Not typically a part of remodeling, but if you are building a new home or a home on a sloped lot or a driveway or a pool or even possibly a large addition, grading may be a major part of your project.
The grading department is usually a separate department, not a part of the building department, and involves a lot of specialists such as soils engineers, civil engineers, big equipment, lots of inspections and of course lots of rules and regulations.
The first step in figuring out how to remodel is to understand what you have! A remodel, by definition, means you already have a house, unlike new construction where you have a blank canvas.
So, I always create the “as built” plans myself (many architects have others do this for them.) One reason is that this way I can really get the feel for the home. How is it built? What kind of framing is used, where are the important structural areas, how has it been improved or added on to over the years, etc. Also every house has its own personality and I feel you need to experience it to understand the flow. All of this information helps inform ways that the house might be altered, added to or changed to suit the scope of the owner’s requirements.
So I go around the entire exterior – photograph everything – measure everything – note the siding, roofing, overhangs, foundation, driveways, hardscape, trees. Then with the outline of the building created, I go inside and figure out how the house is split up with interior wall.
The result is a 36 x 24 inch freehand drawing of the plan of the house.
Then, everything is entered into CAD (computer aided design) which I started using when it first came out in the 90’s. Originally CAD only did two dimensional drawings. Now when I input a house into CAD, I actually build a virtual model of the house in 3d. I can show you the inside and outside “virtually” and we can create various designs that you can actually experience before you start to build.
This is a complete game changer in helping you get the design you want.
ADU – Isn’t that a horrible name – so institutional?
Accessory Dwelling Unit – not so warm and fuzzy as a cute little guest house nestled in the oak trees … but that’s where we are. You can call it a “guest house” but the city and the county will call it an ADU.
WANTED! – Your cities and towns are heavily promoting ADUs but are they easy to permit and cheap to build?
A baffling variety of ADU’s exist. You can have an attached ADU, a detached ADU, a junior ADU or an ADU within an existing accessory structure.
The states (not only California but all over the US) have put pressure on cities and counties to create more “dwelling units” and they think ADU’s will help.
Additionally, many cities and counties are willing to look the other way from past discretions. Illegal units can be converted into “legal” units with “Compliance Programs”. This bizarre challenge has not been successful. Many previously built “dwellings” are significantly different than current required building codes causing havoc in the “approval process.” Think about everything from a “Yurt” to a shack that might have been converted….
Building an ADU
Ventura County
With the exception of using the Ventura County pre-approved plans, building an ADU requires all the same steps as building a new house for the most part. Although, I believe the state promotes the idea that they are doing everything to reduce requirements and speed up permitting time, from my experience it isn’t any different.
Ventura County actually has 3 “pre approved” plans which you can use.
Requirements in the city of Ojai are pretty much the same as the County. You can build a new 1200 SF ADU (1800 SF if you have over 10 acres). Previously Ojai limited the size of a second “residence’” to 640 SF.
Interestingly, parking requirements change if you build an ADU.
This is a house designed several years ago for Ojai, California. It’s important to note that this is a hot dry climate in a wildfire area.
Part of the objective was to design a simple, efficient, easy to build home that takes some lessons from prefabricated homes. I often meet with people who are interested in the idea of prefabricated homes only to find out that it’s not always the best solution. For several reasons, including prefabricated homes are not designed site specifically and they are very difficult to change from the standard format. so this exercise was to design something that could be built in this area on a lot facing south with the advantage of being simple and inexpensive to build.
The house faces south and has a large overhanging roof which shades the property. This is passive solar design. Additionally the house would have a solar array on the south-facing roof on top. The house is built with a concrete slab on grade design and standard “stick” or wood frame which is the standard in most of the USA. The concrete is also the finished floor. The outdoors is used ase outdoor living area. The garage, a building code requirement at the time, is intended to be used as a studio or guest room instead of an actual garage.
View from the deck of my Ojai home on the morning of December 5 2017 as the Thomas Fire roared down the south side of Sulphur Mountain into Ventura. Two days later, the fire cam around the other , North, side of town.
If you haven’t lived through a wildfire it’s impossible to imagine. Hurricane force “Santa Ana” winds – combine with a spark and quickly become a horrifying, mesmerizing, surreal experience ravaging death and destruction. I just missed the age where I could have gone to the war in Vietnam and I imagine the dropping of napalm might be a similar horror.
From the white paper created by Steven Kolter – the experts agree the west is going to burn – all off it – in the next 5 – 20 years!
A Solutions-First Approach: Forest + Fire
By Steven Kotler
“Sometimes you’re up shit’s creek with a paddle.” —George Carlin
This is a story about fire and forests and possibility in the American West. It is a story of community, culture, opportunity, and innovation. It’s the tale of an entire bio-region coming together to take a stand against long odds—and winning.
