Summer 2000 Remodeling Tips   Select an Issue Spring 2002 Winter 2002 Fall 2001 Summer 2001 Spring 2001 Winter 2001 Fall 2000 Summer 2000 Spring 2000 Winter 2000 Fall 1999 Summer 1999 Spring 1999 Winter 1999 Fall 1998 Summer 1998 Spring 1998 Winter 1998 Fall 1997 Summer 1997 Spring 1997 Winter 1997 The Meale Project Sunrooms For Style and Function Little Kitchens Are Big! Stucco & Synthetic Stucco Selecting A Contractor Lighting Outside the Box The Meale Project Mr. and Mrs. Meale live right down the street from one of our other customers, the Shekores. Over the last three or four years they had watched us do three separate projects for the Shekores. When the Meales saw the sunroom we built for the Shekores, they finally called Coastal Builders. The Meales had a screened porch on the rear of their house that had been added on, but it was too small. They wanted to add a sunroom, remodel their kitchen, and still have a screened porch, but larger than their existing porch. Richard Campbell went to work and designed the three areas of the project so that they flowed together and opened up the existing house to the new sunroom. Coastal started by tearing off the existing screened porch and in its place building the sunroom. To one side of the sunroom we added the new, larger screened porch with a cedar-lined ceiling and ceiling fan. We opened up the kitchen to the new sunroom and added new cabinets from Starmark. The new kitchen design includes a breakfast bar on the sunroom side for great views from the kitchen. The sunroom itself includes a cathedral ceiling, plenty of windows, a French door leading to the screened porch, and a separate door leading outside. As you can see from the before and after photos, the Meales also used the post and pier foundation, as we described in our last issue. This type of foundation can be as little as one third the cost of a traditional foundation, and can be skirted with various materials to give a finished appearance. In this case, the Meales chose vinyl lattice under their addition. Now when the Meales have a family gathering, there is plenty of room for everyone to get together in the newly remodeled areas of their home. Our lead carpenter, Bruce Nelson, did his usual excellent job of bringing this project together and creating another satisfied Coastal Builder customer.   To Top Sunrooms For Style and Function A sunroom addition can dramatically change the appearance and utility of your home. Often homes do not have sufficiently large rooms for entertaining more than a few people in the same area. This was the case with our featured project on page four. When the owner's family would get together, there were too many people for them to all gather in one area of the home. We solved their problem with a new sunroom that opens to the kitchen, the dining room, and a new screened porch. Now there is plenty of room, and the new addition has added new function as well as style to the home. When you are ready to add function and style to your home, just give Coastal Builders a call.   To Top Little Kitchens Are Big! With all the talk about kitchens getting larger and becoming the new social centers of the home, why even take the time to consider little kitchens? The spaciousness of today’s home, coupled with the current trend for light eating or "grazing", have given rise to food preparation areas in all corners of the home. Little auxiliary kitchens are popping up in bedrooms, bathrooms, family rooms, home offices, exercise rooms, media rooms and even outdoors. It makes sense. These spaces can be the ideal, practical, time-saving solution for the busy homeowner grabbing a bite of breakfast on the way out of the shower in the morning. Or they can function as a means of adding comfort and convenience to a relaxing evening spent in bed watching a favorite TV program, a glass of juice in hand. An auxiliary kitchen can be a simple as a coffee or juice bar which normally includes a cabinet for storage, a small sink with countertop, and a mini-refrigerator/freezer/ice maker. Even more functional is a morning kitchen, which in addition to a small sink and mini-refrigerator may include a single-drawer dishwasher, a microwave, and an instant hot water appliance. It is important, however, when planning these areas, to carefully consider ventilation, sound/noise control, safety, appearance and ease of maintenance. The fastest growing trend in auxiliary kitchens is the outdoor kitchen. Permanent outdoor island countertops with oversized drop-in barbecue grills are increasingly popular. Consider other options as well, such as a separate rotisserie, a gas-fired wok or a wood-fired pizza oven. As people desire a more convenient grilling experience, often a small stone or concrete sink is added, as well as a mini-refrigerator or permanent cooler. Obviously, there are special considerations which must be taken into account when placing appliances in an outdoor environment. For example, check to make sure that the electric appliances are UL approved for outdoor use. Even so, the refrigerator usually must be taken indoors in cold weather. Most other items can simply be covered. It almost goes without saying that Americans love to grill out. What could be finer than sharing deliciously prepared food with family and friends in the natural beauty of your own backyard? With today’s outdoor kitchen, grilling has never been easier.   To Top Stucco & Synthetic Stucco For thousands of years stuccoing has been the most widely used method of finishing building exteriors throughout the world. It is a mortar-like mixture of lime and/or portland cement plus sand, water and often fiberglass or other fibers for strength and stability. Stucco is applied in thin layers directly onto masonry walls, or toweled over a metal reinforcement attached to wall studs when the walls are wood frame. It is important that the stucco does not dry too quickly so that it can achieve its full strength. Therefore it is usually damp-cured, which m means it is sprayed with water at frequent intervals during the curing process, which takes several days. Skilled craftsmen can apply many different kinds of decorative finishes to the still-wet stucco to enhance its appearance. The final layer is usually an acrylic coating to which color has been added. This coating is washable and will help retain the beauty of the stucco for years to come. Sometimes what appears to be stucco on a home is actually an Exterior Insulation and Finish System (EIFS), more commonly called synthetic stucco. This popular multi-layered system consists of 1) an insulation layer of expanded polystyrene or polyisocyanurate which is affixed to the exterior wall surface, 2) a secondary moisture barrier to protect the substrate underneath the EIFS, 3) a mesh-reinforced base coat and 4) a finish coat made with 100% acrylic polymers to resist fading and UV degradation. An additional layer that drains away any moisture that should find its way behind the EIFS is especially useful in wet climates. One advantage of the EIFS is that it envelopes the home with an unbroken layer of insulation, greatly reducing heating and cooling costs. It does not need to be painted and is dirt and mildew resistant. Even more exciting is the fact that the EIFS allows designers to create interesting facades with graceful columns and balustrades, soft curves and arches as well as other architectural shapes which would be cost prohibitive using other materials.   