Typically residential units are 20' wide or wider but on occasion we design units that are much narrower. The example above is only 13' wide (4 meters) with a total living area of 1,200 square feet or about 120 square meters. This is a townhome unit and would be bordered by other units on both sides. With a comfortable size room being at least 10 feet (3 meters) wide this configuration leads to four rooms that can have windows. Typically that means the living room, kitchen/dining and two bedrooms. This unit is set up with a shared upstairs bathroom that would work better if the second bedroom was primarily used as an office.

This unit is about the same size but slightly wider and less deep. It has two bathrooms upstairs and is slightly more efficent.

The difficulty with these small units is that the stair is not terribly efficient, it takes up a lot of space per unit. This client wanted townhome type condo units but if we had been able to use two common area stairs and 1,200 square foot flat units we would have had more options in the unit plans. A townhome unit also tends to necessitate an additional powder room per unit to avoid having guests using the upstairs bathrooms.

The narrowest that you can make a room in the International Building Code is 7' which provides a minimum unit width but a unit that narrow would be very hard to make inviting.

Originally posted 2009-12-26 00:50:16.

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Although the deck's structure is hidden from view in the above example, this was a project in Clear Creek County that EVstudio designed a deck addition for which the owner had a small existing deck above his garage and wanted to retrofit the home to accommodate a hot tub.

Well right off the bat it should be known that water itself is relatively heavy, being 8.35 lb per gallon or 62.43 lb per cubic foot. Then there is the weight of the empty hot tub itself, which can range quite a bit depending on the manufacturer. For this example I’ll use a larger than average size tub of 8’x8’ that can accommodate 6 people and weighs 550 lb when empty. And the volume of water for this tub is 500 gallons. So the water alone weighs a total of 4,175 lb.  Then you have to include the live load of people.  Yes, the hot tub was intended for 6-8 people, but you must still consider the situation of people overloading the intended occupancy, therefor use the floor live load used for the rest of the deck, typically 40psf for residential.  If the hot tub occupancy is overloaded, the volume of water would be displaced and possibly reduced if the water spills over the edge.  Be careful assuming this and reduce the water load or live load at your own discretion.  The total anticipated weight of the tub and water equals 4,725 lb.  So given that the tub is 8’x8’ a value of almost 74 lb per square foot (psf) plus the floor live load of 40psf for a total of 114psf is the basis for which one would need to design the deck. Most hot tub manufacturers should be able to supply you, your engineer or architect with a pound per square foot value of the tub and water, but probably would not include the occupant load.

To provide some perspective on this 114 psf value, decks without a hot tub are designed with a floor live load of at least 40psf or the snow load for a particular locale if greater than 40psf, which can be obtained by contacting your local building department.  For example, a residence in a particular area of Evergreen, CO needs to be designed with a 50 psf snow load (greater than the live load of 40psf), otherwise known as roof snow load. So, to add a hot tub to the equation, one would need to add the 74psf hot tub load to the 50 psf of the snow load for a toal load of 124 psf. You must still consider snow load on top of the hot tub.  However you don't have to consider the 50psf snow load and the floor live load at the same time.

If the local building department allows load duration factors you can value engineer the deck using a load duration of 1.15 for the snow load, but you must still use a factor of 1.0 for the floor live loads and hot tub.

Another thing to be careful of is the location of the hot tub on the deck.  Keep in mind you may design a specific area for a hot tub, but how is the homeowner to know he/she can't move the hot tub to the other side of the deck.

Something to consider when incorporating a hot tub in your deck.

Originally posted 2010-06-14 00:01:26.

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Pros:

• It can go faster because it moves the design time for MEP into the construction phase.
• There may be cost savings on the engineering fees when they are bundled with the install
• The contractor will attempt to pick their most cost effective solution

Cons:

• The biggest con is that contractors are pricing a guess and the bids are not easily comparable
• You may be getting a price for the cheapest system rather than the right system
• If the systems require changes to the architecture you'll face additional services
• Some jurisdictions will not allow it

I think that both delivery methods have their place, you just need to make sure that you're picking a delivery method that is in line with your priorities.

Originally posted 2009-11-14 00:01:08.

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The primary method is through openings in the exterior walls with a minimum of 1 square foot of opening per 150 square feet of under floor area. Each corner of the building needs an opening within three feet. The vents must be protected with an approved perforated material.

Another option that does not require these exterior openings is covering the exposed earth with a continuous vapor retarder that extends at least 6" up the wall. Even with the vapor retarder the space must be mechanically ventilated, conditioned or used as a plenum space.