The No-BS Problem
The American West is going to burn. It’s that simple. All the experts agree—and this never happens. Except it happened here. And their conclusion is that nearly every acre of forest in the West is going up in smoke over the next ten years.
Actually, there’s some disagreement. Most experts say ten years. A few say twenty years. But think about what this actually means—by the end of the 2030s, vast swatches of the American West will be denuded of trees, empty of animals, and a charred hunk of its former self. And if you live in the American West, unless your house is fire-proof, there’s a good chance your house will be gone as well.
What all the studies show is that once cataclysmic forest fires start, they don’t stop for over a decade, until all the fuel is consumed. These fires have already started. In California alone, over the past five years, twelve of the largest wildfires in history have been recorded. In 2020, two fires roared clear across the Sierra Nevada mountain range—a feat once considered impossible. By 2025, the problem had become a cataclysm. The Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles County claimed 27 lives, destroyed over 12,000 structures, and caused untold billions in losses.
And the same is true all over the West.
Already, the destruction is immense. Between 2020 and 2024, wildfires in the American West caused an estimated $70-$150 billion in damages per year, including uninsured losses and health-related costs. The 2025 LA fires added another $250 billion to the total. Additionally, wildfire smoke is ten times as toxic as normal air pollution, leading to immediate spikes in respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, and longer-term issues with cancer.
These healthcare costs don’t include the psychological toll of fire. Whole communities are now dealing with PTSD. Everybody is suffering. And just in case you thought someone was coming to save us….
It’s worth pointing out that despite the incredible work of all of the various agencies who fight fires and protect forests in the American West, everyone involved is so under-funded and over-stressed that prisoners being paid $4 an hour are working the front fire lines—and even those crews are stretched thin.
Change our thinking?
Maybe we need to rethink how we build our homes… We have essentially been building the same way for 200 years – wood frame construction, vented roofs and basements in crowded subdivisions.
Conventional Design ? – Make it better
Many new requirements are already included in the ever changing building codes. “Wildfire areas” require tempered glass on all windows, no exposed flammable materials – such and wood shingles or even exposed rafter tails – any exterior lumber must be of a minimal dimension of 4x (more difficult to burn). Roofs must be Class A fire resistant.
Clearance zones are required – with minimal flammable area
But is this enough? Look at the Pacific Palisades or the Paradise fires in California where entire neighborhoods were obliterated – 1,000’s of homes.
What about concrete homes?
ICF – Insulated Concrete Forms – are a great way to build in a high fire area. The material has been around a long time – easy for concrete contractors to adapt to even if they haven’t used them before. Although not seen as much in warm climates, ICF is a common technique in colder climates.
After the Tea Fire in Santa Barbara, which burned 210 homes, several were rebuilt using concrete.
Your design has to take into account the thick walls. The house in the video below has 15 inch thick walls. The 2017 Thomas Fire burned right over the house. Zero damage!
What about partial earth sheltering?
You might think this is crazy! And it is if you are a conventional thinker, but what if you take some of these ideas and modernize them – a hybrid design – by tucking a part of your home into a hill you can create a lot of advantages.
Excuse the primitive videos – they were created almost 20 years ago.
California Building Code was substantially changed in 2008 to add wildfire area building requirements. Click Here
What is your risk?
Of course before you can figure out the best strategy to build or fortify your home, you need to understand the unique risks for your property… Am I in the path of “Santa Ana” wind events? What type of neighborhood and how close are the houses? Is there wildland or large areas of brush upwind from your home? Are you on a hillside?
Check out the build of this beautiful contemporary, Spanish style home. This is new construction from the ground up. The old small house was removed to build this one.
This beautiful 1915, Spanish style home in Santa Monica, California, had beautiful bones but was woefully underbuilt – especially by today’s standards. Watch as the entire house is gutted to the studs – and even half of those were rotten – and built into a fabulous new home. This project actually includes new construction – a pool house – as well as the gut remodel of the main house.
One of my favorite homes ever! The house, designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1978, is owned by the City of Pasadena and operated by the University of Southern California School of Architecture. The Gamble House is open for public, docent-led tours and for specialty tours and programs.
I’ve been at least 9 times! Not only is it a spectacular house but walking inside is like being inside of an antique cabinet. The woodworking is extraordinary.
Cabinets – always an important, significant and detail filled area of home building. An architect friend of mine once did 12 pages – full size 24 x 36 inch old school hand drawn – on cabinets for one project. Some designers only supply the simplest line drawings with almost no detail – other provide a great deal. Furthermore, the cabinet maker should provide detailed drawings prior to construction.
