Are you leaving the existing windows which we see in the photo? If so, I'd consider placing the stairs as far to the right and as close to the new addition as possible to eliminate confusion about the location of the new entry.

Will the new addition with the new gable completely project in front of the existing house or be flush with the facade of the existing house, or something inbetween? You may be setting up a roof drainage issue...

There'll be a hip roof (think that's the right word) to join addition for drainage. The addition will stick out proud of the porch about 6 feet. The windows that you see will both match each other-the right hand one will be removed and replaced with one identical to the left (that whole wall is a kitchen wall). Thanks so much for your input!!

I would line up the stairs to lead directly to the door. Then you will have a clear traffic path and will not have to worry about any outdoor chairs etc., being in the way of getting to the door. I always think in terms of having to get out of a house in an emergency and their should be no obstacles in the pathway.

I'd have steps on the left end of the porch for people coming from the garage area, and a 2nd set on the right close to the door.

A floor plan and elevations will result in better suggestions.

Here's the floor plan. The detached garage is off to the left and is not visible on this drawing. That new open front porch will be about 31 feet long, so we maybe a set of stairs on the left side and another as shown wouldn't be a bad idea. We'll consider it. Thank you. Oh-as for elevation, about 3 feet of foundation is exposed.

Yes. 2 sets of stairs would work best. One leading to the garage, the other leading to the front yard. Your porch is big and on 2 sides of your house so 2 sets of stairs would function best.

I'm sure you considered this.

A 10' wide porch would work better if you are using it as a porch.

I think the entire plan could be improved -- especially the kitchen.

It would be interesting to see the as built plan to understand what you are starting with.

Thanks for your input...This is an old farmhouse that we are just adding space onto for living, dining and a mainfloor master. I would agree that the kitchen is kinda weird--it probably won't change because of all of the constraints such as stairwells, 2 outside doors into closed side porch, etc. I really appreciate your thoughts.

oh, there are stairs going out the closed porch on the side of the kitchen.

Not clear how the new roof will work and keep water from flowing up against the existing wall.

There will be a "hip roof"-not sure if that's the right word.

No...that's not the right word.

Here's the problem:

Do you have a solution?

Cross-gabled? would that be the right term?

Green Designs is right, when you have a roof and siding joining like that, it's an invitation for water to leak into your home. With changing temperatures and other weather issues, that seam shifts, gets brittle and gets weak. Water eventually makes it's way through, and will damage the structure. Just imagine the leaves, branches etc that are going to get stuck in that valley. It is a truly bad idea. Ask a professional contractor (not the one who's trying to sell you this design).

Thank you for your help. I am concerned about water and leaves where the roofs meet. Do you think that would be a problem with the roof picture that PPF posted? That is the design that our contractor is proposing. Again, thanks!

If I had a choice, I wouldn't put that type of roof on my house because of water issues. In my mind, it invites more problems than it's worth, there's the added expense of roofing it and I think it's a leak waiting to happen. Is there any reason you can't go with a shed roof extending from the siding?

And to be honest, I think that addition like it's drawn is going to make the original house look like a growth protruding from the back. There will be no curb appeal. It will look like two houses cobbled together to make one house.

Thank you for your thoughts. A shed roof could possibly work, although we are going out 22 feet. Hopefully, with the addition of an open porch and wide porch stairs, and landscaping, we will have better curb appeal.

I would suggest putting this on hold and spending more time in the design phase. There is room for s lot of improvement! Even turning the addition so that the gable runs crosswise into the existing structure would be an improvement over a cricket. A cricket of that size means life on a ladder keeping it debris free and inspecting it. This has been thoughtlessly composed, and needs much more experienced eyes to fix the issues. I’d be leery of any contractor that proposed any of that.

^^^^^^^^ What she said!

^^^^^^^^ What they said!

The proper term for PPF's illustration is "cricket".

--The challenges include the slope and height of the cricket;

--The impact of the cricket on the existing house's windows, exterior wall finishes;

--The degree to which proper flashing and waterproofing are installed on the existing exterior wall when the cricket is installed;

--The design, if any, for runoff and collection of leaves/debris which will accumulate year after year at the bottom of the cricket.

Good luck on this project.

With the porch.

Thank you PPF!

I am always a fan of wrap around steps; esp if there are only a few.

That is a horrific “design”. You need to work with someone other than your clueless builder. I’m not sure I’d even trust him to build that. If he suggested it as a design, he doesn’t ha rveniugh expefience to be building that, much less “designing” that. You probably need a new builder too.

You say you're going out 22 feet; that's a lot, you need to scale it back. Just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you should. At it's very basic level, designing a living area means prioritizing what you need over what you want. Apart from it's structural dubiousness, you will never sell this house for anywhere near what you're about to put into it.