Question:
We are exploring adding a 20 x 25 two story addition with a garage below to
our house. What sort of rules of thumb are there to do a sanity test to see
if this can get off the ground?
Answer:
-I get the funniest feeling that you are trying to salvage a garage and
make something of it. Why not start from ground level. I don't know of
ANY garage that was built with a two floor addition in mind.
-I think you have it all wrong. We have a 110 year old 2.5 floor American
four-square. It is a big house, but it has no bath on the first floor. We
have no garage. We want a bedroom and a bath on the first floor for when we
get too febble to go upstairs. Right now the 82 year old in-laws could use
it. The first floor is about four feet above grade. Digging down for a
footer is almost a floor's ceiling height, so just go down a couple of more
feet, pour a floor and stick a garage door on the back to connect to the
existing driveway.
