This week we continued working on our Reynolds Court house remodel, but we moved the design to the outside in order to link the inside and the outside for that true California-style indoor/outdoor living vibe. The main feature will be a new pool, but there will also be a chicken coop to integrate, areas for dogs to run around and cool off, trellises, an outdoor kitchen, living and dining spaces and of course places for Buddha!
We don’t often do detailed as-builts of exterior spaces. We typically will use a survey to generate our exterior living design plans, but when that’s not available we grab our trusted as-built tools and head to the great outdoors.
Here’s what we brought to efficiently document the existing backyard.
ONE. Base Plans
BASE DRAWINGS ARE A NECESSITY. IF YOU DONT HAVE TIME TO MAKE A BASE DRAWING (LIKE YOUR BOSS SCHEDULES AN IMPROMPTU FIELD MEASUREMENT…) ALSWAYS START BY SKETCHING OUT THE SPACE IN PLAN.
We brought a set of site plans from our remodel set on a clipboard. These site plans were bare bones showing minimal hardscape, building footprint and setback information. This will be our measurement base. Don’t forget your pens!!
TWO. Measure
We brought our Lufkin Tufboy 100′ tape measure, our Stanley Powerlock 30′ tape measure, and our small handheld Kobalt LDM-35 laser measure (only good when working in the shade). Note, you can’t be afraid to get dirty. Sometimes you jut need to crawl into the bottom of that hedge to get your measurement!
THREE. Photograph
We brought our phones (because who needs to bring a separate camera these days…). I have an iPhone 12 and BGR has a Galaxy Note 8. I took all the photographs of the site after we finished measuring and BGR took a series of video walkthroughs. No mater how thorough we think we are, we always end up with questions like “were there two hedges there or just one?…” and using the site photos can help to orient and answer those questions to create a good as-built base.
What we forgot/wish we had…
It was a hot day! We wish we brought our rose water spray to help us periodically cool down (super refreshing and calming!). We should have brought water and some snacks, all that crawling around in the shrubbery makes you hungry.
Want more as-built tips? See The HAYNE Way: As-Built Template.