So I got a quote...OMG

[bobg03]

When my house was built a roof was put over the 8x16 area off my kitchen and a screen room was installed with an aluminum door to access the concrete stairs put in place. It is a wonderful place to sit even in the heat of the summer with a ceiling fan overhead.

The two drawbacks to the room are that we do get a spell of cooler weather where it can't be enjoyed and the screens and inside of room turn yellow as we enter pollen season.
What do you do? You look at closing it in with a better door and panels with sliding screened windows and an 18" knee wall leaving the roof and ceiling as is along with the beams.

I went to the Myrtle Beach Home Show last weekend and looked at a variety of available items and spoke with the vendors, I made an appointment to get an estimate with the one that impressed me the most. My brother who has done some similar projects, but unfortunately lives 1000 miles away took a guess of about $8500 to $9000 all in and said based on what I showed him $10K might even be fair, depending how bad I would like it.

The quote came in $17,862 and if I got on the list schedule and committed in 20 days it would be 10% off....

I guess I don't want it that bad....

 

[niget2002]

I could wash the screens for a really long time before paying that amount. And a decent propane heater would help the winter.

 

[CombatNinja]

That's totally a "Home Show' B.S. number you got. Those things prey on people with no clue and money to burn, so the inevitable happens. You're getting quoted $138/sq ft when you already have a roof and a slab. Just get another quote from one of those outfits that does a lot of sunrooms and porches, they are alll over the place in your area.

 

[regguy1]

Our house originally had a screened porch, the previous owner converted it into living space, it was a complete DIY half assed job
3 1/2 years ago I tore it out to bare studs only then did I realize it was worse than thought. (too much to tell in this post) I had to redo the framing / insulation / flooring and a hundred other details. I did everything myself except for the drywall. I spent $2500.00 not including the furniture. I had a women who has 30years experience doing drywall, she charged $1200.00 and did a terrific job. here's a video of the finished product:

 

[MovingAlong]

My brother who has done some similar projects, but unfortunately lives 1000 miles away took a guess of about $8500 to $9000 all in and said based on what I showed him $10K might even be fair, depending how bad I would like it.

Offer him a plane ticket and a weeks room & board, see if he'll do it for $8500...

Multiple estimates are a good idea though.

 

[bobg03]

Our house originally had a screened porch, the previous owner converted it into living space, it was a complete DIY half assed job

I'm not converting it into any kind of living space, It's all concrete and sits about 4' above the ground level and the floor is stamped. Just wanted to make it usable year round, it's certainly not going to be heated or AC'd.
I works fine for what was designed for.

 

[bobg03]

Offer him a plane ticket and a weeks room & board, see if he'll do it for $8500...

Multiple estimates are a good idea though.

I did, he reminded me he doesn't take vacations...lol
He works in a wastewater treatment plant and works part time evenings as a janitor in the school.
He will take any kind of small construction/remodeling job through word of mouth on weekends tho. Can you say workaholic?

I do plan (once the shock wears off) on getting at least two more estimates, 3 if needed.

 

[Slowboat]

I have found that 3 season porches stink compared to fully screened. Too hot when you really want to use it, and uncomfortable (cold) in shoulder seasons. I vote to keep as is.

 

[Youngandfree]

Can you nail up studs and hang windows? Sounds like a pretty easy diy

 

[ddurrett896]

I did, he reminded me he doesn't take vacations...lol

He's being paid - it's a long distance job.

 

[jar944]

That's totally a "Home Show' B.S. number you got. Those things prey on people with no clue and money to burn, so the inevitable happens. You're getting quoted $138/sq ft when you already have a roof and a slab. Just get another quote from one of those outfits that does a lot of sunrooms and porches, they are alll over the place in your area.

138/sqft but 32 linear feet of windows.

You can't really throw out a number based on sqft for a single room.

 

[bobg03]

He's being paid - it's a long distance job.

He's got a full time job as a wastewater treatment operator 2 miles from his house and a part time job as a school janitor 20 hours a week during school year and 4 hours two nights in the summer, 4 miles from home and a large property to maintain. He spends 3 days a week in the summer maintaining his property and does cabinets and carpentry in his spare time in his wood shop on weekends. Workaholic is a good word for someone that lives alone in a large 125yo home...with a barn/storage and mechanical shop, plus a dedicated woodworking shop in another building we put up in 1978. He's earned two pensions from past jobs and wants to go 4 more years til he's 70 before taking his pensions or SS...

 

[CombatNinja]

138/sqft but 32 linear feet of windows.

You can't really throw out a number based on sqft for a single room.

