ᐅ Single-family house (2 floors + finished basement + converted attic), approximately 200 sqm – modifications

Created on: 20 Oct 2019 21:50

Hello,
We are currently working with an architect on the design of our single-family home. Since we have three children, the house should accommodate several future scenarios. These include:

Enough space for everyone
At some point, the children will move out, and we will downsize to the living basement while renting out the rest
One or two children might continue living with us (multi-generational living) – possibly in the basement with a separate entrance
Possibly one child even starts a family in the house, and we move to the basement

Plot:

710 sqm (8,000 sq ft) close to the city center
To the south is our rear building (two stories) attached to a 3.5-story apartment building (boundary development)
To the north and west are the streets (a corner plot)
Behind to the west is a large green plot with a single-family house
To the north beyond the street are apartment buildings
To the east there is a narrow parking lot followed by a green recreational garden area
We have to keep a 6 m (20 ft) setback to the streets and the usual 3 m (10 ft) to the parking lot

Since the plot already has a building, and we want to keep the rear building (it is fully shaded by the apartment building, is in reasonable condition, and might provide future expansion potential—at least suitable for workshops and storage), and since the plot is not very large, we decided on a tall house with a small footprint.

About the house

Eder XP9 or 10 (timber frame) in 42.5 or 49 cm (17 or 19 inches) thickness
Living basement (150 cm (5 ft) below ground / 100 cm (3 ft) above ground) – if affordable (this allows for the utility room in the basement and more space on the ground floor for a large open-plan living/dining/kitchen area as the main living space)
Knee wall either 150 cm (5 ft) or, if not much more expensive, a dormer wall above the full upper floor (both options allow the roof space to be used for two rooms; with the dormer, these rooms are very large and could even accommodate an attic instead of bunk beds)
50-degree roof pitch (for solar energy efficiency in winter)
The basement should be designed to eventually allow for a small separate living unit
Both bathrooms should have a standing toilet or urinal
We definitely want a windbreak/entry vestibule
The terrace should be raised with fill
Underfloor heating with geothermal energy
Solar energy planned for the future

We have already developed a fairly comfortable floor plan with our chosen architect. Our biggest concern is accidentally planning a wall or something else 5 cm (2 inches) too far to the left or right and then being unable to fit our furniture. I would appreciate it if you would be interested in looking over the current design and giving feedback.

Floor plan of an apartment with rooms, doors, and dimensions (22.78 m2, bathroom 6.79 m2).

Floor plan of a living and dining area with sofa, table group, chairs, plants, and doors.

Floor plan of an apartment with two bedrooms, study, bathroom, dressing room, and hallways.

Floor plan of an apartment with multiple rooms, doors, and corridor; area measurements in m².

Floor plan of a building with several rooms, area measurements in m2, and north arrow.

Isometric view of a white apartment building with green garden and neighboring building.

3D rendering: white apartment building with garden, fence, next to adjacent residential area.

White single-family house with dark roof, garden; next to a modern apartment building, blue sky.

Two-story house with dark gable roof, garden, fence, and driveway.

Pinky030127 Oct 2019 19:55

#43

I have just looked over the floor plans from the first page again. I hope that not much has changed since then.

I find the area in the ground floor (GF) in front of the stairs quite narrow. You’ve made it clear that traffic through the GF doesn’t bother you, but with the sofa positioned like that, isn’t it difficult to get to the stairs?

Are two children supposed to be under the roof and one on the same level as your bedroom?

What is the purpose of the dressing area in front of the bathroom? Are the children expected to walk through the stairwell naked to get to their rooms? With three children, you’ll probably have visitors from time to time, so that might be uncomfortable.

Are you planning to have only one shower for five people? I didn’t see a second one on the ground floor...

haydee27 Oct 2019 20:08

#44

What do you want to hear?

