Hello everyone,
this is my third post in this forum. First of all, thank you for the valuable tips I have already received. I think I have learned a lot so far.
I have linked the previous posts below. To avoid any misunderstandings, I will list all the necessary information again. Therefore, reading the old posts only makes limited sense. For completeness, I have included them here.
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grundrissplanung-Bungalow-170qm.31445/
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grobe-Grundstücksplanung-819m.31558/
For the initial selection, there were three rough floor plan drafts. One was from Yvonne, the second from kbt09, and the third from the planner/ourselves. Many thanks to both of you for the good ideas! After some time for consideration and consultation with the developer, we decided to pursue the third floor plan.
Now to the main topic.
At the end of April 2019, we reserved a plot (plot no. 10) and started working on the floor plan. The plot is tied to the developer, and unfortunately, the planner has not turned out to be very creative (myself included). Two weeks ago, we had another meeting with the developer and talked about the three options mentioned above. We then chose one variant and want to proceed with it. We have now received a draft, which certainly still needs improvement.
For this reason, I would like to present the floor plan here again for discussion and hope for feedback, ideas, suggestions, and tips. Maybe you will immediately see things that “just don’t work” or are not practical for everyday life. I have also already noticed a few things that I would change, but since we will probably make quite a few modifications anyway, I have not yet suggested my own improvements in the floor plan. Also, the planner and I have not yet discussed doors and windows.
Attached again is the completed questionnaire.
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 819m² (8809 sq ft)
Slope: NO
Floor area ratio (FAR): 0.4 (allowable exceedance 25 per 100)
Gross floor area ratio (GFAR): 0.6
Building envelope, building line and boundary: On the northeast side approximately 31m (102 ft) deep, west side approximately 35m (115 ft) deep, plot frontage on the street 18.7m (61 ft) and rear boundary (development limit) approximately 27m (89 ft). The major challenge with the plot is the narrow width at the front. Depending on house orientation, after the 3m (10 ft) building setback on the street side, we have about 19.5m (64 ft) to 20.4m (67 ft) available. This means that if the house is parallel to the street, it is 19.5m (64 ft), and parallel to the neighbor in the northeast direction about 20.1m (66 ft).
Side building setback: 3m (10 ft)
Number of parking spaces required: no specification
Number of floors: maximum 2 full floors
Roof type: gable roof, hip roof
Other requirements: Garage must be at least 5m (16 ft) from the property boundary.
Client requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: bungalow with hip roof
Basement, floors: no basement due to high groundwater level
Number of people, age: 4 people aged 36 years (female), 37 years (male), 2 years (child), 7 months (child)
Room requirements on ground floor and upper floor:
Ground floor: living/dining/kitchen, utility room, guest toilet with shower, hallway with coat area and stairs to the upper floor, children’s rooms, master bedroom, bathroom, and storage room.
Upper floor: office, children’s playroom and additional storage space.
Office: family use or home office? home office
Overnight guests per year: 1–2 times
Open or closed floor plan: a mix of both
Conservative or modern design: a mix of both
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen with island would be nice but not a must, closed kitchen also has advantages
Number of dining seats: 4, with the option for 6–8 would be nice but not essential
Fireplace: no
Music/sound wall: sound system in the living room
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: Space for 2 cars is required. Currently, I am considering a garage (3x6m / 10x20 ft) and carport (3.6m / 12 ft).
Kitchen garden, greenhouse: no
Other wishes/special requirements/daily routine, including reasons for preferences or restrictions
House design
Who designed the plan:
-Developer’s planner / do-it-yourself
What do you particularly like? Why?
-There should be enough space in the coat area and behind the stairs to store jackets, shoes, etc.
-The children’s rooms have a comfortable size and are practically equal in size.
-Living room/kitchen are close to entrance and garage.
-The storage room has a good (central) location.
-
What do you not like? Why?
-Garage/carport is very far to the back (but I can probably live with this)
-The utility room is comparatively large and long
-The kitchen in my opinion is somewhat too large
-The living room is only the desired minimum size and could use 5m² (54 sq ft) more
-The main bathroom is located between both children’s rooms and the noise from showering and toilet use is likely to be a major issue
-The main bathroom could be slightly larger
-Between the garage and the property boundary there will be a dead space where weeds will probably grow later. Does anyone have ideas on how to prevent this?
