Part 11- Designing A Custom Home, A Builders Perspective- Nook & Leisure Room

Part 11- Designing A Custom Home, A Builders Perspective- Nook & Leisure Room

The Nook and Leisure Rooms both have trey ceilings for added impact.

The Leisure room is where the family gathers to watch TV or just enjoy casual conversation. The size is adequate and I like how it's positioned to enjoy the view of the TV and also the view to the pool through the sliding glass doors.

There's a lot of magic going on here that may not be apparent at first look. The glass doors come together without a corner post. This enables the owners to slide both doors back out of the way for a panoramic view of the pool and beyond. The Verandah feels like an extension of the Leisure Room as both spaces flow together. Installing the same flooring materials in both spaces enhances that feeling. It's a really cool feature and very impressive!

The technical issue, how do you provide for two glass doors coming together without a supporting post when there is a 2nd story and roof load above? Frankly, it's not an easy issue to overcome and it had to be done correctly. Usually it requires two steel beams that weigh 150lbs/LF. The beams have to span the entire glass door opening in two different direction. The beams rest on the load bearing columns on the Verandah and on the exterior walls. The spans involved are around 30'. The magic isn't inexpensive but certainly worth it in a Luxury Custom Home.

I'll make one additional point here that's really important. The Builder needs a backup plan in case the glass door opening deflects or sags, over time. We use threaded steel rods that are accessible from the attic space above so an adjustment can be made without a lot of difficulty. This avoids an issue where the homeowner complains they are having difficulty operating their sliding doors.

Make sure the Builder uses high quality sliding glass doors and/or motorized operators as that is quite a bit of glass door to slide by hand.

The Nook size is adequate and also has mitered or store front glass for a great view when eating breakfast.

Part 13- Designing A Custom Home, A Builder's Perspective- Rear Elevation

The first thing you notice on the rear elevation is the two story roof above the Verandah that allows indirect light to enter the Living Room. As I mentioned in Part 4, this is a vital aspect of this plan as it lights up a room that otherwise would be quite dark with a roof line of 12-14' high. The two story glass opens the Living Room to the fabulous view to the pool.

As you view the rear elevation photo below, notice the pool does not have a screen enclosure. It's quite the trend to eliminate a screen enclosure these days. This movement if fueled by the cost of an enclosure ($30,000) as well as the use of motorized, retractable, screens. Additionally, your pool water will be warmer by 5-10 degree without an enclosure.

Bedroom 3, Leisure Room, Living Room, Master Bedroom and the Pool Bath all have access to the pool area. Frankly, that's all part of the Florida lifestyle.