Hello everyone,
At our developer, a customer who had reserved a plot of land dropped out. Since the other plot faces south / southwest, we didn’t hesitate long and switched to that plot. The new plot is smaller, so we gave up on our bungalow dream. The plot number is 5.
To remind you: The plot is tied to the developer.
I have been thinking over the past few days about the arrangement and design of the rooms and the plot, and I would first like to know if the concept is okay. I am not concerned with details inside the rooms such as windows, doors, or bathroom design. That’s not possible anyway since I created the floor plan myself based on Gussek Haus floor plans. However, I tried to design it as well as possible. For this reason, I want to share the floor plan here for discussion. I’m mainly looking for feedback on the layout and room arrangement, as well as ideas, suggestions, or tips. Maybe you’ll also spot things that “just don’t work” or are not practical for everyday living.
I created the floor plan with RoomSketcher, but only used the free version, so many features are limited. Please ignore the room dimensions on the upper floor. There is a dormer in the area of the home office.
A few more details about the house.
Roof pitch 38°
Knee wall (Drempel) 100cm (39 inches)
External dimensions 12.85 x 9.60 m (42.2 x 31.5 feet) (enlarged, original dimensions of Gussek Haus models are smaller)
Unfortunately, I cannot show internal room dimensions because RoomSketcher does not allow it.
Attached again is the completed questionnaire.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 676m²
Slope: NO
Site coverage ratio: 0.4 (allowed exceedance 25 out of 100)
Floor area ratio: 0.6
Building envelope, building line, and boundaries: On the north side / south side approx. 20.5 m (67 feet) wide, west and east sides approx. 33 m (108 feet) wide, 3 m (10 feet) building setback on each side, rectangular plot, clearly visible in the pictures
Edge construction setback: 3 m (10 feet)
Number of parking spaces: no requirement
Number of stories: maximum 2 full stories
Roof style: Gable roof, hipped roof
Other requirements: Garage must be 5 m (16 feet) from the property boundary. Garage on the west side because the curb is lowered there.
Homeowners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: Doesn’t matter, initially considered a house with a gable roof, there is a dormer in the home office area
Basement, number of floors: No basement due to high groundwater level
Number of occupants, ages: 4 people aged 36 (female), 37 (male), 3 (child), 1 (child)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor:
Ground floor: Living/dining/kitchen area, utility room, guest WC with shower, hallway with coat area and stairs to upper floor, guest room / playroom
Upper floor: Master bedroom, 2 children’s rooms, bathroom, storage room, office
Office use: Family use or home office? Home office combined with family use
Guests per year: 1–2 times
Open or closed architecture: Closed architecture?
Conservative or modern style: A mix of both
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Closed kitchen with island would be nice but not a must; open kitchen is also an option
Number of dining seats: 4, with the option for 6
Fireplace: No
Music / stereo wall: Sound system in the living room
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Space for 2 cars is required, preferably 3 to 4. Currently considering a garage (3 x 6 m / 9.8 x 19.7 feet) with a carport (3.6 m / 12 feet) in front, not sure if that works. Plus 2 parking spaces in front of the house.
Utility garden, greenhouse: No
Additional wishes / special features / daily routine, including reasons why certain things should or shouldn’t be:
House Design
Who created the design:
- DIY - copy and combination of Gussek Haus models Lindenallee, Kiefernallee variant 1, and Buchenallee variant 2
What do you especially like? Why?
- Large closed kitchen with island and direct / short access to the terrace
- Living room close to the terrace
- Guest / playroom on the ground floor
- Storage room on the upper floor with washing machine and dryer
- Utility room with washing machine and dryer (yes, twice)
- 6 rooms
- Layout of rooms on the upper floor
What do you not like? Why?
- Location of the home office on the upper floor is not ideal in my view, but I could live with it
Price estimate from architect/planner: No new estimate so far
Personal price limit for house including features: 400,000
Preferred heating system: Heat pump
Why does the design look like it does now? For example:
Copy-paste of Gussek Haus models Lindenallee, Kiefernallee variant 1, and Buchenallee variant 2
What is the most important fundamental question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
Is the room layout okay?
At our developer, a customer who had reserved a plot of land dropped out. Since the other plot faces south / southwest, we didn’t hesitate long and switched to that plot. The new plot is smaller, so we gave up on our bungalow dream. The plot number is 5.
To remind you: The plot is tied to the developer.
