Toronto Two Storey Redesign – Upper Floor

Posted on: September 24th, 2010 | 31 Comments

It’s Friday, September 24, 2010 and today we are posting all the detailed information that you will need to participate in Part Two of the the re-design of Mike’s inner city home in Toronto. Last week we worked on the design of the main floor, and this week we are working on the design of the upper floor.

Click on the player below to watch John and Matthew’s telephone interview with Mike about what he hopes to achieve with the upper floor of his home.

Mike has a little less 500 square feet on the upper floor and is looking to accommodate two bedrooms, a bathroom (or two) as well as some good storage.

Here are some tips to consider while contemplating the re-design:

1. The bathroom design becomes critical as there may not be enough room for both an ensuite and a main bath. Also, as you remember from last week, there may not be a guest bath on the main floor, so the upper floor bath design would also have to act as a guest bath.

2. The stairs will need to work to come to the top floor and may require a winder at the top to get the correct number of risers. The main floor plan could be adjusted to alter the stairs, but they have to work on both levels and also provide a run to the basement.

3. It would be preferable from a budget point of view to keep the current locations of the bathroom and bedroom windows. Moving windows on the exterior is expensive and difficult.

Toronto Two Storey – Upper Floor – PDF
Toronto Two Storey – Upper Floor – Demo
Toronto Two Storey – Upper Floor – Full Symbol Library

We are excited to see your ideas for the second floor! Post them to the site as well as your comments and we look forward to having everyone join us for the LIVE workshop tomorrow morning at 8am Pacific/ 9am Mountain/ 11am Eastern.

  • BradW

    “Should I get out the magic wand!” classic Matthew :)

    Two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a den…call the marketing department we are gonna need some serious spin

  • BradW

    [img]shs2plana.jpg[/img]

    OK Mike, Matthew loaned me his magic wand – 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a den

  • Paul C

    Wand or shoe horn :- ) well done!

    Brad W anyway of getting the tub in the public/main bath and placing the half bath with the master?

  • Frances GF

    Just got to see the video on my lunch break. Matthew, you made me laugh out loud!

    Now on to the plan.

  • Terri

    Matthew,
    You crack me up!

    BradW,
    You must be a magician! Nice work.

  • Mid America Mom

    HI- i knew stairs would be my question :)

    How much should we allot for straight stair – 13′ ?

    Thanks,
    Mid America Mom

  • Matthew North

    MAM – allow about 13 feet six inches for a straight stair run.

  • Terri

    [img]toupper1.jpg[/img][img]toupper12.jpg[/img]

    I felt BradW put the elements in the best locations, so I worked off of his plan by laying out the two bedrooms and study in their current corners. I decided to try a segmented bathroom. The first one has two sinks–one in the bathing area and the other for the guest area. I got to thinking that it might be more useful to have two toilets, so I modified to allow that option; however, there really wasn’t room for a tub unless I obliterated part of the bathroom window, which I really didn’t want to do.

    The stairs are not straight run (as was indicated on the demo plan). The study is open to the landing. The west and north stair walls are the minimum to stay within code. The millwork bookcase in the study ends with a box cupboard for linen.

  • Terri

    Sorry, I forgot to mention that the dimensions I included for the bedrooms is w/o closet or entry areas, in other words the true working space of the room (unlike many fast home plan’s dimensions). I thought Mike like to know these, as he asked for some dimensions last week. ;)

  • Terri

    Wow, what a lot of grammatical errors in that last one…shame on me!

  • Jim G

    [img]20100924toronto02jimg.jpg[/img][img]1_20100924toronto02jimg.jpg[/img]

    I put a doorway and sliding doors under the load-bearing wall and I am not sure how safe that is.
    I also tried to find storage space in a house that seems to lack it. I have used the triangular-shaped space above the stairway for a storage in the den. (The space is a bit like stairs going up to a third floor, but instead of steps there are shelves.) Hope that makes sense.

  • BradW

    [img]shs2planb.jpg[/img]

    Oops – good point PaulC. Note to self, do not submit plan prior to having coffee in the morning…OK, guest bath in plan A expanded to family bath in plan B.

  • Terri

    [img]toupper2.jpg[/img]

    After posting my earlier plan, I saw Matthew’s response to M.A.M. re: the number of stairs, and I realized I’d missing something there. I had made the assumption that the demo was “fixed” already and totally ignored them. So…back to the drawing board. This plan doesn’t have a study now. I think that if it were me, I’d rather have the guest bath downstairs, like PaulC’s last plan (or even mine), and then put a main bath at top of stairs and the study where I put the main bath now.

    Or, the other alternative I’d offer is, include a vestibule in the front porch thereby allowing a stair turn into the living area on the main floor. I don’t know…it might work with PaulC’s plan, as he’d allowed the whole width from the staircase to the f/p wall for living space.

