Room Additions in Altadena
Altadena room additions built to the ember rules for the new rooms, with footings checked and plans reviewed by Los Angeles County Building and Safety.
"Does the addition have to meet fire rules the old house never did?" On an Altadena lot within one of the mapped fire hazard zones, yes for the new construction. Those zones cover parts of Altadena, and inside them the rated roof, vents, siding and glazing apply to whatever we build. The existing house may stay as it is, though work that touches it, such as a new roof over both parts, follows the same standard.
Which parts meet the ember rules
For the addition, the roof covering carries a Class A rating, attic and foundation vents are listed to resist embers and flame, exterior walls get ignition-resistant or noncombustible material, and windows have a tempered pane. Eaves are enclosed or built from rated material. Where the new roof joins the old, the junction is detailed so no gap lets an ember into the attic. Gutters get covers that keep dry leaves from piling up along the roof edge. The plans list each rated product, and the inspector checks each one against its listing on site.
Permits for an unincorporated community
Los Angeles County Public Works, Building and Safety, reviews and permits construction in Altadena, a community with no city building department of its own. The county checks the structural sheets for how the new loads reach the soil and the fire sheets for each rated material. Pasadena and South Pasadena, its neighbors, are cities with their own departments. Inspections follow footing, framing, insulation and final, and each stage is signed off before anything covers it, so no rated detail ends up hidden behind a wall unseen.
About our room additions serviceEverything we do in Altadena
Room Additions in Altadena: questions
We open a test hole beside the old footing to see its width, depth and any reinforcement, and the engineer checks those against the weight of an upper floor. Where it falls short, the drawings add footing sections or posts with their own pads beneath the bearing walls, and that concrete is placed before any framing.
New floor joists hang from a ledger bolted into the old rim at the height that brings both floors flush. Old and new studs are joined at the wall line and strapped at the top plates. Over the joint, the roof sheathing laps and is flashed, and blocking closes the eave so embers find no opening.
Usually worth it. Anchors and cripple-wall plywood can go in while the crawlspace is open for footings, on the same county permit. Old foundation vents can be replaced with ember-resistant ones during the same visit, so the old house gains seismic and fire protection along with the new room.
Room Additions in other cities
More we build in Altadena
Book an inspection in Altadena
Describe the house and what it needs. We look at the structure first and send the quote in writing.