-The garage is currently planned with a length of 9m (30 ft), of which 6m (20 ft) is for the garage and 3m (10 ft) for a storage room. The current position directly behind the garage is not optimal in my view
Price estimate according to architect/planner: no new price estimate received yet
Personal price limit for the house including equipment: 400,000
Preferred heating technology: heat pump
Why is the design the way it is now? e.g.
ideas from planner and do-it-yourself ideas from me
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
The main bathroom is located between the children’s rooms. How can we reduce noise disturbance to a minimum?
Imagine I drive a Skoda Superb into the garage. Since the garage is on the property boundary and the driveway narrows between the house and property line, I have to enter at a slight angle. Does this cause problems in everyday life? See pictures.
Assuming we build a double garage directly attached to the bungalow instead of a garage and carport, is there anything special to consider during construction?
this is my third post in this forum. First of all, thank you for the valuable tips I have already received. I think I have learned a lot so far.
I have linked the previous posts below. To avoid any misunderstandings, I will list all the necessary information again. Therefore, reading the old posts only makes limited sense. For completeness, I have included them here.
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grundrissplanung-Bungalow-170qm.31445/
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grobe-Grundstücksplanung-819m.31558/
For the initial selection, there were three rough floor plan drafts. One was from Yvonne, the second from kbt09, and the third from the planner/ourselves. Many thanks to both of you for the good ideas! After some time for consideration and consultation with the developer, we decided to pursue the third floor plan.
ypg schrieb:
If I say that the plot is not easy, I am understated.
Maybe this is an approach?
kbt09 schrieb:
I continued with the approach from the floor plan adjustments.
Now to the main topic.
At the end of April 2019, we reserved a plot (plot no. 10) and started working on the floor plan. The plot is tied to the developer, and unfortunately, the planner has not turned out to be very creative (myself included). Two weeks ago, we had another meeting with the developer and talked about the three options mentioned above. We then chose one variant and want to proceed with it. We have now received a draft, which certainly still needs improvement.
For this reason, I would like to present the floor plan here again for discussion and hope for feedback, ideas, suggestions, and tips. Maybe you will immediately see things that “just don’t work” or are not practical for everyday life. I have also already noticed a few things that I would change, but since we will probably make quite a few modifications anyway, I have not yet suggested my own improvements in the floor plan. Also, the planner and I have not yet discussed doors and windows.
Attached again is the completed questionnaire.
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 819m² (8809 sq ft)
Slope: NO
Floor area ratio (FAR): 0.4 (allowable exceedance 25 per 100)
Gross floor area ratio (GFAR): 0.6
Building envelope, building line and boundary: On the northeast side approximately 31m (102 ft) deep, west side approximately 35m (115 ft) deep, plot frontage on the street 18.7m (61 ft) and rear boundary (development limit) approximately 27m (89 ft). The major challenge with the plot is the narrow width at the front. Depending on house orientation, after the 3m (10 ft) building setback on the street side, we have about 19.5m (64 ft) to 20.4m (67 ft) available. This means that if the house is parallel to the street, it is 19.5m (64 ft), and parallel to the neighbor in the northeast direction about 20.1m (66 ft).
Side building setback: 3m (10 ft)
Number of parking spaces required: no specification
Number of floors: maximum 2 full floors
Roof type: gable roof, hip roof
Other requirements: Garage must be at least 5m (16 ft) from the property boundary.
Client requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: bungalow with hip roof
Basement, floors: no basement due to high groundwater level
Number of people, age: 4 people aged 36 years (female), 37 years (male), 2 years (child), 7 months (child)
Room requirements on ground floor and upper floor:
Ground floor: living/dining/kitchen, utility room, guest toilet with shower, hallway with coat area and stairs to the upper floor, children’s rooms, master bedroom, bathroom, and storage room.
Upper floor: office, children’s playroom and additional storage space.
