My clients knew they would have to remodel the Camellia Terrace 1950/60’s Ranch-style house when they bought it. The location is what they liked. It was ideal, with a good neighborhood, good schools and an excellent surrounding community. There were challenges, though. The 3 bedroom, 2 bath home was really too small for the family’s… Read more »
Posts Tagged: remodel
Camellia Terrace Addition Challenges
My clients knew they would have to remodel the Camellia Terrace 1950/60’s Ranch-style house when they bought it. It was the location that they liked. It was ideal, with a good neighborhood, good schools and an excellent surrounding community. There were challenges, though. The 3 bedroom, 2 bath home was really too small for the… Read more »
Portola Valley – Stairs Rock!
Stairways are an important design factor in homes. They can be one of the strongest transition elements in architecture, connecting different spaces to each other or at different levels. Our challenge was a cut out at the corner of the deck and a step down to the stairs that created an awkward space. And even though there… Read more »
Westgate Project Team – Meet Will Carter
Will Carter, Associate Engineer with Silicon Valley-based Murray Engineers, Inc. (MEI) since 2005. This type of engineering uses principles of soil mechanics and rock mechanics to investigate subsurface conditions and materials, among other things. Will’s team performed the initial soil borings, prepared a report with findings and also made geotechnical recommendations. MEI were part of the plan review process,… Read more »
House Fires & Hazards: A Lesson on Egress
Did you know that the size of a window opening is based on getting firefighters or other emergency escape and rescuers into or out of a house, with their equipment? In California egress is now often referred to as “Emergency Escape and Rescue Openings”, in cases of a fire or other hazards. And it is most… Read more »
The Stair Challenge
The lower garage level space in the house was adequate for the time it was built in 1926. This space was used as a utility room, and for the furnace, water heater, and garage. We think it may have been legal when originally built. But the existing stairs that connected to the upper main floor… Read more »
What About the Handrails?
Older houses, like this remodel, have gone through many transitions over time. Sometimes owners changed very basic things, such as a handrail. In our case, the house had two handrails, an extensive one inside going downstairs and one outside leading to the front door. Both of the handrails in the house we remodeled were most… Read more »
Westgate Project – Historic House
An historic house classification. What does this mean to the homeowner and architect/builder team who wants to renovate their home? A house is classified historic by the city when it’s over 50 years old. In our case the house was built in 1926, so it’s close to a hundred years old. And it’s very likely… Read more »
Westgate Project – House Remodel on Hillside
I worked on a great project several years ago. It was a hillside property. The owners wanted to raise a family but the house was very small. By hillside I mean a very sloping site, on a narrow lot. There was no space to extend outward in any direction except at the garage level below… Read more »
Bathroom Remodels Must Meet California’s New Water Conservation Requirements
As of January 1, 2017, all non-compliant residential properties will require the installation of water-conserving plumbing fixtures. The legislation that passed in 2014, as Civil Code §1101.5, set January 1, 2017 as the deadline for single-family homeowners to be in compliance. The good news is – if you’ve done any remodeling in the past 10 years… Read more »
Recent Comments