Split-level Home

This 36 X 38-foot year-round house, the largest and most ambitious project in these building plans, provides for 1700 square feet of living space. It is distinguished by clerestory windows in the living room and at the top of the stairwell. The living room and both upper level rooms have balconies.

A further refinement is the centrally-located utility room’s concrete foundation (with cement block or poured walls), which is shown in the Cross Section (Page 95) and also in the Lower Level Floor Plan following. These two plans also show the stairway entrance to the utility room. Additional access is provided by a sliding door off the main deck (see top left area of the Floor Plan).

Plumbing and heating appliances and connections for the house are contained in the utility room and the chimney flue runs through a corner of the kitchen. A heating duct diagram is not included here, but could be planned in similar fashion to that shown with the preceeding Year ‘Round Home Plan on Page 87. The use of baseboard hot water heating is recommended, however, for ease of installation.

Procedures for construction follow the main text generally. The outside poles should be trued up on their inside faces, following the instructions given in the caption on Page

In these plans all the floor joists are connected to the plates by manufactured metal joist hangers (see Page 20), except where the upper decks or hanging balconies occur. So that these balcony joists will be cantilevered, the plates at these points are lowered the width of the joists, rather than being flush—as shown in the Balcony Detail view.

Because of the flat surfaces of the roofs, built-up gravel surfaced roofing should be planned there. Heavier than usual roof rafters and upper plates are used (see Cross Section Page 95) to allow for the extra weight of this roofing and also a possible snow load increase. Pole distances are 12 feet.

In northern climates the roof areas, as well as side walls and floors, should be heavily insulated (see General Heating Information under the plans on Page 82). The furnace for this house, when built for severe winters, should have a 160,000 BTU capacity. The electric service entrance panel, located in the utility room, should be of 200 amperes size.

Since none of the walls of the house is load-bearing, the wall studs could be located 24 inches on centers rather than the usual 16 inches. This would effect some savings in materials and in labor. The floor joists, however, should be kept at 16 inches on centers.

Pole Building
Main entrance to this four-bedroom, two-bath home is from the foreground deck. If the balcony deck beyond is moved to the end of the house, wider, protecting eaves should be planned on the upper roof.

 

Split Lev*l Main Floor
Pole Building floor plan
Pole Building upper floor plan
SPLIT-LEVEL FLOOR PLAN
There also is direct entrance to the home from below-from the carport area via the utility, room, as shown also in Cross-Section view on Page 95. If the terrain permits, tool or fuel storage may be planned at the end of the utility room. (Turn book sideways t< view these plans).
Lower deck is supported by three short poles
F R O N T VIEW OF SPLIT-LEVEL
front view of split level
SPLIT-LEVEL CROSS-SECTION
Stairs in house center reach up to small upper hall (Page 92 Floor Plan), down to similar hall on lower sleeping level, and further down to the utility room and carport level. Carport may be entered from either end of the building.
INDIRECT LIGHTING
Standard fluorescent strips may be boxed as in this detail plan for use along an interior wall of the living room, as indicated in the Page 92 Floor Plan.
balcony detail for split levet
Like the higher bedroom balconies, the deck off the living room area hangs cantilevered as an extension of the floor joists.
side elevation
END VIEW OF SPLIT-LEVEL
Upper balconies shown here attach to the upper, corner bedrooms. The clerestory windows between the roof levels light the central stairways. The utility room at lower center is recessed 14 feet from the near wall.

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.