You're right. That number is totally reasonable.

I could get on board with that number if and only if he were looking to get it converted to conditioned living space with a masonry knee wall, proper exterior door to the outside, lots of electrical, double pane windows and tons of insulation. The dude is trying to get someone to close in an existing structure. A tiny one at that.

 

[jar944]

You're right. That number is totally reasonable.

Have you checked construction labor and material prices lately? Without knowing what was specified that could range from ok pricing to incredibly cheap. Are those cheap $400 windows or mid level $1000 windows

 

[CombatNinja]

He is not converting it to conditioned living space. What kind of windows do you think they'd use in that scenario? If they quoted anything but economy windows in this scenario, they are not listening to their customer or looking out for his best interests.

 

[bb29510]

40 year ago I work at a replacement window and screen outfit, custom windows and screen . There are really easy to put together, no 45 just flush cut with corner pieces, lowes and HD sells all the stuff, you could build one yourself cheap and just keep going till its done. metal not cheap right now

 

[WisJim]

We are hoping to do something a little similar. We have a 12x12 space, open on two sides, with a wood deck about a foot above ground level, and a same size deck on the second level above it. We wanted an underdeck roof under the second level deck to keep the lower dry, redo the failing lower deck, and to enclose the two exterior walls with a knee wall (wood studs) and aluminum combination storm windows to fill in the open space. We were quoted $26,000 for it. I'm doing it myself, and will probably end up doing it all for $8k to $10k.

 

[FlaGman]

I had our 50 year old screen porch remodeled a year and a half ago with Sunspace Weathermaster. I am in North Carolina, but it was done by a company from South Carolina. Our porch is similar to yours at 10 x 16 feet. The vinyl windows slide and stack easily, and I removed them entirely over the summer for maximum airflow.

Our project cost about $6500 and was worth it for increased functionality of the space.

It took a couple months from contract to install, but the demo and installation took two guys two days.

 

[rayra]

Costs on materials are up thru the roof, no pun intended. As awful as that number is it probably isn't unrealistic. Seems most stuff is up nearly doubled since 2019.

 

[jar944]

He is not converting it to conditioned living space. What kind of windows do you think they'd use in that scenario? If they quoted anything but economy windows in this scenario, they are not listening to their customer or looking out for his best interests.

Conditioned or not its still a knee wall, 32' of sliding/windows that are supposed to open and a standard exterior door. I'd also assume the op wanted some level of finish inside and out and not just flanged windows nailed to studs and open stud bays.

 

[TRWham]

We estimated a similar project yesterday at $25-35K in North Atlanta, though that assumed the space would be conditioned and the homeowner did not really understand all the details that require answers, so we needed headroom in the budget. The area of the space has nearly nothing to do with pricing in a case like this, and there is nothing "predatory" about a contractor pricing where he needs it to be. We have no shortage of work now or for many years past, and you are not forced to take it if you think you can do better. We deal with more than a few jobs every year where Chuck in a truck offered a low price, hacked the thing up and disappeared, then we were brought in to fix it.

 

[bobg03]

Conditioned or not its still a knee wall, 32' of sliding/windows that are supposed to open and a standard exterior door. I'd also assume the op wanted some level of finish inside and out and not just flanged windows nailed to studs and open stud bays.

There is no separate construction for the knee walls or any part of this project, they prefab the panels to fit. The panels in a white vinyl color would be approx 8x8 panels including screened sliding windows and the knee wall at my choice of 18" but can be in 6" increments up to 36" high would be installed in place of the current all framed screened set up. The door they are offering is a better quality storm door than i have now with the ability to open and close a screened window. Having a knee wall of any height enables the current hand rails on the inside of porch to be eliminated.

The one wall against the house requires no changes, nor does the floor it's stamped concrete, nor do the ceiling or roof of the structure as all the current beams supporting the roof will stay, as they are what the current screened panels are attached to.

 

[jar944]

There is no separate construction for the knee walls or any part of this project, they prefab the panels to fit. The panels in a white vinyl color would be approx 8x8 panels including screened sliding windows and the knee wall at my choice of 18" but can be in 6" increments up to 36" high would be installed in place of the current all framed screened set up. The door they are offering is a better quality storm door than i have now with the ability to open and close a screened window. Having a knee wall of any height enables the current hand rails on the inside of porch to be eliminated.

The one wall against the house requires no changes, nor does the floor it's stamped concrete, nor do the ceiling or roof of the structure as all the current beams supporting the roof will stay, as they are what the current screened panels are attached to.

I assumed something more like this



Your last description sounds more like this?

