[Dusty_Star]

Originally Posted by Randall55

Before purchasing, get ARC approval. If permissible, I advise you to move forward with caution:
1. New homes come with a one-year warranty. You made void this warranty if you make structural changes

2. Structural changes can be costly. Once you remove the windows there may be a problem you were not expecting. Fixing the issue may cost you more money than you bargained for.

3. You most likely will not recoup the cost of this change when you resale. In fact, depending on your design choice, it may chase buyers away.

4. Home decorating fads come and go. In 2-4 years, what you built may be outdated. What are you going to do then? Tear it down and build something new?

5. Technology changes. I remember when big-screen TVs were giant boxes. Many new homes came with a built-in to fit these massive units neatly into the wall. Flat screens came along and they had to replace these built-ins. Do you want this expensive must change?

Sometimes, it is better to leave well enough alone.

My advice is to walk through as many model homes as possible. You may find a simple and inexpensive solution you like. The Villages is near completion of many near the new high school. On top of the World Ocala has some, as well. If you do not want to make the drive, they are available online. There are a ridiculous amount of model home tours on Youtube. Some furniture stores will help you with design. You can google the words " wall unit between two windows design ideas" With all this free information, I think you can find something you like without making structural changes.

After purchasing the home and settling in, if you are still hellbent on removing those windows, you can PM me. I will try my best to convince you not to make this mistake.

Sounds like very good advice & very generous of you to help them.

[villagetinker]

Originally Posted by margaretmattson

Thanks. The floor plan they like is the Mason model. They were told Veranda homes are built as spec homes with no modifications or color choice.

They would prefer a built in wall unit or fireplace instead of two windows in the living area. The window areas would need to be filled in. Is this difficult and costly to do?

As noted in previous comments you need to be very careful that removing the windows will not void the 1-year warranty. IMHO, there is no need for a fireplace in Florida, and I agree with previous comments that this will detract from the house.

Now I have seen houses with full wall built in shelves and door or drawers, even done very well these seem to detract from the house as they remove the versatility of the original design. Here is my suggestion if the wall unit is a requirement. Get an ELECTRIC fireplace, these actually look very realistic, and do not require the chimney, also when you get tired of this they are easily removed. The windows can be removed, and concrete block installed, you may need to have a Professional Engineer design this modification for hurricane standards, I stumbled across this requirement for knee walls on a lanai enclosure project. The county building department can advise on this requirement.
You will need to get ARC approval for the window removal, and there will be at least 2 permits required, building and electrical. As for the built-in unit, there are several companies that do this, and you can contact them for cost estimates, etc.

I would expect this project to take several weeks and cost several thousand dollars.

I hope this helps.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

If you want shelving/bookcase, you don't have to remove the window. You can just put the bookcase in front of the window. Be sure to add some kind of decorative thing, either a window decal or painted board or curtain, so people looking IN from the outside don't see the back of a bookcase. That way you get your bookcase, outsiders get a perfectly normal looking window, and when it's time to sell the property, new buyers won't ever know that you completely eliminated the natural lighting of the room.

[BrianL99]

Originally Posted by frayedends

All I was pointing out is the OP is talking about the pre cast walls. I wasn’t trying to debate the differences in terminology. We know what the OP is asking so why get into semantics of the terminology?

Anyhow I assume it’s easy to close up a window. But matching the stucco outside may be a concern. And as mentioned I doubt ARC would approve if it’s a window on the front, just for aesthetics.

It matters, because it's an apple vs oranges comparison. You can do things with Tilt Up walls, that you can't do with Precast Walls ... and vice versa.

Another poster clarified that TV isn't using Tilt Up Construction, they're using Precast ... that's a huge difference.

You cannot modify Precast Construction, without a structural analysis. You can't simply remove a window & "fill it in and match the stucco". That's not how Precast works.

A simplified comparison might be "balloon construction". You can't remove a single piece of the structure, without affecting the entire structure. That's what Precast construction is. Every piece is part of the whole. Every inch of that structure is "load bearing".

[BrianL99]

Originally Posted by John Mayes

The Villages do not use conventional tilt up construction for homes….although most people use that term. TV uses precast walls that are manufactured by DZ Precast in Sumterville.

Stupid me. I assumed people knew what kind of construction was going on, before they offered solutions and suggestions.

It makes perfect sense that TV would use Precast, as Tilt Up requires space and presumes not all walls will be the same. Precast is much more cost effective when building "cookie cutter" homes. In the area of the country where wood is prevalent, it would be called "modular" or "panelized".

[charmed59]

We have a model similar to the Mason. (A Williamsburg) The shaded lanai means there is not a ton of light coming in through the sliders in the living room, most of the light comes in through the side windows. We even added a solar tube to get more light in that area.

That said, I’ve been in a few homes in my area where people have blocked windows from the inside in rooms they want to use as home theatres. On the outside the house looks the same as others. Usually there is blinds or something in the window. Then there is insulation and wall board on the inside of the window. From the inside it looks like a wall. I would assume if you bought the house it would just be a demolition issue to get the windows to let light back into the room.

[frayedends]

Originally Posted by BrianL99

It matters, because it's an apple vs oranges comparison. You can do things with Tilt Up walls, that you can't do with Precast Walls ... and vice versa.

Another poster clarified that TV isn't using Tilt Up Construction, they're using Precast ... that's a huge difference.

You cannot modify Precast Construction, without a structural analysis. You can't simply remove a window & "fill it in and match the stucco". That's not how Precast works.

A simplified comparison might be "balloon construction". You can't remove a single piece of the structure, without affecting the entire structure. That's what Precast construction is. Every piece is part of the whole. Every inch of that structure is "load bearing".

Whatever.