Salt Spring home gets a do-over
Island three-storey was on an enviable lot, but needed major structural changes
This sloping waterfront property on Salt Spring Island was appealing to its new owners because of its southwest exposure and the way the house snuggles into the rocky slope.
But major structural changes were necessary, builder Derek Sowden said. One concern was the roof, which had been “put on sideways.”
“A roof is usually supported on parallel sides by two strong walls,” Sowden said. “But in this case, they picked the wrong two sides and supported the trusses on curtain walls, which meant a loss of structural integrity.
“We had to ensure the house had continually supporting columns, continuing from bottom to top for full point load.”
He hired an engineer to help. The solutions included bringing in four-ply laminated engineered beams on the main floor, and installing a steel beam in the basement to create more usable space on the lower level.
Downstairs was a “forest of posts,” Sowden said, that they wanted to get rid of.
“We had to rebuild several beams because they were hanging by a thread with bad connections and bad support,” he said. “The engineer told us there was about 25 per cent of the strength this home should have had.”
The home was built in 1993 and had a lot going for it — deep 36-centimetre floor joists (they are often just 24 cm) that allowed lots of space for new in- floor heating, along with good ceiling heights and lots of glass — but it was crying out for improvements.
“Before the reno, it was a mediocre house on a great lot,” Sowden said. “Now it’s a great house on a great lot.”
The new owners contacted Sowden in November, handed him the house keys and gave him carte blanche, he said, to “make it nice.”
“It was a little scary — if I’d really done that, it probably would have ended up looking like a man cave,” he said with a chuckle.
So he called designer Brigit Mitchell and together they rebuilt, refreshed and redesigned the home while its owners were out of town.
“We had a pretty free hand and kept in touch with them by texting and emailing pictures,” Mitchell said. “They basically just told us they wanted warmth and wood.” When the couple finally returned home and saw their new house for the first time, the wife started crying with happiness.
During the seven-month renovation, the owners, who prefer to remain private, came to the island only twice, so the reveal was dramatic.
Mitchell said one of the most striking areas of change was the kitchen. Formerly a dead-end alleyway culminating in a fridge that didn’t fully open because of a nearby wall, it had a high peninsula on the right and a green stove on the left.
“There wasn’t room to swing a cat,” said Mitchell, who noted the large green stove was a limiting factor, as the previous owners had used it as inspiration for counter tile, house trim, highlights throughout the room, stair rails — “everything.”
The old stove was repurposed and sold, and replaced with a new four-oven dark grey AGA.
The new propane stove became a jumping-off point for restyling the entire space.
“It needed weight around it, so we used Rocky Mountain hardware, dark soapstone countertop to ground everything and designed a big island. Even the backsplash has an earthiness to balance,” Mitchell said.
Such energy-efficient cast-iron ranges cost about $20,000 and weigh 584 kilograms. Sowden said it costs about $1,000 just for a certified installer to set it up, but it’s a polished performer and helps heat the whole house.
Cabinets throughout the house are by Peter Young and all the drawers are wood-lined and dowelled and have soft closures.
“Peter is a one-man show,” Mitchell said. “When working with him, there is never an issue that something won’t be perfect.”
The basement also required a complete overhaul. The owners wanted a clear-span basement, so a steel beam was brought in to replace posts and shelves.
The space now includes a bright all-white bathroom, a media room with a Murphy bed and rollout hidden ping-pong table, and new storage areas.
It also has what Sowden said is one of the first ultra-high-definition televisions to be installed in Canada. “It just landed and it’s the highest resolution there is,” he said. The Samsung set costs about $15,000 and has a stateof-the-art sound system.
While the 2,000-square-foot house may look cottagey from the outside, it’s a very smart house inside, with abundant wireless controlling systems.
Sowden said the reno was extensive — “nothing was untouched” — and most of the house was gutted.
“We re-drywalled everything, created square edges where previously all the corners had been round, because that really dates a house,” he said.
“We added electronic hydronic heat in the floors, LED lights throughout and on-demand hot water. We reconfigured the skylights, widening and moving them where necessary, replaced all the flooring, added cedar sills and matching door jambs everywhere.”
The three-storey house steps down to the water and also has a new staircase leading from the front door and master-bedroom level down to the main living area.
The home now boasts three barn doors, which are space saving and “kinda zippy looking and fun,” Sowden said.
“They are better than pocket doors and allow you to open and close them without moving furniture in a small room.”