Ranch House Addition Ideas

Dormers

• Dormers are a popular option for adding onto a ranch house. A dormer is a window that projects from the sloped roof plane of a home. By using existing attic space, you can add significant second story space and light to your ranch home. Keep in mind that adding a second story presents issues, and you should have an engineer or architect inspect your home's structure to be sure it can withstand the added weight.

Colonial Conversion

• If you've had it with the "ranch" look, consider removing the roof and adding an entire second floor to your home to convert it to Colonial style. The existing first floor provides space for entertaining, including the living room, kitchen and dining room, while all of the bedroom spaces can move to the second floor. Add a new hip roof on top and Colonial style details such as a front porch with columns and decorative shutters.

Garage Addition

• Many ranch home designs did not include an enclosed garage. Make your home appear larger while adding garage and storage space. Consider building a detached garage design with a covered walkway in case the new materials don't match the existing home because it's difficult to emulate the effects of weatherization.

Glazed Sunroom

• Add space for relaxing or entertaining that is protected from the elements without encountering the difficulty of matching the original style of your home. A glazed sunroom provides conditioned space that can serve as a den or dining area. Transparent glass makes you feel as if you are outdoors and is visually unobtrusive, making this a good solution if you don't have room to expand your home linearly but don't want to build a clunky addition to the back of the house.

Modern Addition

• Add the space that you need without feeling that you have to match the ranch style of your existing home. Design a new bedroom, kitchen or expanded living space using modern materials and construction techniques while respecting the proportion and scale of the original house. Consider hiring an architect to develop and present to you several options for your addition.