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Home Improvement Contractors Can Turn the Attic in Your Ranch Style Home into a Great Living Space

September 24, 20150

An attic conversion can add valuable living space to a ranch-style home, but success depends on more than finishing the floor and walls. Ceiling height, stair access, insulation, structural capacity, windows, and mechanical systems all need to be evaluated before the project is designed.

Colony Home Improvement helps Massachusetts homeowners plan attic remodeling and additions around the way they live. Request a consultation to discuss whether your attic is a practical opportunity.

Key questions before converting an attic

  • Can the space provide comfortable headroom, layout, and safe access?
  • Will the project need dormers, new windows, or roof changes to create usable light and space?
  • How will insulation, ventilation, heating, cooling, and storage be handled?
  • Does the best solution involve remodeling the attic, adding a dormer, or planning a broader addition?

Early feasibility planning makes it easier to choose the right scope before construction starts. Explore our home-addition services for projects that require more than the existing roof space can provide.

Renovate your attic space with the help of home improvement contractors.

Home improvement contractors can help you renovate your attic space.

Ranch style homes are known for being designed on one floor, which can be beneficial for many people. However, this doesn’t mean you are limited in the type of improvements you can make. In fact, home improvement contractors in Wellesley and the surrounding areas can help you create a ranch style home plan that maximizes the use of your space, including transforming your attic into a great living space you can use.

Improve the Entrance

If your home is like many other ranch styles, the entrance into the attic isn’t much more than a hole in the ceiling that may use a ladder to gain access. When your Massachusetts home improvement contractor creates a livable space in your attic, you need a better entrance. A staircase is often the preferred method, but space may be an issue. To maximize your space, your contractor may recommend installing a spiral staircase. This design takes up less space and achieves your goals of getting into the attic more easily.

Reinforce the Flooring

One of the biggest issues relating to the addition of livable space in your attic is the integrity of the floor. To ensure the best results, it’s critical to work with experienced home improvement contractors in Wellesley and the surrounding areas to ensure your safety. They also need to make sure any flooring changes are up to your city’s building codes.

Learn what to expect from your attic space by talking to a home improvement contractor.

Talk to your home improvement contractor about what you can expect from your attic space.

Brighten Up the Room

Once the floor is safe for walking and adding furniture, it’s essential to find ways to brighten up the room. Most ranch style home plans don’t originally include windows in the attic because there is no need. However, if your goal is to spend significant time there, regardless of its use, you need to consider lighting. A lack of windows can mean higher energy bills as you attempt to use lamps and other forms of unnatural light. A dormer can be a great way to bring in some natural light while maximizing space and keeping your costs down.

Uses of the Attic

There are many uses for your new attic addition. In fact, this can be a valuable use of your space without drastically changing the overall layout of your home. For instance, the attic can be the perfect place for an extra bedroom as your family grows. In addition, this area can also make an ideal office, playroom, media room, hobby room or anything else you can imagine. This area of the home is likely to be quiet and can give you a number of advantages.

A ranch style home can offer a number of benefits, including keeping everything on one floor. However, when you’re ready to expand, you can work with a Massachusetts home improvement contractor to create a ranch style home plan that makes use of your attic space.

If you need the help of home improvement contractors in Wellesley or the surrounding areas, contact us. Colony Home Improvement can help you transform your attic into a livable space.

Ready to evaluate unused space in your home? Request a quote for a practical planning conversation.

Granite Countertops Add Value and Elegance to a Ranch Style Home Plan

June 4, 20150
Granite countertops are great when you design your own home.

Design your own home with beautiful granite countertops.

Ask any realtor and he or she will agree: the kitchen and bathrooms are unquestionable focal points of any home. If you decide to put your home on the market, the quality of your kitchen and bathrooms will play a major role in how much you can expect to sell your home for. If you are working on a ranch style home plan or room addition or have a home you are planning to upgrade, don’t underestimate the importance of making sure these rooms are appointed with elegant touches. Granite countertops provide the biggest bang for your buck.

Why Go Granite?

Granite is naturally beautiful, smooth, durable and available in a vast array of hues. As people have come to appreciate the simplicity of natural materials, granite has skyrocketed in popularity. The wonderful thing about this trend is it’s a timeless style. The avocado green Formica countertops that were all the rage in the 1970s eventually (and thankfully) went out of style. However, granite, a natural material from the earth, will never go out of style. Bringing subtle, subdued, soothing natural elements into a home will always be appealing.

A ranch style home plan can benefit from granite countertops.

Granite countertops work well in a ranch style home plan.

So Many Colors, But How to Choose?

The toughest part of incorporating granite countertops into a ranch style home plan or room addition is choosing your granite slab. Should you go with dark or light countertops? Should you choose a solid color or one with swirls, flecks or veining? When all is said and done, it boils down to personal preference.

Here are some considerations to keep in mind as you’re contemplating granite colors:

  • Darker countertops look best in rooms with plenty of natural light.
  • Dirt and water stains are more noticeable on solid colored countertops.
  • One hot trend right now is incorporating two granite colors in the same room, such as a veined granite on a kitchen island and a solid granite on countertops.

If you want to coordinate the color of your granite countertops with any element in the room, coordinate it with your cabinets. Again, use personal preference as your primary guide, but realize there are color combinations that naturally complement each other – deep brown cabinets with green granite, cherry cabinets with peacock granite and light oak cabinets with tan or pearl granite, for example. When granite shopping, take a sample of your cabinets with you. To do this, you may need to remove a cabinet shelf or door.

An Extra Set of Eyes Never Hurts!

Whether you own a ranch style house that could use updating and aren’t sure where to start or you are drafting a brand new ranch style home plan, contact us. At Colony Home Improvement, not only can we assist as you design your own home in Wellesley and the surrounding areas, we also are standing by to serve as your trusted adviser for home renovations and room additions of all sizes. Got granite? We do, and we’ll be happy to get it into your kitchen or home plan!

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