Originally posted 2009-10-23 00:01:45.

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One of my Architecture professors once told me that the materials and methods you use to express your design will also affect the design itself.

For example, building a model out of clay pushes your design towards a more monolithic structure, while using paper tends to lean the building toward a thinner more surface based design.

Even more dramatic is the difference in design that results from not building a model at all. A purely 2D design vs. a 3D approach.   Keeping up with time sensitive, budget sensitive projects doesn't often allow for physical models but using the Computer modeling tools we employ as part of our basic design and production philosophy at EV Studio gives our clients big and small the benefits of 3D Design.

So what are these benefits for the client?

1. The most important is the ability to clearly see what your project will look like.
2. The designer also sees deeper into the design, or "around the corner" as I like to say.  Look around you at buildings and if you look closely you can see where a 2D approach was used and the details just don't quite go "around the corner".
3. Automation of repetitive tasks:  Elevations, Sections, plans and schedules that are linked allow us to explore and tweak the design without the dreaded ripple effect that forces us to work backward into the design and inevitably results in mistakes and lost time in the schedule.

Despite all these advantages many designers often make the mistake of thinking 3D Design or Building Information Modeling is just for big projects.   They see the 3D model as an extra service only warranted for large projects.  But we see that the benefits for a small addition in terms of design can be every bit as distinct and while there is a little extra time up front, the automation of tasks evens the equation by project end.

Add to those advantages the quick flexibility and intuitive touch of a hand sketch and the client really wins.

On one recent project I enjoyed moving back and forth between hand sketch and computer methods while solving design problems and communicating them with our clients. I  let the computer crunch the numbers to produce just the right perspective allowing me to spend my time on sketching out several options for the client to choose from.

Originally posted 2011-06-23 09:45:44.

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Of course for projects with extensive requirements the time line will be longer but we're capable of hitting any realistic schedule.

Go ahead and call at 303.670.7242 or email.

Originally posted 2010-01-08 00:27:46.

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Previously this building had office space and two residential rental units. The interior was completely gutted and re-worked. The ample crawlspace made this a very easy process. Plumbing and HVAC were a snap.

We also developed a new exterior facade and window pattern for the building. The idea was to make it fit better with the mountain aesthetic of the area. The building is nestled along the creek and now it really feels like it belongs in the area. In the spring the decks will be re-worked and wired for power and internet access. It will be a great location to work indoors or out.

For your viewing pleasure you can see how we turned a rough looking building in a quite attractive building with a consistent and thought out exterior renovation. The project is still under construction but the transformation is striking.

Kittedge Office Building Before

Kittredge Office Building After (During Construction)

This project was completed using Revit. During the design process we were able to show the client 3D views of the exterior as well as the interior. This was very helpful as it helped the client visualize the exterior of the building within context of the parking and grading. On the interior they were able to see how the spaces related in a more meaningful way than simple 2D floor plans.

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The north end of the addition employs strong symmetry to be complimentary with the existing home.  High windows allow light without compromising privacy or wall space.

The interior "hall" is defined by an arched passage that is the organizing element for the entire bathroom.  The locations for the main entry, the toilet room, the tub, the closet and the sink areas are all directed by this passage.  Upon completion, the double door seen in the distance will be replaced by a single door centered on the arch.

Even sub-spaces like this tub area will feel composed and centered by a well-placed window (with glass block for privacy of course).

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Here are some new photos of an addition that is under construction in Cherry Hills Village.  It is a main floor master bath addition which features a tall ceiling and clerestory windows.  The form of the addition is complementary to the existing home with matching roof pitches and materials.

Note the 10'-0" ceiling inside.  The dividing wall between the master closet and the sink area is low to allow light to spread naturally throughout the addition.  Notice that the addition is completely under roof and there is plenty of natual light.

The addtion was laid out to assure a clean transition between the brick on the existing house and the new brick for the addition.

More photos as construction continues!

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At EVstudio we get a lot of phone calls from home owners in need of a structural engineer. More often than not, one of the first things they say is, “EVstudio is certainly a structural engineering powerhouse. Is my project too small for you to consider?” Naturally, I am paraphrasing, but EVstudio is here to help the homeowner with their structural concerns. The structural engineers at EVstudio have such diversified backgrounds that it is not a problem to switch from the design of a large church campus lecture hall in Texas one week to the design of a structural repair for a timber framed barbecue grill cover (pictured above) the next.

So if you are in need of structural design services for your new deck, home addition or remodel, foundation cracking, or even if a car drove through your living room last night! Do yourself a favor and give EVstudio a call.

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