Quite often the decision to hire a design professional is made based on the requirements of the authority having jurisdiction. The do it yourself weekend warior decides that all of the improvements are inside and not visible to the city therefore getting a permit for the work is not worth it. In some cases I would agree with them.
In this case; however, the decision not to get a
professional opinion almost became fatal and could be if not corrected. The home owner built a home office inside the garage. What they failed to take into consideration is that the combustion air vents for the gas water heater are on the oposite side of the garage from the home office. When the door and window to the office are closed the water heater only has one source of air to burn. It has to pull air through the vent. This causes a backdraft. The smoke stains on the back of the water heater indicate that a backdraft has happened at least once. The next time it happens it could turn the whole house into a nice little pile of ashes.
Had they spent a little bit of money on a designer and a permit they could have avoided this.
Good info to get out to folks. Knowledge and care certainly are needed when remodeling. This is a good time to be a stay-between-the-lines kind of person!
Wow ... some things are fairly straight forward, Loren. Some things aren't. If DIY's have any doubts, they should consult a professional.