Residential Retrofit

The ‘Residential Retrofit’ was a term coined during the Archano-Tech revolution. In its simplest form it’s a reference to a family home that has undergone rapid changes as new technology is developed and incorporated into the home. Technology that wasn’t even thought of at the time of its original construction.
The term is exclusively used for homes that were built at the start of, or before, the Achano-Tech revolution, and not the ones after. The major distinction has to do with the older homes using techniques and materials that had been used for centuries and had barely changed. Stone masonry, wood supports, thatch roofing. Some with Wooden shingles. Most with fireplaces that had been used for the primary method of cooking and heat. With lighting being limited to candles and lamps. Although elves had a few additional options with magical lights, but even those were used sparingly to avoid magical burnout.
Villages that had stood against the flow of time for hundreds of years, suddenly started morphing before everyone’s eyes. Quite a few homes and structures were summarily torn down in favor of a complete rebuild with new things developed through the Archano-Tech revolution.
Some individuals that opted to keep their home, sometimes a multi generational family home, but still wanted modern amenities, would have them installed and added to the building however they could. For most of the populace that decided to go this route, the additions were focused more on function than form, and resulted in generally ugly almost cancerous growths on the houses. Electrical conduits ran along the interior of the walls, in the living space, near the corner of homes where the wall, and ceiling would meet, and snaking around the property to take the power wherever it was needed. Indoor plumbing pipes also had to be strategically placed, resulting in some simply knocking a hole in a wall to allow it to transverse from room to room. Duct work hanging from the rafters to deliver the heating and cooling being created by their central units was a common sight.
In some cases, this sort of rapid advancement led to houses that would be renovated to add an additional room or two. One that would be a modern Archano-Tech kitchen, and the other a modern Archano-Tech bathroom with individual heating Spell Key for hot or cold water.
Which helped lead to the coining of the phrase. As the rest of the house could look like ancient stone masonry, but then it would have two additions just slapped onto the side of it that would be made out of whatever the current fad of materials would be at the time. Painted large sheet wood? Brick? Center block? Sheet metal? Poured cement? All of it was a possibility. And, in more than a few cases, ALL of the choices could be picked, with different rooms being added at different times and simply choosing whatever was the flavor of the month for building materials at the time.
It was an exciting time for both builders and the general populace for sure. Although, it was also a time that made many designers, and those with an eye for esthetics, openly weep at the monstrosities people were calling their home now.