Square foot pricing is often used in construction. In remodeling we often have to explain that every project is unique, and that when we are talking about a small project, square foot pricing is not a helpful way to determine cost. This addition is a good example. Clocking in at 30 square feet, it is tiny as additions go. But it still has four corners, a foundation, a roof, etc. We have to go through all the steps in the construction process, and in many ways, the complexity increases as size decreases. Scroll down to see some of these steps. Keep in mind though, that the title of this post can be read two ways. A tiny addition can have a huge impact. This one will create a first floor powder room and coat closet, two items this home lacked.

The wall to the left in the before image above is the wall we will be opening up to create room for two doors into the new powder room and closet.

Removing plaster and wood framing to expose block wall.

The wall in question is a concrete block wall with a wood framed wall, covered in plaster veneer, facing the inside of the house. Step one is to carefully remove materials where the new opening will go.

Before forming and pouring concrete for the addition, the concrete slab in the yard had to be removed, and the underground plumbing replaced/augmented for the powder room.

Steel beams support the wall above where an opening was created.

Two steel beams are placed to support the wall above the opening that is to remain, and then the material below can be removed. A tremendous amount of thought and labor have already gone into this project and we haven’t even framed the walls of the addition. At Buckminster Green we appreciate the complexity of working on amazing old homes and updating them for another hundred years.

A tiny addition is still an addition