Plans and the (New) Copyright Law

At least once in every class someone asks about a plan they found (in a plan book, saw it being built, etc.), and liked it (almost), and whether or not they can have it redrawn to meet their specific needs without going back to the original designer.

In the past it was thought that as long as you were making significant (?) changes to the original drawing you were not violating the copyright of the original designer. You could even "measure and observe" an existing structure and then draw the plans from your notes, photos, etc.

However, in 1990 the law for architectural design was significantly changed. Now, not only can the designer copyright his/her drawings, the actual constructed home, "the Architectural Work", is also protected.

OK, so you can't copy the plans, you shouldn't have anyway, but what does this law really mean.

One aspect of the new law came to our attention quite recently. One of our students was in the process of building a major remodel to his home. In the process the homeowner decided to move a load bearing wall. He, therefore, made the structural modifications, with our, and the truss company's, assistance and submitted them to the county. The county immediately sent the plans back to the owner saying that only the original designer, in this case an architect could make the modifications to the plans. The owner and I questioned this ruling, but under my present understanding of this new law, the county was correct.

Modification of a set of plans by anyone other than the "copyright owner" is now apparently illegal. So, just what does this mean to you, as the owner building a new house and to your contractor. Well, according to the information I have you legally couldn't even make code required changes to the structure without the approval (read extra cost) of the designer.

This could mean significant problems for the homeowner. A worst case scenario would be that you have a set of plans from, let's say South Carolina (SC), and one of the things you need modified is the structure to meet Oregon's energy code requirements. Under this new reading of the law you would have to send the drawings back to the SC designer for the changes, to which he/she (in this case) would not have a clue, or get a written release to allow you to make the modifications.

In the case of the student and the modifications to his remodel, he obtained a release from the architect to make the changes.

It is obvious that this could be a major problem, costing much time and money, so what's the solution? Do what we are doing in our design agreements: request up front, and have it in the "Design Agreement", that you, after purchasing the plans, have the right to make whatever changes you wish or the building official requires to have done. We also release ownership of the plans to the purchaser so he/she can make as many houses from the plans as they wish.

Tight Bath Tricks

To glance through plumbing fixture catalogs, you might think the bath has become the biggest room in the house. Where do they find room for fountains and fireplaces? In the real world, most bathrooms are small, and for good reason: Once a bathroom meets their basic needs, most people would rather devote any extra space to a larger closet or bedroom, or perhaps to another bathroom altogether. Bathrooms tend to get shoehorned into whatever small, irregular-shaped space is left over after other areas are accommodated. This can work, but only with care and the willingness to be creative. Here are two innovations we've used to make small baths work.

A Sink in a Tight Spot

In one remodel, both the stair and the bath needed to occupy the same space. Seemingly impossible, but we did it by cutting away the bottom and back of the vanity cabinet and setting it over the ceiling above the stairs below. The stairs get the headroom they need, and users of the sink above are none the wiser (as long as they don't look in the cabinet beneath). See drawing below.

It worked like a charm. The plumber did some plumber magic to fit the trap in above the slope, then snaked the drainpipe down along the side of the stair into an unfinished area of the basement. When the cabinet arrived, the installer measured carefully, then grabbed his circular saw and cut the bottom third of the cabinet at an angle. Once it was all trimmed out and the marble top went down, the cabinet looked normal. The only downside is the loss of undercabinet storage - a small price to pay for a relatively generous and conventional bath layout.

Shower Under a Slope

In another case, we had to fit a shower beneath a sloping second-story ceiling. Toilets and bathtubs work quite well backed up against a kneewall, but a shower - which requires enough headroom to raise your elbows above your head - generally does not. Since the layout in this case necessitated it, we won the needed headroom by stealing from the thickness of the roof structure, as you can see in the right hand drawing below. With new construction and R-30-plus roofs, that can amount to a foot or more. In this house, we just had 2x4 rafters, but a wide skylight set above the tub saved the day. Between the 4-inch rafter depth, the 3 1 /2-inch height of the skylight curb, and the 6/12 roof slope, we gained the foot of headroom we needed. It also gave us great light and ventilation. An S-shaped contraption brings the shower head up into the skylight well (we could also have used a hand shower or one of those articulated thingies). A pair of step like tiled shelves (slightly sloped, and underlayed with a waterproof membrane) makes the shower feel roomier and provides a place for plants to enjoy the light and moisture.

Designing the Two-Cook Kitchen

More and more we are being asked to design kitchens that will be used by two people working together to prepare meals. Because different people have different work habits, we always start the planning process by surveying the needs of both people. Some of the questions we ask, for example, are:

• What are the physical attributes of the two people? A very tall cook working with a very short cook will have a different set of counter-height criteria than two cooks of about the same height. A right-handed person will have different needs than a left-handed person.
  
  
• Who shops and puts away groceries, and when? Does one family member stop on the way home from work, bringing packages into the kitchen as another member is preparing dinner? If so, we consider having a separate unloading counter near the pantry space so as not to disturb the cook.
  
  
• Which cook does what? This is a crucial question-its answer tells us whether the kitchen needs extra appliances or whether shared equipment will work.

Two-Cook Categories

The National Kitchen and Bath Association identifies several categories of multi-cook situations.

