Should I use pre-made panels or custom build for a three season room?
by
RLM
+1
I have been remodeling my 1951 brick ranch for 6 years. After gutting and remodeling the kitchen and bathrooms, replacing windows, and refinishing all the woodwork, I am finally ready to do something about this poorly constructed "den". The original house plans show a 8'8"x 16'8" covered porch. I would like to have a 3-season room that blends with the mid-century style of the house rather than this poorly constructed "den."
Any suggestion on the benefits / pitfalls of purchasing pre-made panels versus a custom build?
Hey!
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I would use custom built.
I enclosed my covered deck with vinyl clad screen doors. Using vinyl trim pieces to cover the seams between the doors, you don't really notice they are actually doors. Because the doors usually come in 3 sizes...30..32..36 inches, it's not hard to make everything fit.
The bigger question is more: How much control over this project do you want?
If you want or need more control over the project, go custom.
If that doesn't bother you and you feel that less control will satisfy the needs, go with prefab panels.
From the dimensions you supplied, either option is available to have a positive outcome.
It would differ if it was an old addition with weird dimensions not divisible by 8".
But that issue certainly doesn't apply to your project.
Whether that was luck or knowhow or divine intervention, does not matter really. You did it right, new room dimensions must be divisible by 8" to enable all options on the table.
When you start looking at the dimensions of those All Options: Floor, Roll Roof, Insulation, NEC Codes, Building Codes, Bed Sizes, Couch and furniture sizes, wood, brick, and even the number of square feet a gallon of paint can cover, you will much better understand this rule of thumb about 8".
You can really do what you want, with greater ease than most who do not abide that very simple rule of thumb about 8", that all contractors and carpenters who know what they're doing use as a basis for their estmates in renovations or demolitions.
As demolish estimation is in general: it is easier to demolish if it does not abide that rule of thumb.
I am sure you will enjoy whatever option you choose.