- Budget will not be sufficient
- A lot of work must be done by yourself if you want to see your family in the next 2 years
- You voluntarily build the ground floor higher
Do you like steps? Meaningless steps to the front door, meaningless steps to the garden
- Staircase too small
- Staircase too central
Saturday 8:15 PM you want to watch TV in peace
8:30 PM friends of child 1 arrive
8:50 PM child 2 leaves
9:00 PM girlfriend of child 3 arrives
9:05 PM friend of child 1 gets something from the car
9:30 PM child 3 leaves with girlfriend
9:45 PM child 1 leaves with friends
10:15 PM child 2 comes back with friends
10:30 PM child 2 gets drinks from the basement
and so on

Ground floor
2.8 m (9 ft) depth, no door into the walk-in closet possible
Trapped bedroom
Is the child only allowed in their room when you are not working?
Where is the child allowed to use the toilet?
Where can the children from the attic use the toilet?
Which bathroom do they use?
The one in the basement?

Why is the existing rear building not included in the planning?

grericht27 Oct 2019 20:46

#45

Pinky0301 schrieb:

I’ve reviewed the floor plans from the first page again. Hopefully, not much has changed since then.
I find the area in the ground floor in front of the stairs quite cramped. You’ve made it clear that through-traffic on the ground floor doesn’t bother you, but with the sofa placed as shown, isn’t it hard to get to the stairs?
Are two children supposed to share the attic level while one child and you share the same floor with your bedroom?
What is the dressing area in front of the bathroom for? Are the children supposed to walk naked through the stairwell to get to their rooms? With three children and likely some guests, that wouldn’t be ideal...
Do you only want one shower for five people? I didn’t see a second one on the ground floor...

Only the basement has changed.
I also find the area in front of the stairs very tight. That sofa is the biggest realistically possible one, so I expect it will be a bit smaller and that should work well.
The dressing room is for the children’s clothes. I think by the time they’re 16 (and the youngest is still 14 years from now), it will make more sense. The kids go to the bathroom in pajamas or underwear and pick up fresh clothes on the way. That’s how it currently works for us, except now the kids take fresh clothes from their own rooms. As I said, it hasn’t been used yet; I’ve only seen the shell but I think it’s a good setup.
There was a shower in the basement before. If we fully vacate the basement, that bathroom will be removed and probably a bathroom with a shower will be added in the attic. That would make the dressing room pointless.

haydee schrieb:

What do you want to hear?

- Budget won’t be enough
- A lot of DIY work if you want to see your family in the next two years
- You’re willingly building a higher ground floor
- Do you like steps? Meaningless steps to the front door, meaningless steps to the garden
- Stairs are too small
- Stairs are too central
Saturday 8:15 pm you want to watch TV quietly
8:30 pm friends of child 1 arrive
8:50 pm child 2 leaves
9:00 pm child 3’s girlfriend arrives
9:05 pm child 1’s friend fetches something from the car
9:30 pm child 3 and girlfriend leave
9:45 pm child 1 leaves with friends
10:15 pm child 2 returns with friends
10:30 pm child 2 grabs drinks from the basement
and so on

Ground floor
At 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) depth, no door will fit into the dressing room
Bedroom is trapped
Is the child only allowed to enter their bedroom when you’re not working?
Where can the child use the toilet?
Where do the children in the attic go to the toilet?
Which bathroom do they use?
The one in the basement?

Why isn’t the existing rear building included in the planning?