 

[bobg03]

Your last description sounds more like this?

Yes similar to this one, except the windows would be screened side sliders. My shingled roof and beams are what the current panels are attached to and will remain in place.

 

[CraigStu]

OP suggest to your brother that he retire now. Heck the way he goes, if it costs him $200/month in lost income from pensions or SS, he can just do another side job to make it up. With his shops and equipment he seems like he will have plenty to do. I don't think he will be one of those people who dies early due to boredom.

 

[bobg03]

OP suggest to your brother that he retire now. Heck the way he goes, if it costs him $200/month in lost income from pensions or SS, he can just do another side job to make it up. With his shops and equipment he seems like he will have plenty to do. I don't think he will be one of those people who dies early due to boredom.

We've discussed this, he is at his full legal retirement age and can make whatever he wants with no penalty. The two jobs he has he likes, the plant is in a small town and there is only him and the boss and they bring a contractor in when there's a big job. He has no children of his own and has always been great around all kids and he enjoys the school job getting to interact with kids daily.

He is bound and determined that he wants the full boat from SS that age 70 brings, at one time many years ago he worked at an upscale kitchen and bathroom new and remodeling firm, he tried to buy the business at 27YO when the owner wanted to retire. He decided it was more of a hobby that he enjoyed and didn't want to be dependent on the business, so he left and took a teamsters job in a warehouse for 25 years and still did side jobs.

When he left there he got the wastewater job and about a year later the school job...and still does side jobs...lol

He's never counted pennies his whole life and is in excellent health, why he's starting now I have no idea....

 

[bobg03]

So there's no closed in room in my future, I got another quote from a local business and it's over 18K lol. It's just not a reasonable investment in this economy at this point in life.

I'll continue to clean it 2X a year and use the climate controlled garage when its too cold or too hot for the screen room.

 

[CTyankee]

I don't know if you mentioned if your capable of doing the work yourself. As someone mentioned, it really isn't that complicated/difficult if you have the time. And since it's basically just a screened in room now anyway, you could take your sweet time converting it. Plus your brother could probably make up some basic plans for you. JMO, YMMY.

 

[Just_Steve]

I don't have any before pics of my enclosed sunroom but these are how it looks now. Those awning windows open to 90 deg so it's like having a screen room in the nice weather. DIY about 25 years ago when I would climb to the top of ladders to do the sheetrock, 16 ft to the peak. Only thing I didn't do was the tapping.

 

[73project]

Your initial bid sounded similar to a closet that my wife and I were contracting out to have finished around 2018. The first clowns company came in with bid just under of 18k. The initial bid was using mdf and painting the shelving/dividers. It was all I could do not to laugh. We got a couple other bids and they were more reasonable, but they were booked out solid for months. This was a newly finished 12' x 14' walk in closet. Needless to say, I bought some hardwood veneered plywood and finished the closet myself for under $1000. It was surely one of those times where contractors had all the work they could do, so some of the greedy guys started inflating bids by at least 3X.

 

[cgrutt]

Your initial bid sounded similar to a closet that my wife and I were contracting out to have finished around 2018. The first clowns company came in with bid just under of 18k. The initial bid was using mdf and painting the shelving/dividers. It was all I could do not to laugh. We got a couple other bids and they were more reasonable, but they were booked out solid for months. This was a newly finished 12' x 14' walk in closet. Needless to say, I bought some hardwood veneered plywood and finished the closet myself for under $1000. It was surely one of those times where contractors had all the work they could do, so some of the greedy guys started inflating bids by at least 3X.

Have a good friend who is a cabinet maker. He does high end closets (among other things) for very wealthy customers primarily in NYC. Hard to believe how much people will pay to have custom closets made. I'm talking numbers that end in five zeros but don't necessarily start with 1 lol...

 

[dcg9381]

Have a good friend who is a cabinet maker. He does high end closets (among other things) for very wealthy customers primarily in NYC. Hard to believe how much people will pay to have custom closets made. I'm talking numbers that end in five zeros but don't necessarily start with 1 lol...

It's California Closets that's on TV around here, high margin, almost MLM.
And absolutely under par for what a good carpenter can do for you at fraction of the cost. But they CAN do the design work and 3-d modeling. Massive marketing. Course, our carpenter probably doesn't want to do the LED lighting and glass work.

I'll spend good money on cabinets and have... Closets, not so much...

 

[cgrutt]

It's California Closets that's on TV around here, high margin, almost MLM.
And absolutely under par for what a good carpenter can do for you at fraction of the cost. But they CAN do the design work and 3-d modeling. Massive marketing. Course, our carpenter probably doesn't want to do the LED lighting and glass work.