I have been thinking over the past few days about the arrangement and design of the rooms and the plot, and I would first like to know if the concept is okay. I am not concerned with details inside the rooms such as windows, doors, or bathroom design. That’s not possible anyway since I created the floor plan myself based on Gussek Haus floor plans. However, I tried to design it as well as possible. For this reason, I want to share the floor plan here for discussion. I’m mainly looking for feedback on the layout and room arrangement, as well as ideas, suggestions, or tips. Maybe you’ll also spot things that “just don’t work” or are not practical for everyday living.
I created the floor plan with RoomSketcher, but only used the free version, so many features are limited. Please ignore the room dimensions on the upper floor. There is a dormer in the area of the home office.
A few more details about the house.
Roof pitch 38°
Knee wall (Drempel) 100cm (39 inches)
External dimensions 12.85 x 9.60 m (42.2 x 31.5 feet) (enlarged, original dimensions of Gussek Haus models are smaller)
Unfortunately, I cannot show internal room dimensions because RoomSketcher does not allow it.
Attached again is the completed questionnaire.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 676m²
Slope: NO
Site coverage ratio: 0.4 (allowed exceedance 25 out of 100)
Floor area ratio: 0.6
Building envelope, building line, and boundaries: On the north side / south side approx. 20.5 m (67 feet) wide, west and east sides approx. 33 m (108 feet) wide, 3 m (10 feet) building setback on each side, rectangular plot, clearly visible in the pictures
Edge construction setback: 3 m (10 feet)
Number of parking spaces: no requirement
Number of stories: maximum 2 full stories
Roof style: Gable roof, hipped roof
Other requirements: Garage must be 5 m (16 feet) from the property boundary. Garage on the west side because the curb is lowered there.
Homeowners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: Doesn’t matter, initially considered a house with a gable roof, there is a dormer in the home office area
Basement, number of floors: No basement due to high groundwater level
Number of occupants, ages: 4 people aged 36 (female), 37 (male), 3 (child), 1 (child)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor:
Ground floor: Living/dining/kitchen area, utility room, guest WC with shower, hallway with coat area and stairs to upper floor, guest room / playroom
Upper floor: Master bedroom, 2 children’s rooms, bathroom, storage room, office
Office use: Family use or home office? Home office combined with family use
Guests per year: 1–2 times
Open or closed architecture: Closed architecture?
Conservative or modern style: A mix of both
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Closed kitchen with island would be nice but not a must; open kitchen is also an option
Number of dining seats: 4, with the option for 6
Fireplace: No
Music / stereo wall: Sound system in the living room
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Space for 2 cars is required, preferably 3 to 4. Currently considering a garage (3 x 6 m / 9.8 x 19.7 feet) with a carport (3.6 m / 12 feet) in front, not sure if that works. Plus 2 parking spaces in front of the house.
Utility garden, greenhouse: No
Additional wishes / special features / daily routine, including reasons why certain things should or shouldn’t be:
House Design
Who created the design:
- DIY - copy and combination of Gussek Haus models Lindenallee, Kiefernallee variant 1, and Buchenallee variant 2
What do you especially like? Why?
- Large closed kitchen with island and direct / short access to the terrace
- Living room close to the terrace
- Guest / playroom on the ground floor
- Storage room on the upper floor with washing machine and dryer
- Utility room with washing machine and dryer (yes, twice)
- 6 rooms
- Layout of rooms on the upper floor
What do you not like? Why?
- Location of the home office on the upper floor is not ideal in my view, but I could live with it
Price estimate from architect/planner: No new estimate so far
Personal price limit for house including features: 400,000
Preferred heating system: Heat pump
Why does the design look like it does now? For example:
Copy-paste of Gussek Haus models Lindenallee, Kiefernallee variant 1, and Buchenallee variant 2
What is the most important fundamental question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
Is the room layout okay?
S
saralina8724 May 2020 17:02... why have a kitchen island at all? In a closed kitchen?
C
Chrisi190624 May 2020 20:33kaho674 schrieb:
I’m not sure it makes sense to say anything more since little changes despite several comments, but here it goes again:
There’s no space to use the wardrobe next to the bed. Move the wall to the office 60cm (24 inches) back and then position the wardrobe flush with the door. The patio door behind the sofa is nonsense, the pathway to the other patio door in the living room is blocked by the dining table, and the west-facing window is completely missing in the living room.
All windows on the upper floor are too narrow (except the double casement window).
