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Spring—A Time Of Change
By Doris A. Black
As winter draws to a close, and the days get longer, our thoughts turn to outdoor home improvement projects. Have you been dreaming of building a new deck, adding on a room or constructing a garage? Well, spring is here and your dreams can come true.
"Decks, garages and room additions are the most popular spring home improvement projects," says Scott Steffan of Steffan Construction in Morton, IL. Everyone enjoys spending time outdoors during spring. Building a deck can bring new life to a seldom used backyard. Adults will find it a quiet and relaxing retreat; kids, a place to hang out with their friends. Nothing beats casual dining outdoors on a warm spring evening.
Plan your deck to take advantage of the yard features you most admire, such as flowerbeds or a grove of trees. When building a deck, work carefully around existing trees. Try not to disturb their roots during the foundation stage of construction and don’t allow heavy equipment to park near them.
Until now pressure-treated wood has been the standard for decking. Today, advances in technology have produced a new product called composite decking. Composite decking is made of a combination of plastics and wood chips or sawdust. It contains over 50% recycled materials, making it environmentally friendly, and it is durable, strong and resistant to warping, cracking, splitting and termites. Composite decking does not need sealing, painting or staining, and since it doesn’t absorb moisture, it will look new for years to come. All of these features make composite decking virtually maintenance free. But that freedom doesn’t come without a cost. While a typical 10'–16' deck made with pressure-treated wood might run $700–$800 in materials, composite decking for the same sized deck would cost two to three times that price.
Family room additions are one of the earliest spring projects to get started once the ground thaws. Typically, the planning stages of the project take place throughout the winter, such as working up a floor plan, collecting bids and selecting materials and colors. As spring approaches, homeowners and contractors alike are anxious to break ground. "The average home today is smaller with sliding doors that open onto a patio or deck off the back of the house. Families want a place to hang out together so the sliders are removed and that becomes the opening for the addition," says Scott.
A 16' x 20' family room addition off the back of a house is the most requested size. Usually the homeowner will want vaulted ceilings or a fireplace. It’s a resurgence of the great room where multiple activities take place in the same area. One end of the room might contain a big-screen television and group seating, while the other end includes space for a desk with a computer or large table for games or school projects. A room addition such as this may take two to three months to complete and cost between $15,000 and $25,000, depending on the complexity of the project and materials used.
Most of the additions Scott builds have crawlspaces underneath, but he’s put full basements in as well. When thinking about a large project such as this, homeowners should "have a budget in mind and zero in on what level of quality they want." For example, countertops range from $20/ft. for the average top to over $100/ft. for granite. Most reputable contractors are flexible and offer homeowners suggestions for getting the highest-quality materials while staying within their budget.
During the winter, do some research to get a feel for the price you’re willing to spend on individual items, such as tile flooring or bay windows. Come spring, you’ll be armed and ready to make those final decisions.
Another popular spring home improvement project centers on the garage—either erecting a new garage where there was none before or replacing a crumbling, one-stall, detached garage. Many homeowners are now opting to tear down their old one-stall, detached garages and build new two-stall garages tucked behind and attached to their homes.
The most important thing homeowners can do when building a deck, adding a room or constructing a garage is to follow the city codes and get inspections if required. Then and only then can you give new life to the areas of your home that sorely need it.
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