Team cooking. With team cooking, two or more people share equally in the preparation and cleanup of meals, with no clear authority figure giving directions. In this situation it is best to design the room with as little shared space as possible. If the budget can afford, the only shared equipment should be the refrigerator, and it should be placed so that one cook does not have to cross the path of the other to reach this very important leg of the work triangle.

Assistant chef. In this scenario, the assistant is generally given preparation tasks such as washing and chopping vegetables. This situation calls for a second preparation center with a small sink that will keep the assistant close at hand but out of the primary cook's way.

Specialty cooks. This type of two-cook kitchen involves a primary cook for most preparation and cleanup and another cook (or cooks) that has a special interest in one type of cooking-someone who loves to make bread for instance. A separate baking center, designed with this activity and person in mind, will create an ideal kitchen for this household.

Avoiding Traffic Jams

Once we determine which general category the family falls into, we use an additional set of rules that expand on the criteria used for a one-cook kitchen. The primary concern is to avoid traffic jams. In a one-person kitchen, we try to create traffic paths that keep noncooking family members out of the work triangle. In a two-cook kitchen, we use either a greatly expanded triangle, or more often, two triangles (as you can see in the drawing below) that may share one or two common points. This allows the two cooks to work without interruption and avoids that familiar "kitchen dance" commonly known as the Bump.

Another way to avoid traffic jams is to widen walkways. The traditional 42-inch space between cabinets or appliances is not adequate in a two-cook kitchen. Allow 48 to 54 inches for edging by, and 60 to 64 inches for the walking space. To determine which end of these ranges to use, we go back to the survey of the physical attributes and look at the size and weight of the individuals in question.

Double Triangles

To establish two work triangles, you must have adequate counter space. This prevents traffic jams that occur when one of the two cooks spills over into the other's workspace.

At a minimum, allow 36 inches of clear counter for each cook. It is best when this counter space is in two separate areas rather than in one 72-inch stretch.

Depending on the configuration of the room, any of the three major appliances-sink, cooktop, or refrigerator-can act as a divide. The interview helps
determine which appliances can comfortably be shared and which need to be duplicated. Usually, the sink is the first fixture requested to be duplicated, with cooking equipment second, and the refrigerator a distant third.

If space or budget does not allow for duplication, concentrate on placing the fixtures where they are convenient to both cooks. Also, strive for easily accessible storage of spices and cooking utensils.

Islands useful. Consider using a large island to provide an accessible shared work space. It can have a sink or cooktop that is accessed from both legs of an L-shaped kitchen. An island can also offer a secondary work counter for an assistant cook.

We've focused here on the questions your kitchen designer should be asking if more than one person cooks in the family and how the answers to these questions impact the design of the kitchen. If you are doing your own design these same questions will help you with your layout.

Passive Solar for the Valley

Some say solar doesn't work in the valley (here the valley extends from Eugene to Seattle), some say it does. They are both correct and, of course, both wrong. Solar works when we do it right and we do it right when it is designed for our specific microclimate.

For example designing a field of voltaic cells for electricity production for the high Sierras might be just great, but in the valley it's not worth the time, effort nor money. The reason is that the solar for here must be designed to be effective with a minimum amount of available sun. Some say as little as 37% of the sunlight is available to us due to our normal cloudy, rainy weather.

So what does work?

One item that does work is passive solar batch water heating. You could call this "poor man's water heating" because for the most part it is assembled from low cost/recycled items.

We start with the solar tank itself which is a used (normally electric) water heater. At least in the Portland area these are easy to come by. If you check with the local plumbing companies you will find that they take out of service many electric water heaters and replace them with gas units. Since they have to pay to have the tanks hauled off to the transfer center, they are quite happy to have you remove them for free.

You then build an insulated box with a glass top to hold your tank. The glass top is another cheap acquisition if you know what to look for. An excellent choice is to use recycled or reject patio door blanks. They have everything working for them. They are tempered, insulated and the last ones I purchased were double insulated, low E, argon gas filled for $27 each.

Although there are all kinds of rules about proper angles we have found the best and easiest way is to set the box on the ground, some have commented it looks like a glass topped coffin, with the long side pointed South.

You then plumb into the existing water heater or, in the case of the systems our students have installed, into a standby tank (again a recycled hot water tank) prior to going to the water heater.

As you can see in the schematic, this is a very simple system and simple works.

The only extras are four standard water valves, a pressure/temp. relief valve and a tempering valve. The tempering valve insures that scalding water does not enter the domestic hot water system, any easy condition to come by in the summer.

One problem with many solar hot water systems is: "how does one prevent freezing?" This can amount to the use of antifreeze, which means a heat transfer system so that you are not poisoned, read added cost. Or, automatic drain down systems requiring differential thermostats and electric valves (again added costs).

In our "poor person's system," what does one do? Simply drain the system during those couple of months at the most when we might have freezing at night. And since we don't have a whole lot of sun during this time we really aren't losing all that much anyway, and the cost of adding the other type systems (antifreeze or auto drain down) probably won't even pay for them.

See the drawing on the next page for a visual idea of what we have been talking about.

For more complete information on this and other solar innovations that work come to our class in homebuilding/remodeling.

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