ᐅ Single-family home designed by an architect, 150 m² – looking for improvement suggestions and ideas
Created on: 2 Oct 2019 10:32
D
DimaNDS
Development Plan / Restrictions
Lot size: 528m² (5679 sq ft)
Slope: no
Site coverage ratio: 0.3
Floor area ratio: 0.45
Building window, building line and boundary: Roof ridge direction E/W
Edge development: Garage max 15m (49 ft)
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: Gable roof
Orientation: S/W
Maximum height / limits: 9m (30 ft) ridge height
Other: Sound insulation class IV
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: Modern
Basement, floors: no basement, ground floor, upper floor, partial attic
Number of occupants, age: 4
Room requirements ground floor, upper floor: Ground floor living room, kitchen, guest room, office, guest WC, storage room; upper floor 2 children’s rooms, master bedroom, bathroom
Office: family use or home office: both
Overnight guests per year: 10
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern construction: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: minimum 6
Fireplace: no
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double steel garage with utility room, 6 x 9m (20 x 30 ft)
Vegetable garden, greenhouse: no (bed in front of kitchen)
House Design
Planning by: Architect
What do you particularly like? Why?: We love the openness of the house.
What do you not like? Why?: We really like the design, but we’re unsure if there might be issues with the technical installations in the attic. Also, access to the attic is via a door in the gable, which might look a bit odd. The architect designed a shelf/ladder construction here. Possibly there is too little storage space for items not used regularly, like Christmas decorations.
Price estimate by architect/planner: €330,000 (including exterior landscaping and kitchen)
Personal price limit for house, including fittings: €350,000
Preferred heating technology: Gas or heat pump, depending on whether sound insulation class leads to a KFW 55 house standard. We still need to get advice on this.
If you had to give up something, which details/extensions
-could you do without: walk-in closet
-could you not do without: the general openness of the house.
Why is the design the way it is now? e.g.
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? Bedroom facing east, living room facing west, evening sun in the kitchen.
What makes it especially good or bad in your eyes? Good: It is not a standard house you’ve seen 100 times in builder catalogs. Bad: Relatively high space wastage due to the openness.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan in 130 characters?
What would you do differently or improve? Have we overlooked anything that could cause problems later?
Unfortunately, I cannot upload PDFs. The dimensions are there as well. For orientation: The living room is exactly 4m (13 ft) wide.
Lot size: 528m² (5679 sq ft)
Slope: no
Site coverage ratio: 0.3
Floor area ratio: 0.45
Building window, building line and boundary: Roof ridge direction E/W
Edge development: Garage max 15m (49 ft)
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: Gable roof
Orientation: S/W
Maximum height / limits: 9m (30 ft) ridge height
Other: Sound insulation class IV
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: Modern
Basement, floors: no basement, ground floor, upper floor, partial attic
Number of occupants, age: 4
Room requirements ground floor, upper floor: Ground floor living room, kitchen, guest room, office, guest WC, storage room; upper floor 2 children’s rooms, master bedroom, bathroom
Office: family use or home office: both
Overnight guests per year: 10
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern construction: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: minimum 6
Fireplace: no
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double steel garage with utility room, 6 x 9m (20 x 30 ft)
Vegetable garden, greenhouse: no (bed in front of kitchen)
House Design
Planning by: Architect
What do you particularly like? Why?: We love the openness of the house.
What do you not like? Why?: We really like the design, but we’re unsure if there might be issues with the technical installations in the attic. Also, access to the attic is via a door in the gable, which might look a bit odd. The architect designed a shelf/ladder construction here. Possibly there is too little storage space for items not used regularly, like Christmas decorations.
Price estimate by architect/planner: €330,000 (including exterior landscaping and kitchen)
Personal price limit for house, including fittings: €350,000
Preferred heating technology: Gas or heat pump, depending on whether sound insulation class leads to a KFW 55 house standard. We still need to get advice on this.
If you had to give up something, which details/extensions
-could you do without: walk-in closet
-could you not do without: the general openness of the house.
Why is the design the way it is now? e.g.
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? Bedroom facing east, living room facing west, evening sun in the kitchen.
What makes it especially good or bad in your eyes? Good: It is not a standard house you’ve seen 100 times in builder catalogs. Bad: Relatively high space wastage due to the openness.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan in 130 characters?
What would you do differently or improve? Have we overlooked anything that could cause problems later?
Unfortunately, I cannot upload PDFs. The dimensions are there as well. For orientation: The living room is exactly 4m (13 ft) wide.
Thanks in advance for the suggestions. However, according to the development plan, the building must be oriented so that the ridge runs from west to east. Unfortunately, this means rotating it is not an option.
At the moment, we have a 4m (13 feet) long kitchen run on the right side, with 60cm (24 inches) tall cabinets on both sides housing appliances in the middle. The stove and sink together take up about 150cm (59 inches), and we manage fine with this. I think the kitchen is sufficient for our personal needs. Nevertheless, I find the comment valid and have been thinking about it further. What do you think?
