| There are a number of reasons one might choose to have an elevator in their multi-story home but in any case, regardless of whether the choice is because of age, handicaps or other reasons an elevator can remove a barrier or obstacle for the owners, their friends and/or family. When it comes time to make the decision regarding whether to add or include an elevator it will always be helpful to have the experience of someone familiar with home modifications for aging, handicaps and elevator installations. An elevator won’t be of much value unless there is a plan for the entire area which includes planning from a vehicle arriving outside, entry into the home, and access to bathroom, bedrooms and family gathering areas like the dining and living rooms.
We’ve included photos of two elevator installations which show the two basic ways an elevator may be included.
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Elevator Exterior Additions
In the case of the two story home viewed from the exterior, the addition was designed to be harmonious with and blend with the original exterior. We designed and built this addition to house the elevator which is behind the solid wall, on the far right of the two story addition. On the bottom floor the dining room was expanded and on the top floor the elevator was added along with additional storage.
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| Home BEFORE Elevator Addition |
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| Home AFTER Elevator Addition |
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This was our second job with Kip so we felt very comfortable with having him do the work.
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Incorporate one into and inside the existing home
This home was designed with a closet on the first floor, below a closely matching closet on the second floor. This provided a space to begin the elevator remodel and inclusion. In this case, the elevator installation was a small part of a much larger remodeling job inside the existing home. In addition to the actual space to house the elevator, the elevator equipment, electrical wiring routing, plus access into and out of the elevator on both floors must all be considered. The actual construction of the elevator is not done until the elevator shaft construction is completed, because each elevator is custom made.
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Elevators are custom built only after selections are made. These are selections of style and finish regarding, lights, colors, wood tones, paint colors and metal finishes.
Each elevator unit is built to fit into the space provided, therefore, its very important to order the elevator based on the exact construction dimensions, not what was drawn on the plans several months earlier.
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