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Cost to raise a roof & add terazza?


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Still trying to solve the problem of an intensely hot, glass-enclosed south/southwest alcove in the master BR.  I've decided to take the $$ that would have been spent building a casita--which every person I've spoken with has vetoed, because friends from NOB that promise to visit never show up--and use it for enlarging the eave/overhang of the BR, and knocking out the plate glass windows (that don't open) and put in doors that open onto a new, covered terraza. 

Question: the angle of the present roof on the alcove needs to be changed so the roof has a more gradual slope.  This would mean taking out 8 beams, each about 6' long, raising the exterior wall another foot or so, the replacing the beams with new, longer beams, that cover the alcove AND extend out to create a little 200 sq ft  terraza.  Cover the roof with tiles as before. Put in a couple of French doors, as well as 5 or 6 tall sliding windows to allow much improved airflow.  I will need a few colums, obviously, to support the roof covering the terraza. Also, I need about 2' of fill to make the terraza the same level as the master bedroom.  Any idea of an approximate cost for this type of work?

And if you have an idea on that, what about the cost of knocking out and moving an interior wall to re-do a walk-in shower, as well as re-doing (re-tile, move drain about 3') the shower itself?

(For those of you already familiar with the situation, the windows are already tinted, and the blind guy says new blinds will cut down on heat but, unfortunately, decrease the small amount of airflow now coming into the room).

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15 minutes ago, kimanjome said:

Still trying to solve the problem of an intensely hot, glass-enclosed south/southwest alcove in the master BR.  I've decided to take the $$ that would have been spent building a casita--which every person I've spoken with has vetoed, because friends from NOB that promise to visit never show up--and use it for enlarging the eave/overhang of the BR, and knocking out the plate glass windows (that don't open) and put in doors that open onto a new, covered terraza. 

Question: the angle of the present roof on the alcove needs to be changed so the roof has a more gradual slope.  This would mean taking out 8 beams, each about 6' long, raising the exterior wall another foot or so, the replacing the beams with new, longer beams, that cover the alcove AND extend out to create a little 200 sq ft  terraza.  Cover the roof with tiles as before. Put in a couple of French doors, as well as 5 or 6 tall sliding windows to allow much improved airflow.  I will need a few colums, obviously, to support the roof covering the terraza. Also, I need about 2' of fill to make the terraza the same level as the master bedroom.  Any idea of an approximate cost for this type of work?

And if you have an idea on that, what about the cost of knocking out and moving an interior wall to re-do a walk-in shower, as well as re-doing (re-tile, move drain about 3') the shower itself?

(For those of you already familiar with the situation, the windows are already tinted, and the blind guy says new blinds will cut down on heat but, unfortunately, decrease the small amount of airflow now coming into the room).

What you need at this point is some recommendations for a good contractor or two who can give you an estimate.

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I don't know what your house looks like or your architectural style, but for a cool shady terraza, I would highly suggest building a boveda catalana style brick ceiling and support it with wide brick arches on the outside for added shade and coolness. The catalan brick ceilings for terraces are amazingly cool for these hot days.  And depending on the guys who do it and the quality grade of bricks and materials, it can be done much cheaper than you would think.  And for windows that receive a lot of direct sunshine, consider building an iron frame over it and covering it in the red tiles for a cool Spanish look to allow air flow but prevent the intense rain and sunshine from entering into the house.  Many of the spanish details that go with a Spanish or Mexican style house were developed for a reason.

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Cost for the above will run from 7,000 to 9,000 pesos / sq m. Agree that you should be looking for estimates... We received three. One was 1/2 the cost of the other two... We discounted the cheaper quote as way out of line... We are extremely pleased with the work performed and the contractor did many extra items that were not in the contract but added to the overall success of the project... PM me for a reference...

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It is nearly impossible to make suggestions without seeing what you have and, therefore, envisioning what you want to achieve.

You have not lived in the house for a year to see what happens at different times and seasons. You may very much like that warmth in the winter months. May I suggest you purchase an outside "Coolaroo" pull down shade to cover the window in the interim? Because it's on the outside of the window, the heat gain from the glass is eliminated. That would give you the time to decide exactly what you will need that will work for you year round. Coolaroo shades originated in Australia and are available on Amazon.

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Agree with pappy's market.... We suffered through the hot season because our mirador was directly over the master bedroom... Enclosing the mirador means that we can sleep and normally need a blanket early in the morning... There are some very good and probably much less expensive ideas posted here on how to beat the heat gain...

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Looked at the Coolaroo site. The exterior shades are great at reducing sun, but they wont help increase the airflow/cross ventilation.  There are three huge plate glass windows measuring 7 x 6 feet each, as well as a screened iron door, that are in full sun from 2 to sunset every day. Even when I was in the house in late January (cool weather) I noticed the room was stuffy, but really didnt give it much thought, other than asking the current occupant about the heat, and she replied by saying she loved the heat. But the Coolaroo looks fabulous for other windows in the house!

The present ceiling/roof is presently 1/2 boveda catalana. I have an architect coming out today to give me some ideas.  Maybe he can think of a way to incorporate the present roof into a new terazza?

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