adding on a bedroom [updated 11/15, new pics]

[update 11/15] everything is painted, closet shelves are up. all we lack is carpet and the ceiling fan. new pics at the end

[update 11/8] closet is built, most of the trim is up. need to put in a threshold and put up trim strips over the paneling joints. pics are at the end

[update 11/3] paneling is mostly done, just have to finish up the wall on the old house. new pics at end of thread

[update 10/18] got the framing mostly done, ready to put the metal up on the roof... pics at end of thread

Here's my fall project. We have another kid on the way and our little house is getting cramped so it's time to add on a new bedroom for the wife and I. Should take 3 or 4 good full weekends of work to get it all finished.


From what the old-timers say, our house was built around 1904. It's built on rock piers with a narrow crawlspace, no original insulation. We decided to build on piers as well, but we're insulating everywhere we can in the new room. Here I've got the frame laid out and I'm checking it for square:



We stapled chicken wire underneath the joists to keep the critters out of the fiberglass, and hold it up in case a piece let loose. I also stapled the faces to the joists, so I'm not worried about anything falling:



My wife was kind enough to help with the chicken wire:



Putting in the last piece of insulation:



Not bad for a day's work... I seldom get everything done that I set out to do, but this was one of those rare days. That tongue and groove OSB is a major PITA to get together though. I about threw my hands up over that, but then I went and got my maul and put an 8' 2x4 along the edge and pounded it right into place. Just needed some brute force

my kitchen is built like that only the sill sits on foundation on 3.5 of the sides, it is the coldest room in the house, it has the chicken wire and insulation under the floor and blown in insulation in the walls. When I bought the house it had 9' of baseboard, I changed it to 20' of (stacked) baseboard. I think you will find the floor is cold (good candidate for carpet) and the outer walls being exposed will need to be insulated extra, you might want to look into spray foam insulation for the floor and walls as it also stops almost all air entry.
How are you going to heat that room?

We're hoping to get a little heat in from the woodstove with some strategically placed fans and a ceiling fan to keep the air mixed. We'll probably suppliment with an electric heater. I'm expecting it to be downright cozy compared to the rest of the downstairs. The loft upstairs is insulated pretty well and it stays relatively warm in the winter. It only gets under freezing for a couple weeks out of the year, so we should be ok.

I don't want to be mean or disrespectful but I see several problems with those pictures. First off are you building to your local codes? Did you use joist hangers? I really think you need a double rim joist. Doesn't that whole thing need to be anchored down somehow? Is that treated lumber?

No offense taken, I don't mind constructive criticism. Local codes: no, Joist hangers, no. I do have a double rim joist all around, I added that after I nailed the joists up. Should it be anchored down? No idea. Probably, but the rest of the house isn't. The joists are treated. I figured that would be a good idea to impede insect infiltration...

Here's a pic of the double rim

Is that sitting just on cynder blocks??. I would have poured some footers with 6x6's pt to hold that puppy in place. Kinda looks like it may be able to be pushed.. =

Not being critical, but mice are going to have a field day with that insulation. I would have boxed the underside with PT plywood myself.
Keep in mind that insulation does not stop air flow.

I dug holes and poured pads under each of the piers. Hadn't really thought about using posts like that, but what I did is more than the rest of the house. Once the weight of the the walls is on there, I don't think you could push it anywhere.

That would never pass code around here. My house is held down with hurricane ties.

I thought about doing that, but I thought that might be overdoing it. You have a point about the mice. Hopefully our cats will get them before they can do any damage I'll be adding underpinning around the outside, so that should stop the breezes from blowing underneath

Probably wouldn't pass codes here either, but this room is still going to be built better than the rest of the house.

What kind of hurricane ties do you have? Here are some I found, but I can't think of a way they'd work to secure the bottom. They do look useful for the rafters though
http://www.idealtruevalue.com/servlet/the-134326/Detail

I'm imagining some kind of straps like are used on mobile homes.

My foundation walls go down 4 feet. The first floor rim joists are tied to the foundation every 4 feet with 2 foot long galvanized steel straps.

4 FEET wow! I guess in Ontario you have frost heave to worry about. How far down does it usually freeze?

I know the correct way would have been to pour a footer and lay block, but that would probably have doubled both the budget and the schedule. The house is a 100 year old farmhouse/shack that I remodeled inside last year to be fairly nice. Laying a block foundation would have been like putting lipstick on a pig. I really do appreciate all the comments and criticisms though. I have a 1970s carpentry textbook that my dad gave me to guide me along, so hopefully I don't bungle this thing too much.

My crawlspace is insulated and heated so 4 feet is adequate to keep the frost from getting under the footings. If it wasn't heated, I'd have to go deeper.

I notice you didn't use joist hangers either. I think a few things have changed since the 70's.

Lack of joist hangers has been noted. I was advised by someone that I trust that they weren't necessary as I put 4 nails through my header into the ends of the joists. At any rate, I'm not going to tear it up to add them at this point, though I would use them in a future project.

Great job man. I'd love to know if you do indeed get it all done in three weekends. I remember when I could work like that. I miss it. Thanks for sharing. As far as joist hangars, you didn't need them for that application. My house is 178 years old and it ain't because it's got joist hangars. The code is for dummies that don't know how things work.
Again, great job.

I think we're missing the obvious.... nice stacks of wood

Got a lot done this weekend... about what I wanted to. I'm ready to put the metal on the roof next weekend.

Great job man. You're quite the hustler.
Stand-by for the critics.

Thanks. I got crackin' at sunrise both days this weekend. I told the wife I'd probably have it done (well, livable) around the first weekend of November, so there are "expectations"

OH CRAP EXPECTATIONS bad very bad

lookin good to me but I am just a country boy.

I've got to say, with the walls and roof framed it looks huge, when it was just the deck it didn't look that big! way to go!

I built the same size add-on almost the exact same way blocks.
Mine sags badly in one corner from settling and block erosion.
Consider adding two more blocks to the corners and maybe a jack also on the far corners.
Mine is a sun style porch rather than a nicer add-on like yours so it has all windows.
I wish I could resolve my issue without ripping up the floor and applying the solution from the inside.
Too late now.

Yeah, it's pretty tall. I wanted to follow the existing roof so I didn't have to fool with a gable roof and flashing.

I'm hoping that the concrete pads I poured will limit settling, but if it doesn't the underpinning will be in 8' removable panels so I'll have access to jack up and re-level if I need to. *fingers-crossed*