Construction Drawings for DIY Build: who to hire?
I have been designing an ADU/Studio based on tons of research on GBA, FHB, etc. I am using Home Designer Pro and have a good idea of what I want. Who do I hire to get my amateur drawings to a useable set of construction drawings? I need answers to questions like how best to detail the floor assembly on helical piers, how big the girders need to be, what size TJIs for the floor, roof assembly for vaulted ceiling, etc. The catch is that I am going to build this thing myself. I have no idea if I need to hire an architect, or an engineer, or both. Also I have no idea if these people will be reluctant to work with an owner builder. I’m in Maine, and there are a decent amount of high performance designers and builders up here.
Does anyone have experience with this situation?
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I'm in northern NY. I drew my architecturals myself and sought out an engineer/architect who mocked them up for me with stamp. I believe that if you have done your research well, and made the effort to present a set of scaled and quality drawings that you can shop them around to local architects/engineers who'll gladly take the project on, your having gotten a lot of the design decisions already drawn. They should easily be able to provide you with the elements you still need. Call around. I saved a small fortune by going rhis route.
Thanks that's the information I was looking for. I didn't know if it was way out of bounds for a homeowner to get the drawings 90% done and ask a pro to take it to the finish. Your post gives me some confidence!