Second Story Addition

When Aptitude met the homeowners for this project, they wanted to add space to their home but they weren’t sure what was the best way to do it. The way their house sits on the property in Kirkwood, there wasn’t enough room to do a pop top addition, so instead Aptitude recommended adding a second floor. This gave the home three extra bedrooms and an additional bathroom. The first step on this project was for the engineer and architect to evaluate the home and make sure that the existing exterior structure could support the weight of a second story. Once this was approved, Aptitude designed a layout for the second story using the footprint of the first story and taking into consideration the location of the bathroom and chimney. Once the plan was in place, the team was able to begin construction. The most stressful part of these kinds of jobs is that people are living in the home the entire time construction is happening, and the Aptitude team is committed to disrupting daily home life as little as possible. But with something like adding an additional floor extra steps have to be considered as things like the roof was being removed. Thankfully the Aptitude team has a lot of experience with these kinds of projects and can make these transitions as smooth as possible for the family. Some of Aptitude’s favorite features on this project are the exposed brick, the custom-built window seats and the overall openness of the new second floor. When your family expands and you need more room, you don’t necessarily have to move or tear down your existing home. If you have the right builder, a pop top or adding a second floor might be a more affordable and less disruptive option.

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