  • Terri

    *#%! In case anyone’s wondering… The “alternative” I’m talking about is using my first upper plan (earlier today) where there wasn’t a stair turn incorporated upstairs, so it would have to be on the main floor.

  • Terri

    BradW,
    Nice fix. I can’t believe you fit it all in!

    Jim G.,
    Two full bathrooms too. The only thing is, there’s a conflict with the sink and toilet in the main bath. I thought of turning the vanity, but then the door doesn’t work…

  • Anonymous

    Jim G – interesting storage over the stairs, also, you can probably get away without a door on the shower in the family bath

  • BradW

    Previous comment was mine.

    Terri, thanks…

  • Frances GF

    [img]1_shs2demo.jpg[/img]

    Hi Mike,

    Here is my rendition, two bedrooms and a bath and an ensuite power room. The second bedroom is furnished as a den. This was my compromise of your wish list.

    I assumed this remodel is for just you and your wife so the second bedroom could have a foldout bed for guests.

    A smaller home needs storage, make that all homes need lots of storage! Double closets in both bedrooms should provide the storage you require.

  • Frances GF

    Jim G,

    Nice detail on the storage above the staircase.

    I was thinking the same thing but didn’t know how to draw it. In my plan this storage would be in the full bath above counter height.

    I chickened out and just provided in the wall storage!

    Thanks for the sketch, makes it really clear.

  • Terri

    Frances GF,

    I like your compromise for the study and second bedroom combined. The idea flickered briefly in my mind too, so it’s great to see you did it.

  • BradW

    [img]shs2frances.jpeg[/img]

    Frances – I repositioned the tub in your family bath.

  • BradW

    Terri, I like the guest bath location at the top of the stairs.

    In Europe and Japan, the second bath may not have a toilet – I wonder if that is an option that would be acceptable in Canada….probably not but it could save some valuable space here.

  • Jim G

    [img]20100924toronto02jimgfix.jpg[/img]

    Thanks for the observations Terri. My magic wand turned into a rubber ruler.
    I replaced the shower with a bath tub and moved the wall in front of the sink out to align with the pillar. The space still seems cramped.

  • BradW

    [img]shs2terri.jpg[/img]

    Terri – here is a euro version of your plan – the bath is split into a traditional half bath and a shower/tub room in the style of a previous case study

  • Mid America Mom

    [img]toscdflr3.jpg[/img][img]toscdflr2.jpg[/img]

    Hi everyone. Feel like I have been working all day on this!

    Will have to take a break and see what everyone has after I post.

    Straight run stair goes to a landing that has a 1/2 bath, with pocket door, at the back wall. Turn the corner and there is the second bedroom. The hall has a small closet.

    Go through the door at the end of the hall. On the left is built in 2 foot deep closet/cabinets that are above the stair in that dead space (my grandmother had this over her back hall and it worked just fine and was a great storage area). To the right is a door to the master.

    Ahead is a frosted door that opens to the bathroom. On one side is an acrylic clawfoot tub with shower attachment like this one – http://www.americanbathfactory.com/bathtub.php . Behind the tub in the dead space above the stair is drywalled/tiled wall with shelves or cabinets. The toilet is near the window. Opposite is the sink with an attached storage tower that is about 1 deep by 1 or 1.5 feet wide. Where do the towels go? Rods are mounted next to the tower.

    ******
    The alternate plan takes out one storage space, second door, and the 1/2 bath and places in a desk.

    Mid America Mom

  • Mid America Mom

    [img]toscdflr6.jpg[/img]

    Side winding stair.

    Kept the storage over the stair! A clawfoot tub can fit. Is this a slow second floor?

    Goodnight!
    Mid America Mom

  • Frances GF

    Brad,

    Thanks, the tub location was bothering me.

  • Frank

    [img]2_reviseddesign.jpg[/img]

    Brad and Frances:

    Did some slight modifications of your designs to add shower in Master and desk in hallway.

  • Mid America Mom

    [img]toscdflr7.jpg[/img]

    I wanted to post this. My first thought was this plan.

    Mid America Mom

  • TomE

    Hi,
    If the study desk, gets more use than the guest room, then I would put the study desk in the guest bedroom with a sofa sleeper. If may be tight when the guests are there, but how long are they staying for?
    http://eq3.com/cat-eq3/scan/fi=products/st=db/co=yes/sf=inactive/tf=prodsort%2Csku/to=r/se=0/sf=category/se=sofa%20sleepers/ml=16.html

  • Mike

    BradW;

    thanks for your input, looks great.
    Can you give me dimensions of rooms

    also for Frances’ family bath (since you re-worked it) I was toying with the idea of toilet and tub on same wall, using a half wall and glass for light.
    Is 6′ 8″ wide enough for how you layed it out?

    Frank; nice work also; can you provide room dimensions?

    MAM: what do you think a slow second floor should be? do I sacrifice storage for bedroom size or by adding a second bath?
    your thoughts (and others) are appreciated.

    thnx again
    Mike