Congrats on the double casement window in the stairwell – what a long time it took!We are aware that the bedroom is too narrow. I think I’ve already written about this somewhere. We currently have a similar setup in our rented apartment, where the bedroom is half a meter (20 inches) narrower and we have a 160cm (63 inches) wide bed plus an Ikea Malm wardrobe about 50cm (20 inches) deep. My wife and I are not very tall, so we don’t need a 200cm (79 inches) wide bed. Sure, when the kids sleep in the bed it gets tight, and a 200cm (79 inches) wide bed would be possible, but I hope that won’t last forever. The room is 3.96m (13 feet) wide, so after subtracting the 2m (79 inches) bed width, you have about 98cm (39 inches) on each side if no wardrobe is placed on the office side. With a wardrobe on the office side, that space reduces to 68cm (27 inches). It’s not much, but with a 180cm (71 inches) wide bed, you would have 78cm (31 inches). So I find it acceptable. Moving the wall to the office 60cm (24 inches) back again could be an option, but then it gets very tight with my office furniture. By the way, not all office furniture is shown in the floor plan.
Where I fully agree with you is that the patio door behind the sofa is less than ideal. However, I haven’t found a solution for it. A west-facing window will be difficult because of the shed. Simply adding a regular window would spoil the external appearance. Do you have any ideas?
I don’t consider the pathway to the other patio door in the living room being blocked by the dining table a big problem.
The west-facing window is missing on that side because the shed will be built there later.
The windows on the upper floor seem wide enough for me in the children’s rooms. Too narrow, in my opinion, are only the bedroom and bathroom windows. The bathroom also has a double casement window, and the bedroom is mainly used for sleeping. If you need light in the bedroom, you can either get closer to the window or switch on the light.
saralina87 schrieb:
... why even have a kitchen island? In a closed kitchen?In our rented apartment, we currently have an open kitchen with an island. We don’t like the open kitchen, but we love the island. If you have a better idea, I’m all ears.
Curly schrieb:
Why don’t you make a proper kitchen island (with cooktop on it) and omit the cabinet in the upper right?
I’d also make the room doors taller.
Cheers,
SabineWe already did that. The oven is on the left side as you enter, and the cooktop is on the island. Look at the last picture. Which cabinet in the upper right do you mean?
C
Chrisi190624 May 2020 20:37@katja
Could you please say something about the "path" next to the storage room? Marked in red in the picture. Many thanks.
My thoughts: A width of 89cm (35 inches) for the staircase entrance still seems like a mistake to me. I also find the 91cm (36 inches) path next to the storage room too wide, but what do you think? Basically, it’s only there to access the roof window. Would you extend the "path" all the way to the exterior wall? Visually, I would leave about 90cm (35 inches) clearance at the end of the stairs. Of course, then you wouldn’t have easy access to the attic window. My wife and the planner, however, overruled me.
Could you please say something about the "path" next to the storage room? Marked in red in the picture. Many thanks.
My thoughts: A width of 89cm (35 inches) for the staircase entrance still seems like a mistake to me. I also find the 91cm (36 inches) path next to the storage room too wide, but what do you think? Basically, it’s only there to access the roof window. Would you extend the "path" all the way to the exterior wall? Visually, I would leave about 90cm (35 inches) clearance at the end of the stairs. Of course, then you wouldn’t have easy access to the attic window. My wife and the planner, however, overruled me.
S
saralina8724 May 2020 22:07I just don’t see the point of having a kitchen island in a closed kitchen; it neither looks particularly good nor is it very practical.
So I would plan either a) a fully open kitchen with a large, generous island, or b) a classic closed kitchen with plenty of space.
What bothers you about the open kitchen right now? Especially with your situation of having small children, it seems like an open kitchen with an island would be the ideal solution...
So I would plan either a) a fully open kitchen with a large, generous island, or b) a classic closed kitchen with plenty of space.
What bothers you about the open kitchen right now? Especially with your situation of having small children, it seems like an open kitchen with an island would be the ideal solution...
Chrisi1906 schrieb:
My thoughts on this: A width of 89cm (35 inches) for the staircase landing still seems like a mistake to me. I also find the passage next to the storage room at 91cm (36 inches) too wide—what do you think? Basically, this area is only there to access the roof window. Would you extend this "path" all the way to the house wall? Visually, I would leave about 90cm (35 inches) clear at the end of the stairs. Of course, that would make it harder to reach the roof window. But my wife and the planner outvoted me. If you extend the passage all the way back, I think you’ll have a problem with headroom.
Whether you even need the passage at all, others can advise better. I would consider using a mop with a long handle indoors, and outside the rain will clean it anyway.
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