Room addition for a dedicated home theatre room...

[Zaphod]

OK here is a question that I have been thinking about lately and have no idea where to start. I want to make a room addition onto my house for a dedicated home theatre room. Now as far as building this addition goes, I have no skills in this. Meaning I would have no idea how to add a room from either the ground up for a ground floor or cut out part of the roof and add a 1/2 story onto my existing floor plan.

Now once the framework of said room is in place (i.e. exterior walls, roof, framing, electrical, plumbing and duct work), I know enough to actually fininsh the room to my liking from insulation to drywall, to what ever I want to do from the walls in for the theatre part.

My question is how much is this going to cost per square foot approximately to lay the foundation and build a unfinished room from the ground level. Also likewise how much would this cost to add ontop of my exisitng floor plan as a second story, including the roof, electrical, plumbing, and duct work.

Has anyone on this forum ever undertaken such a project, and if so did you do the majority of it yourself (excluding the actual building of the unfinished room)? Do I know what I am getting into? Also if anyone has any good links or resources let me know. Thank you in advance.

[The Guardian]

A lot will depend on your local building codes... In many areas (most even?) you can simply pour a concrete "pad" and build on top of it for a main level addition. It's quite possible to do it all by yourself with some friends helping if you're good with tools, but definitely pay someone to pour the pad for you, pay someone to do the roofing (no leaks on your equipment!!!) etc etc...

An upper level addition brings on a whole can of worms with structural etc (you have to have an engineer approve it in most locations, and they usually want professional architect drawings etc).

Final piece of advice: Make sure you get the proper building permits! That way you won't do anything illegal by mistake, and the inspectors will make sure you do it correctly.

A quick search should pop up any number of home renovation forums for more detailed answers if you want.

[evo_dadi]

permits are definitely a must,theyre a huge pain in the ass if not done right.contact some local contractors and let them know youre shopping around with other people to level out the competition.this is a big project and you dont want to cut corners so research and get as much info as you can.

[Rob71]

Just some rough numbers, figure $100-$150 per square foot. As far as contractors, don't use the phonebook. Ask everyone you know if they or any of their friends have had an addition. If so, look them over and ask questions. I know a lot of people who have had work done and very few are satisfied with the finished job. Not trying to discourage you, just be sure to do your homework.

[CptGreedle]

That sounds like a big project! Someday I'd love to own my own home theater (themed of course ).
Hey Beeblebrox, send us some pictures when you start doing it! I'd love to see what you do to get ideas myself!

Good luck!

[WriteSimply]

Echoing other people's comments so far. If you know a person that you trust who also have had a home theater erected as an extension (and not a replacement) of your house, ask him/her how he/she did it and the cost of it all, including marriage and stuff.

Doing it proper means not only you get the best home theater you can afford and can upgrade for a long time, but it also covers your existing home insurance plan.


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