Renovation & Design
Renovation & Design
Know cottage requirements before building
Question: I have just purchased land in the RM of Gimli and will be looking to clear and build on it, if not this year then next. We are only looking at a 900-square-foot cottage. The problem I'm having is that every foundation person is quoting me about $16,000 to put in a pile foundation. So, maybe I'm asking for the wrong thing. I don't need an insulated crawl space, as I will only use the property in the summer. So, after reading a previous article of yours, it sounds like I should be asking for quotes on a simple concrete spread footing. I had hoped to have the beam supported on piles, thinking that four or five piles shouldn't cost that much. What am I missing and can you suggest anyone I should work with?
Thanks, Brian Goodman
Answer: Building a cottage on previously undeveloped land, from scratch, will afford you several advantages but will also come with a few challenges. The style and cost of the foundation for your new building will depend on several factors, including requirements of the building officials in the municipality.
When embarking on new construction, whether it is a relatively simple cottage project like yours or an energy-efficient home, the first place to start is with the plans. Ensuring you have a good house plan, whether done by an architect, from a stock drawing source, or from an architectural technologist, is important. The plan should not only satisfy your desires for form and function, it should be well suited to the new area and lot you are building on. This may include a site visit by the designer, but should also include an evaluation of the grading and soil conditions. This last item may be critical in determining the type of foundation employed.
In addition to the physical plan, a trip to the local rural municipality office will be in order to enquire about building permits and requirements. Each RM may choose to adopt the National Building Code (NBC) in its entirety, modify certain areas, or increase some requirements. Finding out ahead of time may save you major grief, and money, before finalizing plans that may not comply with the wishes of the building officials in that area. One example of this may be the commonly used styles of foundations.
For many years, and with varying degrees of success, summer homes in the area you are building have been built on simple foundations. These initially may have included post and pad foundations, with many owners upgrading to a spread footing on grade foundation. While this may have been acceptable in the past, that style of foundation may or may not be acceptable anymore. Pouring a spread footing on grade may be a reasonably good support for some portions of the RM of Gimli, due to sandy soil conditions, but may not be suitable for other areas with clay or swampy conditions. In those locations, the footing could easily sink, causing major settlement issues for the new building. That is why the exact location of your proposed summer home is so critical. If the area is found to have poor soil conditions, poured concrete piers (piles) may be the only good option.
The next issue is found within the building codes themselves. Historically, many municipalities have allowed summer homes to be constructed without proper foundations and insulation. That has drastically changed, as many are requiring all new construction to meet the current standards for year-round use. That will include an insulated and heated basement or crawl space, walls, and attic, up to the current levels required in the NBC.
Contrary to your desires, you will likely need to construct your new cottage on a grade beam, to allow for an insulated crawl space, whether you choose piles or not. This is indeed a superior choice to an insulated open floor, which would be cold and would not accommodate water pipes and other mechanical items located below the floor. How deep the grade beam should be, and what it is supported on, will depend on a combination of soil conditions, RM requirements, and your budget.
While the cost of the concrete piers for your foundation seems high, that may be reduced by increasing the strength of the floor support system in your plans to minimize the number required. Increasing the size and style of the main beams and/or floor joists can minimize the number of poured concrete piers you will need. They may also have to increase in size or depth accordingly, but some savings may be realized by this method. The contractors you have contacted may be using minimal building practices for their estimates, rather than engineered floor systems, which may allow larger spans between supports.
While it may seem like a fairly simple process to build an uninsulated cottage only for summer use, that may no longer be possible in many regions. Planning for a modern, energy-efficient summer home built to today's standards will prevent a huge surprise. This process starts at the planning stage with a visit to a designer and the local RM to determine what will be required. Also, hiring a consulting engineer to evaluate the drawings and soil conditions should be the final piece of the puzzle in determining whether a foundation incorporating deep concrete piers is worth the additional cost.
Ari Marantz is the owner of Trained Eye Home Inspection Ltd. and the past president of the Canadian Association of Home & Property Inspectors -- Manitoba (cahpi.mb.ca). Questions can be emailed to the address below. Ari can be reached at 204-291-5358 or check out his website at trainedeye.ca.
trainedeye@iname.com
Renovation & Design
Look to great outdoors for colour inspiration
I love it when the new paint colours come out. It's like seeing the new spring fashions on the runway. New ideas, great new colours and colour combinations abound.
Just as each fashion designer has their own idea on what's trending, so too do paint manufacturers have their own take on what will be 'in' during any given season. For spring and summer 2015, paint manufacturer Sico forecasts rich floral colours will be in full bloom -- not only in the garden, but in all elements of home decor.
"This season's paint palette is filled with saturated colours, in both warm and cool tones," said Mylène Gévry, marketing manager for Sico, a brand of PPG Architectural Coatings. "It's all about bringing colours of the garden inside and using them in creative ways."
Gardens give us a wealth of colour, textural and pattern inspiration. Topping Sico's list of hot colours for spring and summer 2015 are Impetuous Blue, Ningxia Pink, Dynastic Orange, Blueberry Flower, Dark Lemon, Cotton Flower, Stainless Steel, Cayman Blue, Sargasso Sea and Aperitif, all of which can be viewed on their website at www.sico.com.
A palette including deep pastel tones such as blue hydrangeas, dusty pink roses, saturated orange and turquoise peonies, sunflowers, clay-grey stones and reddish-brown vines are all in the mix.
Our feature photograph boasts Blueberry Flower, Cayman Blue and Stainless Steel. The room has an exciting look and feel. The colour combinations are different and youthful and complement the rustic elements of the exposed brick and worn wood. I love the fact the colour on the wall above the fireplace can be swapped out to co-ordinate with the dark blue walls on a whim. Just imagine a rich orange, hot pink or even brick red as the fireplace accent colour. You could have a totally new look in a few hours. This is an easy update because of the small amount of wall space that needs to be painted. Keeping the trim, brick wall and upholstery white makes each colour pop and helps keep the room from looking too dark.
"The back-to-basics, return-to-nature trend firmly planted in home decor the last couple of years is now moving away from neutral tones toward more colourful elements of nature," Gévry said, crediting the fashion world for the infusion of rich tones into interior design.
"The fashion runways are filled with deep pastels, both on their own and in bold, oversized floral patterns that are trending right now," she said. "This rich, floral influence is spilling over into all facets of home decor, from fabric and furniture to drapery and accessories."
To help make changes to your décor easier than ever, Sico muse paint is a paint and primer in one. Removing the step of priming saves time and money, which makes painting an easy update.
To incorporate this season's blossoming colours into your decor, Gévry recommends looking outdoors for inspiration.
Think about what colours in nature make you feel good. What outdoor settings make you feel most relaxed or energized: your garden, the woods, the countryside or the sea? Narrowing the feeling you'd like to achieve, and the element of nature you'd like to replicate, makes it easier to choose colours.
Pick a main colour for your room, and then add other hues in unequal amounts. A good rule of thumb is to use the dominant tone in about two-thirds of the room. For example, if you select a turquoise blue as the dominant colour, you may want to paint an accent wall a darker blue, and your trim, doors and ceilings in white, cream or a lighter shade of one of the blue colours.
When developing a colour scheme, consider the "temperature" you want to create indoors. Yellows, oranges and pinks are warm colours, whereas blues and greens are cool tones, something to bear in mind if you're looking to warm up a room on the shady side of the house or cool off an area with southern exposure.
Connieoliver2015@gmail.com