Office: family use or home office? home office
Overnight guests per year: 1–2 times
Open or closed floor plan: a mix of both
Conservative or modern design: a mix of both
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen with island would be nice but not a must, closed kitchen also has advantages
Number of dining seats: 4, with the option for 6–8 would be nice but not essential
Fireplace: no
Music/sound wall: sound system in the living room
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: Space for 2 cars is required. Currently, I am considering a garage (3x6m / 10x20 ft) and carport (3.6m / 12 ft).
Kitchen garden, greenhouse: no
Other wishes/special requirements/daily routine, including reasons for preferences or restrictions
House design
Who designed the plan:
-Developer’s planner / do-it-yourself
What do you particularly like? Why?
-There should be enough space in the coat area and behind the stairs to store jackets, shoes, etc.
-The children’s rooms have a comfortable size and are practically equal in size.
-Living room/kitchen are close to entrance and garage.
-The storage room has a good (central) location.
-
What do you not like? Why?
-Garage/carport is very far to the back (but I can probably live with this)
-The utility room is comparatively large and long
-The kitchen in my opinion is somewhat too large
-The living room is only the desired minimum size and could use 5m² (54 sq ft) more
-The main bathroom is located between both children’s rooms and the noise from showering and toilet use is likely to be a major issue
-The main bathroom could be slightly larger
-Between the garage and the property boundary there will be a dead space where weeds will probably grow later. Does anyone have ideas on how to prevent this?
-The garage is currently planned with a length of 9m (30 ft), of which 6m (20 ft) is for the garage and 3m (10 ft) for a storage room. The current position directly behind the garage is not optimal in my view
Price estimate according to architect/planner: no new price estimate received yet
Personal price limit for the house including equipment: 400,000
Preferred heating technology: heat pump
Why is the design the way it is now? e.g.
ideas from planner and do-it-yourself ideas from me
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
The main bathroom is located between the children’s rooms. How can we reduce noise disturbance to a minimum?
Imagine I drive a Skoda Superb into the garage. Since the garage is on the property boundary and the driveway narrows between the house and property line, I have to enter at a slight angle. Does this cause problems in everyday life? See pictures.
Assuming we build a double garage directly attached to the bungalow instead of a garage and carport, is there anything special to consider during construction?
C
Chrisi190614 Aug 2019 11:16kaho674 schrieb:
I think the calculation still seems a bit optimistic. But let’s wait and see.I have to start somewhere. At the moment, I can’t imagine that $400,000 just for the house and attic conversion wouldn’t be enough.
@all please get back to the floor plan.
Chrisi1906 schrieb:
@all please back to the floor planThere was no feedback on #19. At least someone could say if it’s bad and explain why.C
Chrisi190614 Aug 2019 11:30kaho674 schrieb:
No feedback was given on #19. At least one could say if it’s bad and explain why.I find the living room too small, and there is no storage room. I would also prefer a rectangular bungalow. The house will be positioned quite far to the right on the plot (to the west). This means I lose a good sunny location again.
I really like the idea of the garage.
C
Chrisi190614 Aug 2019 11:36ypg schrieb:
Quickly11ant schrieb:
Due to the angle, the added length and the wheelbase also affect the width / track – not exactly equivalent, but somewhat. And over the distance traveled when driving in or out, this adds up, making the longer vehicle effectively wider.
As a counterproposal (relaunch), I like this layout. My alternative (“minimally invasive” in the sense of keeping the same modules but arranged differently) would be: mirror the stair - entrance - WC unit (staircase at the bottom of the plan, WC at the top) # move the bathroom “upwards” (i.e., next to the kitchen) # this groups the children’s rooms together and organizes the areas into blocks: “living - wet rooms - sleeping” # possibly also mirror the parents’ room / utility room # rotate the kitchen 90° counterclockwise, with windows between the countertop and the upper cabinets.Have I implemented this correctly?
First of all, about the hip roof... have you considered the pitch? And the amount of usable space it creates, as well as how poor the natural lighting is under the roof?