I already presented our budget, and most considered it reasonably calculated. Where else are there errors in judgment?
DIY work will include painting, flooring, and landscaping, which are fixed for us and not unusual. I will oversee tiling.
Raising the ground floor is currently the most interesting question for us. If we completely vacate the basement, we can fully bury it underground. However, earth removal and extra excavation work could quickly offset the cost savings from not having a living basement. NO, we don’t like stairs. The entrance stairs don’t bother us but the terrace stairs are definitely inconvenient.
Through-traffic in the living room is acceptable (we hope). We would prefer to rotate the stairs 90 degrees clockwise on the ground floor to add a bit more privacy, but without removing the stairs entirely. Unfortunately, this won’t work on the other floors. Any ideas?
“I don’t understand '2.8 m depth, no door in the dressing room’.”
The bedroom layout is suboptimal, as described. We’re open to cost-neutral suggestions. I’m currently considering expanding it by 60-100 cm (2-3 ft) to the right as shown in the plan.
The bedroom behind the study is the master bedroom. The one near the bathroom/dressing room (top left on the plan) is for the third child.
The plan was for everyone to use the nice bathroom. The toilet on the ground floor will mainly be used when spending most time there. If two people need to shower at the same time, they can use the basement bathroom. If we vacate the basement, the idea is to integrate a second bathroom with a shower in the attic. This would make bathroom and toilet use much easier since there would be a toilet on each living floor and showers or a bathtub on the sleeping floors.

EDIT: I already mentioned that the rear building will only be considered in the long term. That is also the reason for vacating the basement now. If we ever need age-appropriate living space, or the children need more room, we can use the rear building instead of building a basement that is only moderately suitable for living.

ypg27 Oct 2019 23:30

#46

grericht schrieb:

I still believe that tastes differ and that house building is also a matter of personal taste.

However, house planning is initially much more about functionality than taste. Later on, you can express your personal style through finishes and furnishings. And yes: a house plan should fit the owner. You yourself note that many things here do not work.

Since making one change after another only leads to more confusion, it is better to start over with a new plan. If you can’t do that yourself, bring in a professional.

grericht schrieb:

asking if you see things that could become problems.

Guest toilet in the living room
Living room used as a walk-through room
Staircase located centrally allows no privacy
Incorrect or poorly planned dimensions/measurements
Too small hallway upstairs
Access to the bathroom is through a storage room
Access to the kitchen is through a storage room
Access to the master bedroom goes through a room serving a different function
Artificially raising the ground floor by adding a basement requires stairs
I will leave out the basement and structural wall, as well as doors and windows
I will also leave the exterior view with the confusing window layout aside for now...

grericht schrieb:

The small hallways in the basement, upper floor, and attic are okay for us.

That means: it’s not good, but we tolerate it because we don’t know how to solve it better.

grericht schrieb:

I still haven’t been given an explanation about what the problem with the door to the pantry is that I can understand.

Because it’s inconvenient to have to enter a room through a storage room. Two doors are also undesirable.

grericht schrieb:

It means that encounters are unavoidable.

Encounters can be pleasant, but for you, due to lack of circulation space, people will practically bump into each other. Movement needs to be controlled.
A laundry basket or a large bag will be a challenge upstairs… or in this narrow corridor-like space off the hallway in the living room. All bottlenecks…
It’s impossible to move furniture upstairs...

grericht schrieb:

The walk-through dressing room before the bathroom is exactly what we want. Although we haven’t had one before, we have seen this idea and think it’s great with three children.

Small children might get used to clutter, and older children have to leave their own rooms?

grericht schrieb:

does not bother us and

That means: it’s not good, but we tolerate it because we don’t know how to solve it better.

grericht schrieb:

is not the most attractive

That means: it’s not good, but we tolerate it because we don’t know how to solve it better.

grericht schrieb:

and is due to the floor plan.

Ah! That’s exactly what we have been saying all along: the floor plan is absolutely terrible.

grericht schrieb:

but the terrace is obviously awful.

...

grericht schrieb:

The bedroom behind the study is the master bedroom.

And when your children want to study late with friends before exams, you want to have to pass through there?

Well. There you go.

kaho67428 Oct 2019 11:42

#47

You can hardly wait to make use of the existing space, refresh it, and create a nice west-facing garden. Depending on the quality, I believe this has several advantages: financially, space-wise, and distance requirements wouldn’t be an issue. A pavilion in the middle of the garden for sun lovers…

ypg28 Oct 2019 14:40

#48

kaho674 schrieb:

You really feel the urge to use the existing structure and spruce it up

but please, not with self-planning

ᐅ Single-family house (2 floors + finished basement + converted attic), approximately 200 sqm – modifications

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