Mysest56 
September 17, 2018
Many people with kids of a specific age are undergoing a”boomerang generation.” Whether because of a desire to save money, a change in life, a delay in landing a job after school another reason, the boomerang production is coming back to live with the baby-boom generation.
This phenomenon isn’t limited to our older kids. Whether because of a downsizing, health issues, or simply the desire to be all under one roof, our parents are also coming home to dwell with us.
This signifies is that our society is experiencing a shift from a time once we went off on our own to return into sharing living spaces. The matter is, nearly all of our homes weren’t actually designed with this. For the most part our homes are made to be for a single set of parents and a single set of kids. A couple of generations living under one roof is just not what we’ve practiced for the past couple of generations.
Connected: Universal Design — Creating a House That Works for All
However, this shift may be a good thing. And all we have to do is expand and rework our homes to accommodate kids, grandchildren and/or parents. Reworking existing basements and attics for that boomerang kid or parent isn’t all that hard, nor should it be all that costly.
Here I have identified 8 primary ideas for reworking those areas of your home — things like having sufficient lighting and distance , complying with construction codes in addition to making certain the new living places are warm in winter and trendy in summer.
As always, consult a professional before making any structural changes to your residence.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
1. Add space and light. Many attics are brief on ceiling elevation and, because of the roof silhouette, usable floor area. So put in a dormer to get additional ceiling height, usable light and space. A dormer can be little, as in a Cape Cod’s dog home dormer, or big, as in a shed dormer. Certainly one of my favorite dormer contours is the eyebrow dormer, which you will see following.
CG&S Design-Build
An eyebrow dormer on the exterior lends a relaxed and storybook attribute to this home. And this dormer using its diminutive scale looks like an eye since it just starts to start from a good night’s sleep.
CG&S Design-Build
While on the inside, this eyebrow dormer creates the perfect place for a little mattress.
Browse more photos of attic spaces
Bud Dietrich, AIA
2. Add more flooring service. Frequently the flooring construction of a loft is created for the smallest of heaps. So some structural updating may be asked to use the attic as living area. If this is the case, work with an architect to ensure that the new structure complies with your construction code.
Ashley Roi Jenkins Design, LLC
You wouldn’t wish to place all of this great furniture, tv, people and much more on a construction that simply couldn’t support them.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
3. Mind your step. Stairs into a loft or basement can often be adequate to safely move people up and down. This means you might need to rebuild or perhaps add staircase to turn the attic or basement into usable living area. So ensure the stair complies with local building codes.
ZeroEnergy Design
An added plus is to get a window at the top of the staircase to bring light down into the home and illuminate the way upward.
MN Builders
And also a skylight is going to do just fine if a window can not be carried out.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
4. Don’t waste space. Though maybe not useful spaces as living area, the spaces under the roof are terrific for creating built-in sleeping or storage alcoves for kids.
Amoroso Design
Certainly the under-the-roof space is perfect for toy storage.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
5. Provide a way out. Most, if not allcodes demand that bedrooms be equipped with an emergency exit. And even though your local code doesn’t require this kind of exit, it is certainly good practice to own one. More often than not I have seen basement bedrooms with no exits, and I shudder to consider what might happen if someone got trapped at the area in the event of an emergency.
Motionspace Architecture + Design
Have an emergency egress near the bed.
Ventana Construction LLC
When possible, use windows which let in abundant natural light.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
6. Keep it dry. The new wood walls and trim in addition to some other materials will function as wicks and soak up moisture out of the basement foundation and concrete flooring. New walls should be constructed to prevent this by having a separation between the cement and the newest materials. Your architect, builder and local building department can assist with the details to do this.
Globus Builder
It might be a shame to see all of those terrific finishes destroyed by too much moisture.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
7. Have a bath nearby. Adding a bathroom to either attic or basement often makes a lot of sense. If in the attic, attempt to stack your plumbing lines to prevent costly plumbing runs. A basement bathroom often means an ejector pump and pit are essential. Make sure to have easy access to some new plumbing, so that replacements and repairs could be made without a lot of hassle.
Felhandler/ Steeneken Architects
And if you are adding a bath to a loft recall, point No. 2 about reinforcing the ground to handle all of that weight you’ll be adding to the present structure.
Bud Dietrich, AIA
8. Heating and cooling. Occasionally it is impractical to extend the present systems to cool and heat a newly finished basement or expanded and completed attic. Stand-alone and dedicated systems may be better options. My preference would be to install radiant heat in the basement floor and also a wall-mounted split system to get a loft.
Smith & Vansant Architects PC
Obviously, utilizing the present radiators for heating and opening up a window for cooling are all about the greenest option there is.
We’d like to hear from you. Have you got an adult child or parent living with you? We would like to hear your story and see a photo of how you adapted your home. Share it with us at the Comments section !
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