Example: 38° pitch on the longer sides, 45° on the shorter sides
results in the following possible floor plan
You can see the 1m (3 ft) and 2m (6 ft 6 in) lines. To still achieve reasonably good lighting, roof windows would need to be installed around the 1m (3 ft) line.
-------------------------------
For comparison, some gable roofs, where I have deliberately left the "openings" that exceed a normal floor height.
38° pitch
provides over 100sqm (1076 sq ft) of living space
28° pitch
still results in 75sqm (807 sq ft) of living space
Therefore, I would strongly reconsider choosing a hip roof.
Example: 38° pitch on the longer sides, 45° on the shorter sides
results in the following possible floor plan
You can see the 1m (3 ft) and 2m (6 ft 6 in) lines. To still achieve reasonably good lighting, roof windows would need to be installed around the 1m (3 ft) line.
-------------------------------
For comparison, some gable roofs, where I have deliberately left the "openings" that exceed a normal floor height.
38° pitch
provides over 100sqm (1076 sq ft) of living space
28° pitch
still results in 75sqm (807 sq ft) of living space
Therefore, I would strongly reconsider choosing a hip roof.
I would also avoid placing the entrance too far back… in general, I still prefer the longer but narrower design. However, since the exterior dimensions need to be 11.5 x 16 m (38 x 52.5 ft), here’s another attempt from me.
No garage… just a “shed” for bicycles, etc. The light area represents a carport roof. Green indicates the entrance door to the shed—this way, bicycles can be brought in reasonably easily. Additionally, there could still be room for a visitor’s car parked in front at a good distance from the entrance.
Key points of the floor plans:
That said, I still find my first version very appealing, which features a pitched roof with a 22° slope.
No garage… just a “shed” for bicycles, etc. The light area represents a carport roof. Green indicates the entrance door to the shed—this way, bicycles can be brought in reasonably easily. Additionally, there could still be room for a visitor’s car parked in front at a good distance from the entrance.
Key points of the floor plans:
- No staircase immediately at the entrance
- Sufficient cloakroom space at the entrance for shoes, coats, etc. (approx. 350 cm (11.5 ft))
- Technical room (HVAC, utilities)… also enough space here for a stroller or similar items
- Small bathroom for children and guests with bathtub, possibly installed in the screed floor—this way, a walk-in shower could be added later on
- Hallway used as laundry area with washing machine and dryer, countertop above for folding laundry, total width approx. 150 cm (5 ft), with a vertical blind in front. Next to it a small closet for laundry collection. This could also hold supplies like toilet paper. Accessible from all private rooms.
- Master bedroom with ensuite bathroom featuring walk-in shower, double sinks, and 25 cm (10 inch) deep storage for cosmetics, etc.
- Staircase at the end of the hallway with storage space underneath for vacuum cleaner, mop, small kitchen supplies like beverage crates, etc. Centrally located in the home. The staircase has a 165 cm (5.4 ft) high railing with a window facing the living/dining area, allowing light into the hallway
- Kitchen/dining/living area with large island, generous space for dining table (marked 100 x 200 cm (39 x 79 inches)), and a quiet corner for sofa/TV/sound system, positioned so as not to disturb others, with wardrobes also located near the master bedroom
- Upper floor facing southeast with an open playroom featuring a railing about 110 cm (3.6 ft) high around the staircase, two skylights, and windows facing southeast
- A “storage corridor” with four cabinets, each 2 m (6.6 ft) wide and 2 m (6.6 ft) high. These can be found at good prices occasionally and offer plenty of space to store items that fit well in wardrobes—special coats, seasonal decorations, games, files, etc. On either side, “unordered storage” space for things like skis, suitcases, surfboards, and whatever else you might think of
- Home office room facing northwest, which could also fit a guest bed 140 cm (55 inches) wide. It can also be useful for quickly informing package delivery personnel when you can’t come down immediately after the doorbell rings
- In the attic, I would plan for water and toilet connections (marked in red). With some rearranging, it should be possible to fit four rooms and a small bathroom. Since the master bathroom is directly below, the plumbing work should not be too complicated
That said, I still find my first version very appealing, which features a pitched roof with a 22° slope.
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