TURRET
HOUSE consists of 4 basic 12 ft. square modules. Each two storied unit has
an 8/12 pitched shed roof and the 4 modules are offset around an 8 ft. square
central peaked turret with windows. The ground floor has 3 bedrooms and the
second living floor is open plan with dramatic sloped ceilings and turreted
clerestorey windows providing ample daylight to the center of the living space.
SW
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SE
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NE
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NW
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First
floor details: Small spaces are enhanced by careful window placement and minimal
furnishings. Bedroom #1 has 12 ft. square floor area with additional 11 ft.
closet space - three 4'x8' sliding doors make closet accessible. Single bedrooms
#2 and #3 have 5 ft. closets - each with corner hand basins to reduce bathroom
congestion. Entrance hall has coat closet and hot water tank under stairs.
Stairs are 3.5 ft. wide with 12 inch steps and 7 inch risers - safe and comfortable
to navigate. Glass door leads to privacy deck. Stacked washer and drier are
concealed behind dual use passage door.
Small
houses eventually require additional storage. Add a large (24'x24'x9') affordable
garage - doubles as rec room - table tennis or billiards?
Add
Garage
NW
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SE
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SW
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click
drawings to enlarge and explore
Second
floor details: The extravagant stairwell is open to the L-shaped living/dining
area - provides appearance of spaciousness. But the dramatic emphasis is in
the sloped ceilings and central turret. A glass door leads onto the dining
deck. Note the recessed telephone desk and shelves. The 4 ft. wide access
to the kitchen is arched. Storage in small houses is critical - hence the
kitchen pantry and the closet at the top of the stairs. Beams and sloped ceilings
are shown in the next set of drawings below.
Box
beam details: The 4 box beams shown below are 12 ft. long by 8 ft. high with
three 2 ft. square openings. Box beams are constructed using 2x4s with half
inch plywood nailed or screwed to both sides. Notice how the triangulated
side walls on each 12 ft. square box tie into and stabilize the box beams.
The second drawing shows the turret walls and windows placed on top of the
box beams. Turret walls fit above the box beams with the 2 ft. square windows
aligned with the box beam openings.
Designer's
comments: TheTurret House is incredibly stable structurally and will handle
extreme snow loading. A detailed drawing can be provided to show how the featured
eavestroughs can be protected from snow and ice slippage. The dramatic ceiling
volumes are immediately noticed when mounting the stairs. When standing in
the living room with ones back to the outside wall one can look up the sloping
ceiling to the box beam and through the three openings into the turret space.
The same visual feature is seen from the dining room and kitchen. The openings
in the box beams are 11 ft. off the floor (see section drawing above). The
turret space will be brightly lit during daylight, and potlights recessed
into the ceiling will provide similar effects at night. The ceiling fan should
run continuously during the winter heating months.
Section:
Notice turret ceiling fan and air convection. Green stairwell box beam shows
opening placement to match clerestorey windows above.
1st
floor = 640 sq. ft.
Turret House has 'attitude' even though it is only 1280
sq.ft.