I'll spend good money on cabinets and have... Closets, not so much...

He actually made the high end cabinets for California Closets at one point but don't think he is associated with them anymore. I know he spent over $1 mil on a CNC machine (including the building that houses it) so there's definitely money in it.

 

[dcg9381]

I know he spent over $1 mil on a CNC machine (including the building that houses it) so there's definitely money in it.

I don't know how you spend $1M on a CNC machine to do cabinets... Unless you're doing a ton of them at once.

 

[cgrutt]

I don't know how you spend $1M on a CNC machine to do cabinets... Unless you're doing a ton of them at once.

As I said it included the building that it's housed in. His main shop is in a separate building. He does more than just cabinets I know he built an interlocking winding staircase out of solid hickory logs with it for the CEO of one of the top hedge funds in the country. Just the staircase was over $100k. He also built an amazing sculpture that was displayed at Burning Man, then Metropolitan Museum of Art then sold at Auction so its paid for itself I'm sure many times over.

 

[Hakeem]

There’s really little input I can provide without some photos. $18k for some windows, a knee wall and a door in a 8’x16’ room sounds outrageous. I’ve turned over kitchens with new cabs, appliances, counters, and tiling for not much more than that. i wonder if there’s some extenuating factor to explain the high price?

Assuming no, that this is a straightforward Reno, I too vote that the OP should do it himself. Look at it as an excuse to buy some more tools. Get a laborer as needed for help with the demo and other heavy lifting.

 

[bobg03]

There’s really little input I can provide without some photos. $18k for some windows, a knee wall and a door in a 8’x16’ room sounds outrageous. I’ve turned over kitchens with new cabs, appliances, counters, and tiling for not much more than that. i wonder if there’s some extenuating factor to explain the high price?

Assuming no, that this is a straightforward Reno, I too vote that the OP should do it himself. Look at it as an excuse to buy some more tools. Get a laborer as needed for help with the demo and other heavy lifting.

Sadly I don't have the capability to do photos, the current area is a cement slab approx 4' high of the back of my house. The original plan was a roof with shingles built as part of the house when the house was built, as I live above the wetlands of the river my local builder suggested screening it in as the cost would be nominal. I wish to close it in with no structural changes other than having aluminum panels with with windows that I can close or open depending on the season, especially the pollen season. The only desire for this is to eliminate the mess that the pollen makes and to make the room a little more usable during the cooler months, being screened in on the 3 sides the room is comfortable on a summer night even when its 90% humidity and 110 degrees during the day as the ceiling fan keeps it that way.

I am older, disabled and live in an area where I don't really have a group of skilled friends who could do this, this happens when you move 900 miles away from where you lived and worked from 17YO to 54YO. I do not wish to wall this in with home windows and constructed knee walls as it was never meant to be an extension of the living area, @ 1600 sq ft of conditioned living space in the home as 1 person I don't even use the other 2 bedrooms or bath so a "structurally built" room is not the look that I want, I also have approx 1200 sq ft in my garage which also has heat and air in it.

I never envisioned installing alum/vinyl panels with side sliders to just keep the 3 month pollen season at bay would be approaching the $20K cost factor, as I have no use for a ROI on my home. The room works as it is and at 9 years old since the house was built for me there are no other issues with the room. I can afford to live here comfortably til I pass, no need to go somewhere else where it will cost me more to live and at that point the house will be sold and the profits split amongst my children.

I also spent the last two years downsizing tools so I have no need to buy more **** for a one time use, I sometimes can't even hold a phone or a pen without dropping it and the answer is to buy more tools....

 

[CombatNinja]

I feel for you. In this day and age when every kid that works at Starbucks wants $20/hr, by the time that works its way up the financial ecosytem through the ripple effect, a 'cheap' car costs $40,000 and you get a quote for almost $20,000 to enclose a patio. Unfortunate but that seems to be the world we live in. I'm sure you could find a great framer to build it out properly for half that cost but the key is finding someone reliable that wants to do some work on the side. That is its own kind of crapshoot.

 

[jar944]

$18k for some windows, a knee wall and a door in a 8’x16’ room sounds outrageous. I’ve turned over kitchens with new cabs, appliances, counters, and tiling for not much more than that.

Within the last 10 years?

 

[Chaznsc]

These home show contractors can a bit of a snake oil deal. That 10% off offer turns me off right away. Do a little homework on the skill set required, and find some local talent who does this work. They are out there, probably working for your how show guy.