| Do you really need a set of plans for your renovation | | | | plans. |
| project? That depends on what you want to do. If | | | | For example, there's no reason you can't sketch out |
| you're simply changing an old faucet in the bathroom | | | | where you want a new greenhouse window to go or |
| for a new designer model, then you hardly need plans. | | | | where some new cabinets will be placed. |
| (If you do it yourself, of course, you'll need to follow the | | | | On the other hand, the more complex the plans, the |
| instruction sheet that comes with the new faucet | | | | greater your knowledge will need to be. If you're |
| assembly.) | | | | adding a room, you'll want to show foundation, roof, |
| On the other hand, if you're renovating the whole | | | | rafters, studs, ceiling, electrical, and possibly even |
| house, a kitchen, or a bathroom, or even if you're just | | | | plumbing. If you don't know the conventions for |
| changing the decor of your home, a set of plans is | | | | showing these features, you will undoubtedly want to |
| helpful, if not crucial. The plans are your road map to | | | | get help and probably have a pro do the plans for you. |
| where you want to go. They clearly show your | | | | Remember, the only things that plans are for is to |
| journey from before to after. Without a good set of | | | | show what you want done. As long as you can get |
| plans, you could end up in foreign territory with a job | | | | that across clearly, you've done the job. |
| that looks amateurish and may need to be redone. | | | | Renovation means not only adding new, but tearing out |
| Of course, the plans don't always need to be formal. | | | | old. When you break into a wall, you never know what |
| Sometimes just sketches of the final layout are all that | | | | you will find. There might be a diagonal brace right |
| are needed. This is particularly the case with interior | | | | where you want to place a window, or electrical wiring |
| redesigns. Other times, you'll need actual blueprints for | | | | or plumbing where you want to put a door. The plans, |
| contractors to follow. | | | | therefore, are only guides. Your really creative work |
| There is no one to say you can't draw the plans | | | | will come once you see what your true obstacles are. |
| yourself, although you may not want to. We'll discuss | | | | A quick word about home-drawn plans and building |
| getting others to draw the plans for you shortly. | | | | department approval. I've never known a building |
| A friend of mine took a drafting course in high school, | | | | department to refuse approval of home-drawn plans, |
| and that was enough to allow her to draw plans that | | | | regardless of the size of the project, if they were |
| she's used successfully for whole-house | | | | drawn correctly and clearly. Nobody says you must |
| renovations-indeed, for building homes from the ground | | | | use a professional. |
| up. The simpler the project, the easier it is to do the | | | | |