To Top Selecting A Contractor A poor choice could leave you, at best, with poor workmanship in your home. At worst you could be legally required to pay craftsmen a second time for their work when an unscrupulous contractor has accepted your payment, failed to pay his subcontractors, and then left the scene with the job incomplete. A good choice, on the other hand, will mean a job progressing according to reasonable expectations, high quality work, stress relieved by practical suggestions from the contractor, and payments going toward building a solid value into your house. To improve your chances of making a good choice, follow these guidelines. - Look for an established contractor. A company remaining in business over time demonstrates its ability to satisfy customers. Such companies will also be around to honor their workmanship guarantees. Established contractors have survived tough times and have developed a degree of financial stability. Ask for and check a contractor’s banking and supplier references. - Look for a contractor who routinely performs the work that you are needing done. Such contractors know the requirements of the job and are able to deal with them most effectively. They also are familiar with local building codes and other legal requirements, as they deal with them on a daily basis. - Select a contractor who has his work well in hand. A company’s rapid growth may not necessarily mean better service for you. Rapid growth is a sign of an effective sales staff. Make sure that the production staff is equally qualified and able to keep up with the schedules. Many high quality contractors have chosen a size at which they feel they can adequately serve their markets and seek to maintain quality within that size. Get references on past customers and check them out to see what their experience has been with a particular contractor. - Don’t necessarily take the cheapest bid. Study carefully what you are getting for your money. A more expensive bid may be better value for the dollar, after all, additional quality has to reflect additional time and more expensive materials. Also, if a contractor’s bid is too low, he will have little motivation to complete the job and certainly none to put in the final extra touches which bring a completeness and beauty to the finished product. - Check out the contractor’s credentials. If your locality requires licenses, make sure they are current. Check to ensure that the contractor carries public liability and workman’s compensation insurance. Make sure that the Better Business Bureau does not have an adverse file or record on the contractor. Again, check references of past customers. - Membership in professional associations indicates that the contractor maintains a professional relationship with other contractors and tries to keep abreast of new developments in the industry.   To Top Lighting Outside the Box Remember the days when the standard procedure for lighting a kitchen or bath was to hang one lonely fixture from the middle of the ceiling? You would always be working in your own shadow. Later, recessed can lights installed around the ceiling perimeter became the solution. These lights brightened the room in general, but the kitchen countertop remained sadly in the dark. Today you can think outside the box and be creative. There is a whole wealth of lighting options out there from which to choose. Lighting designers take into consideration the function of the lighting, whether it be general room ambience, specific task lighting, accent lighting, or special effect lighting. A well-balanced room needs a combination of all these. In the kitchen, it is important to provide bright, concentrated light for work spaces such as the food preparation surfaces or sink. Installing recessed task lighting directly above these areas is one way to provide proper illumination for the activities to be performed there. However, the exclusive use of recessed lights can appear monotonous. Track lights suspended from the ceiling are an eye appealing option, and have the advantage of being adjustable for specific task needs. Selecting decorative pendants for certain areas, such as over an island or bar, adds excitement to the room. Low-voltage linear lighting under cabinets brightens up the dark corners of countertops or, placed inside glass-doored cabinets, brings attention to decorative items displayed inside. Use adjustable accent lights to highlight artwork in other parts of the room. In the bathroom, ample lighting is necessary for safety as well as function. Given the current trend for spacious bathrooms, it is especially important to install multiple fixtures throughout the room. Consider placing a recessed shower light in the shower itself, and a heat lamp directly outside. Recessed fixtures above the whirlpool accent the bathing area and help avoid accidents. Downlighting at the lavatory provides greater visibility for reading. And since there never seems to be enough light at the vanity for grooming tasks, decorative fixtures can be supplemented with recessed downlights in the soffit. With the multitude of fixtures in today’s kitchens and baths, adding programmed lighting controls is definitely a wise option. You can program your lights to illuminate only the specific task areas being used at any one time. This not only simplifies your life, but it is energy efficient and economical as well. Lighting your kitchen and bath should never be an afterthought. It is very important to plan ahead, so that each room not only shines with a pleasant ambience, setting the mood for your day to day living, but at the same time satisfies your desire for bright task light right where you need it. © 2003 Coastal Builders, Inc.