How To Modify House Plans | The Plan Collection
Channel: The Plan Collection
Date: 2013-01-23

http://www.theplancollection.com/modifications  

Our plans can be modified to create a house design that is customized to your needs.  In fact, the vast majority of homeowners make changes to the plan while building the home. Some of these changes may have been very minor while others represented substantial modifications. If you are interested in making changes to a plan you've found, we here at The Plan Collection hope to help you determine the best route to modify that house plan.

By far the simplest and least expensive to make modifications to a house plan is through a technique called "redlining." While called blueprints, all plans today are printed on white paper with blue or black line lettering. As a result, notations can be made easily on the paper using a pencil, pen, or redline pen to indicate minor modifications.

Redlining is not suitable for major changes, but it will work for the majority of minor changes. Examples of minor modifications using redlining include:

-- Moving or resizing a door or a window
-- Changing exterior finishes
-- Changing interior fixtures or cabinet layouts
-- Removing a chimney or fireplace
-- Shifting interior partitions that have no effect on structural supports

If you are thinking about more significant changes and would like to have a local designer or your builder do the changes for you, then you should consider purchasing the reproducible master or the CAD file for that house plan. If your builder is willing and able to make the modifications to the plan, this is often the quickest and least expensive option. If you prefer to work with a local designer, the CAD (computer aided drafting) file is often the best bang for the buck as it will save you time and money working with the local designer. Most knowledgeable designers today are very familiar with CAD but be sure to check first.

Some examples of more significant modfications that require either a reproducible master or CAD file and the assistance of a professional designer or experienced builder include:

-- Adding a room, garage or porch
-- Changing the foundation types if not available with the basic plan packages
-- Significant interior layout modifications
-- Adapting a plan to meet local codes or engineering requirements

Here at The Plan Collection, we believe that everyone should have access to beautiful, affordable home design. Our pre-drawn house plans can help save you time and money when you're designing and building the home of your dreams. Browse our collection of more than 20,000 house plans drawn by leading architects and designers, and find the perfect home to fit your needs!