Architecture - Preffered dimension for an addition?

Should we try to plan our addition to a certain dimension so that it takes advantage of existing lumber/material sizes?

Right now, we're planning on extending a wing of our house 16' since it seems like a number which would limit the amount of wood we would waste.

Forget about just the scraps of materials.

Have your home designed in 24" increments. That way you should keep both the labor and material waste to a minimum.

your designer will automatically do something similar to fit it to your site and your existing home.

Dick

Inevitably you will need something that is 16' 1" or something silly like that which will cause even more waste and headaches. If you are concerned about waste/lost money, consider building in recyclable materials. For example steel stud scraps can be collected and sold to a metal recycler. Of if you have a wood burning stove you can burn cutoffs of clean wood scraps. or simply collect your scraps and see if they can be used for something else - we used 2x10 pressure treated cutoffs to build a wood stove riser you could park a tank on. Any big leftovers can be donated to Habitat for Humanity or other similar charities, or even freecycled to other DIYers.

walkman,

I am a designer and I do try to keep the overall dimensions at 2' increments as it does work best for material waste. You can go down to 1' increments and still control most waste. I would not let waste dictate the overall needs and feel of a room addition as function and use may be just as important in the overall scheme of the project.

Most costs in a project are in the finish and the choices you make there. I would say that shopping and buying right are just as important as the 10% waste you can figure into the project.

Good Luck.

Brian Garrison

If you are going to have a concrete block foundation or basement under your addition or are using brick for the exterior walls I would suggest 1'-4" increments for your exterior out to out dimensions (16' works). Masons charge extra for cuts at corners.

I agree with previous post though, make the addition the size that works for you and your existing house - material leftovers are immaterial, and inevitable.

Just because block ar 16" long does not mean that you have to go to 16" as a BUILDING module for your addition. The 24" dimension module is no problem for concrete block. You always need a half length block in each course, so a full (16") and a half (8") somewhere in the wall is standard. If you have to do many cuts in a basement, you are dealing with the wrong block supplier. The key for a MASONRY module is 8"(preferred) MODULE, so 24" for a BUILDING module is fine.

Other materials than block dictate the BUILDING module and block will work virtually all of them. In general, the ideal BUILDING module would be 4', followed closely by 2'. Some block producers even offer 45 degree corners for bay windows or 45 & 135 degree corners without cuts.

Don't let scrap dictate you building size or you will be lost trying to reinvent the wheel.

Dick