Feedback on basement walkout for small residential home.

6 years ago

last modified: 6 years ago

Images Here: https://imgur.com/a/ogSe4jz

I’ve been hesitant to post this. I’m more self-conscious and insecure than I probably should be, but I’ve been struggling with small residential project for a while now, and could use some outside input. I have a lot of respect for the work that is posted here and the opinions of many of you so I would kindly ask that you be charitable/constructive if you offer feedback on this.

The project isn’t grand, it's a small home with a walk out basement, attic truss & bonus room upstairs. It’s on a very restrictive lot, there are budget issues, setback issues, the options are limited. I’ve had to get creative to get some of the desired features and maximize the utility of the lot/space.

The goal is to add roof over a basement walkout, there will be snow issues I’m aware, and plan on placing snow guards and engineering the roof to withstand the loads.

My primary concern right now is the appearance of the outside retaining wall which also serves as a 36-inch (above grade) “railing” for the 6-foot drop into the basement walkout below.

The inside and outside are very different. It’s not immediately clear that there is a walkout from the exterior and the concrete wall resembles a landscape wall. Adding some “posts”/”newels” to the exterior really helps break up the wall and gives the posts for the roof something to terminate into.

This does not, however, look good from the inside where the same posts would need to drop 8 feet.

I’ve searched for reference to see how others have handled similar problems but can’t seem to find much. Most of the time I just see metal posts resting on walls anchored by brackets into the top.

Maybe that’s the way to go, but my gut tells me I need a little more to tie this together.

My primary concern now is if I do have the decorative concrete posts on the exterior and not on the interior how do I resolve that? Right now I’m stopping the posts half way into the wall and having them “key” together ( see images ).

Any thoughts would be appreciated. I really want to do the right thing here and don’t want to produce something that looks gaudy, fake, or overly-complex.

Featured Answer

Jessica Fuerstinger

6 years ago

I think it looks very nice as is. Having the interior walls flat will provide a space to get creative with art/plants. Play around with adding some slim vertical plantings, metal artwork, etc on your rendering to see what it looks like, I bet you will fell less uncertain once you see that expanse broken up with some color.

Just to satisfy my own curiosity, is there a reason the walkout is not easily accessible to the entry door? (Is the basement a rental? That would make sense)

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Comments (7)

PRO
Mark Bischak, Architect
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
" . . . .a very restrictive lot, there are budget issues, setback issues, the options are limited."

Welcome to my world.

Let this be the termination of all your self-consciousness and insecurities. You may get some good advice here and you may get some bad advice, but it is up to you to sort it out and apply what is good for you to your project. There are a lot of factors that contribute to design decisions anywhere from budget to aesthetics to build-ability. Unfortunately budget seems to dictate design decisions more than they should. That being said, I have to go to a conference call and will add to this later.

Edit after conference call: Perhaps if you made the landing at the bottom of the stairs wider so that it became almost an outdoor living space; and I like the idea (if I am understanding it correctly) of finishing the wall with ceramic tiles or the like and making it so the space and stairs can be seasonally enclosed with temporary "storm windows" to block most of the weather.
HU-775359195 thanked Mark Bischak, Architect
fifamom
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
to be honest your photos look good if you can get the work done that way.. i think the way they stop into the top of the wall looks good and use the wall that is viewed from the walkout as an art canvas - narrow hanging plant baskets, painted, metal art.. do not overthink it..
HU-775359195 thanked fifamom
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HU-775359195
Original Author
6 years ago
Yes that was the idea for the interior wall. Thank you very much for the feedback I really appreciate it.
HU-775359195
Original Author
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
The idea was to set it up to be a studio rental, and to provide emergency egress. Yes.

We are at our setbacks and all the railings and concrete you see around the house there counts as "landscaping" so we can't easily have stairs going down into there because we go over those restrictions (we are too far above grade). I just managed to get everything to work with this design so that its up to code.

There is also a very large stairwell in the back of the house that goes into the basement. So if its not being used as a studio apartment then you have interior access as well.

This is also the only way to provide daylight to the basement in any meaningful way as other restrictions on the 3 other sides prevented window wells. So we made the decision to open it up this way. The retaining wall is actually already built. Standing the space down there is quite nice.

The walkout is also adjacent the neighboring properties driveway and house. So the concrete wall is there to provide privacy.
fifamom
6 years ago
another thought.. outdoor exterior wall tiles..
HU-775359195
Original Author
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
@Mark Bischack

Thanks for the feedback. I really appreciate it.

I am at my setbacks within 1 inch. We had a survey done and were just able to squeeze this in.

If I had more space there is a lot I would like to do but unfortunately this is the size it has to be.

I’m just trying to make it look intentional and unified.

My main concern is the details with the concrete posts and wall.