time, removing the dis-used stair can add to the existing laundry room/office behind it, and give us a kids craft and mud-room area.
More to come!
This family has a beautiful home, extensively updated, and another child on the way. The high ceilings in the faily room and redundant stairway are difficult to heat, unnecessary and create acoustical problems. The vaulted ceiling has been nice for a sense of volume, but feels wasted. Plus the existing 9' ceilings will keep a sense of roomy-ness when closed off for a new 2nd floor. At the same time, removing the dis-used stair can add to the existing laundry room/office behind it, and give us a kids craft and mud-room area.
We are trying to move the laundry upstairs, add a bedroom, and a new family bath. Since the adjacent master suite has a very large 80's bath, the options we will look at may include stealing some of that space and taking the opportunity to remodel it as well. As always, budget rules!
In this project the obvious first step is to slide a shed dormer out of the main roof. The pitch is so steep and tall that we can get a full 8' outer wall and still have a good slope for the new roof.
First run throughs:
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| Opt 1: 2 BR, bath, full laundry, remodel master bath |
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| Opt 2: Keep Master Bath, single bedroom, full bath, hall laundry (mauve area is existing) |
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Plan now, and Design-Build
Thanks for stopping by! I have been out of touch here for a while, while we try to revise my main website. Meanwhile, it looks like things are picking up, peaople are starting to do what they have been putting off for a while and looking ahead to brighter days. SO...
Time to plan for the building season! Keep in mind that it could take several months to get throught he design and document process, depending on the complexity and scale or your project. Some I can blow through fairly quickly, but they are the exception, with little detailing, a lot of the decisions being made on the fly or by you or the GC during construction. This is not necessaruily a good idea, but can work for "typical" projects. Anything else, give yourself time to plan, dream and get it right.
I have also started working with a great young GC, Domers Construction, in a Design-Build capicity, where we can do a two part system that can really help control costs and get you the project you want and can afford. I work with you during the design process in a typical manner, except that he and I confer constantly on builidng and cost issues. By the end of a preliminary design, you will have selected a solution you like, and he will give you a budget range. If you agree, we will finish the drawings for permit and construction and he will give you and estimate guaranteed to stay within the earlier budget. The secret is constant communications and input, and coorperation rather than the sometimes adversarial bidding process.
Give me a call if you think it might work for you!
Time to plan for the building season! Keep in mind that it could take several months to get throught he design and document process, depending on the complexity and scale or your project. Some I can blow through fairly quickly, but they are the exception, with little detailing, a lot of the decisions being made on the fly or by you or the GC during construction. This is not necessaruily a good idea, but can work for "typical" projects. Anything else, give yourself time to plan, dream and get it right.
I have also started working with a great young GC, Domers Construction, in a Design-Build capicity, where we can do a two part system that can really help control costs and get you the project you want and can afford. I work with you during the design process in a typical manner, except that he and I confer constantly on builidng and cost issues. By the end of a preliminary design, you will have selected a solution you like, and he will give you a budget range. If you agree, we will finish the drawings for permit and construction and he will give you and estimate guaranteed to stay within the earlier budget. The secret is constant communications and input, and coorperation rather than the sometimes adversarial bidding process.
Give me a call if you think it might work for you!
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Project Progress
Couple of projects are moving along or have just finished.
Marc (MPF Construction in Abington) is a good builder. This is probably the 4th project I have done with him in this area.
Here we used U-.29 windows from Integrity, a combination of spray foam and fiberglass isulation in the walls and ceilings, and even R-30 in the floor. The windows on the left are tall but the sill is high enough to allow furniture, while the ones on the right are lower for a sunroom effect at the south-west table area. The room is light filled with a great view to the to-be-landscaped back yard.
The Kitchen renovation/blowout I wrote about in my May 4 article (below) is done. These are outside pictures while they finish painting the inside. The beige pic is "before", the green is "after. It is close, but subtle moving of the back door, exchanging the slider for a French door and adding efficient and larger windows really opened it up. The real proof is in the inside, which I will post when it is completely done.
The Dormer (also below) is now framed out and sheathed. A huge LVL beam let us open the whole room up, and the 1" exterior insulation stops the thermal bridging of the studs and gives us an R-20 wall. The area below the high awning windows is to be opened up to the hall below, though it is tempting to keep it for the attic room! One thing to watch out for with an adjacent gable pitch is to put in a significant "cricket" to guide the water flow away (far right).
Marc (MPF Construction in Abington) is a good builder. This is probably the 4th project I have done with him in this area. 
And the Rear sunroom/front porch addition in Ambler is tearing it up. fully closed in, looking great. The contractor, Jon Domers, is a young guy new to me but has turned out to be a very contientious, smart and forward looking builder. I am really lucky to have guys like these on my projects.
Here we used U-.29 windows from Integrity, a combination of spray foam and fiberglass isulation in the walls and ceilings, and even R-30 in the floor. The windows on the left are tall but the sill is high enough to allow furniture, while the ones on the right are lower for a sunroom effect at the south-west table area. The room is light filled with a great view to the to-be-landscaped back yard. 
The center gable is a bit shallower than the existing roof, but has to coordinate with the 2nd floor windows. The interior view and feeling is just great when you stand in the room, however. The center is set up for a specialty tile backboard and hearth, and a woodstove. Also, we used standing seam metal for the pitches we could see (front porch and rear gable), and EPDM for the out-of-site flat roof.
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