Regarding swapping the coat closet and utility room: I initially placed the utility room first. However, that doesn’t work with the window placement. Windows aren’t necessary in the utility room and would just take up valuable wall space. Also, if the guest bathroom window faces east, it becomes harder to fit a shower in there. I also liked the idea of having an open wall right at the entrance to make the area feel more spacious.
Here is the orientation of the plot again.
ypg schrieb:
I’m currently working through my messages and notice that the responses to the question are contradictory. So: The kitchen isn’t living up to its potential. More counter space is needed, so a larger island and closer to the main kitchen run, swap the utility room and WC/coat closet,
At the moment, we have a 4m (13 feet) long kitchen run on the right side, with 60cm (24 inches) tall cabinets on both sides housing appliances in the middle. The stove and sink together take up about 150cm (59 inches), and we manage fine with this. I think the kitchen is sufficient for our personal needs. Nevertheless, I find the comment valid and have been thinking about it further. What do you think?
Regarding swapping the coat closet and utility room: I initially placed the utility room first. However, that doesn’t work with the window placement. Windows aren’t necessary in the utility room and would just take up valuable wall space. Also, if the guest bathroom window faces east, it becomes harder to fit a shower in there. I also liked the idea of having an open wall right at the entrance to make the area feel more spacious.
kbt09 schrieb:
Is the plot precisely aligned to true north? Or could there be some variation, so that north is not exactly at the top of the plan?
Here is the orientation of the plot again.
DimaNDS schrieb:
Currently, we have a 4m (13 ft) long kitchen run with 60cm (24 in) tall cabinets on both sides. The stove and sink are in the middle, which together take up about 150cm (59 in), and we manage very well with this setup. I think the kitchen meets our personal needs. However, I appreciate the point raised and gave it some more thought. What do you think about this? I’m not sure how it is for you, but over the years people tend to acquire new appliances. In the last five years, I’ve added a blender, a dough mixer, a slow juicer, and a deep fryer. You’ll probably also end up needing to place a few more appliances somewhere. That requires countertop space. It’s better not to settle for just “enough.” The kitchen should be well-designed, especially in the area where you spend or need to spend time every day.
I consider more than 2 meters (6.5 ft) excessive for good workflow, but here it’s not such a problem.
Visually, the island needs to be slightly set back. It should align with the wall line.
I’m just noticing...
I wouldn’t install the tall cabinets. The room on the right can use the space itself. The kitchen benefits from a smaller open area and also gains a small wall for a calendar, pinboard, or chalkboard. Somehow, I’m not comfortable with this opening from the kitchen to the entrance. It feels like you’d always be cooking in the draft, cramped into a corner of the house.
The more I look at it, the less I like the kitchen’s location. Also, the direct access to the guest... There’s a lack of “space.”
I wouldn’t install the tall cabinets. The room on the right can use the space itself. The kitchen benefits from a smaller open area and also gains a small wall for a calendar, pinboard, or chalkboard. Somehow, I’m not comfortable with this opening from the kitchen to the entrance. It feels like you’d always be cooking in the draft, cramped into a corner of the house.
The more I look at it, the less I like the kitchen’s location. Also, the direct access to the guest... There’s a lack of “space.”
ypg schrieb:
I don’t know how it is for you, but over the years you end up acquiring different things. In just 5 years, I’ve accumulated an immersion blender, a dough mixer, a slow juicer, and a deep fryer. You’ll probably experience the same — needing to find space to put all these extra appliances. That means you need enough surface area. Don’t settle for just “enough”; it should be good, especially in areas where you spend or have to spend time every day.
For efficient work, more than 2 meters (over 6.5 feet) feels like too much, but it’s not such a big deal here.
Visually, the island needs to be slightly set back. It should align with the wall line. That probably won’t happen with us regarding machines and appliances. Neither of us are really cooks. We’ve been living in our house with the 4-meter (13 feet) kitchen for 4.5 years, and except for the small capsule coffee machine, nothing else sits out.
ypg schrieb:
Just noticed...
I wouldn’t install the tall cabinets. The room to the right can use the space itself. The kitchen benefits from a smaller work area and also gains a small wall for a calendar, pinboard, or chalkboard. Somehow I’m not comfortable with the kitchen opening directly to the entrance. It feels like you’re always cooking in the draft, squeezed into a corner of the house.
The more I look at it, the less I like the kitchen’s location. Also, the direct access to the guest room... It lacks a sense of “space.” Here is another option. I like it best at the moment.
The refrigerator, oven, etc., would go in the niche, and possibly a bar or open room divider could be added along the bottom run.
The range hood can vent directly outdoors, and you can still look out the window while cooking.
We do often have guests staying over, but 11 square meters (118 square feet) should be sufficient. The main thing is that a 1.40-meter (55 inches) bed fits in.
DimaNDS schrieb:
According to the development plan, the building must be oriented so that the ridge runs from west to east. Unfortunately, this means rotating the building is not possible. Sorry, man. But this is one of the worst plots I’ve ever seen here, especially if you need a 9m (30 feet) garage. Besides the driveway, have you considered how long your utility lines will have to be to reach the laundry room? That’s intense!
At this point, the individual kitchen cabinets wouldn’t even be my main concern.
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