ᐅ Evaluation of floor plan for approximately 145 sqm single-family house with basement, ground floor, and upper floor
Created on: 14 Oct 2021 12:44
A
Arango18
Hello everyone,
Zoning plan/restrictions: Zoning plan and restrictions considered by the architect
Plot size: 675m² (7260 sq ft)
Slope: yes, running diagonally across the plot (see elevation plan)
Building window, building line and boundary: 3 m (10 feet) on all sides
Edge development: yes, neighbor to the southeast
Number of parking spaces: 2 in garage and 2 in front of garage
Number of floors: 2.5
Roof type: gable roof, 36 degrees
Architectural style: simple
Orientation: southwest
Maximum heights/limits: same as neighboring buildings, sufficiently high
Other requirements: none
Street: cul-de-sac; our house is at the end, with neighbors on one side and open view of forest, meadow, and valley on the other
Owners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: interior as open and straightforward as possible, exterior simple
Basement, floors: basement, ground floor (GF) and upper floor (UF)
Number and age of occupants: currently 2 (both 28 years old), planning 1-2 children
Space requirements for GF, UF: approx. 140 m² (1507 sq ft) of living space
Office: absolutely necessary due to 80% remote work
Guest bedrooms: very rare use
Open or closed layout: open
Conservative or modern construction: conservative (mostly because it’s usually more affordable)
Open kitchen, cooking island: open kitchen with bar or island (due to space and layout, more likely a bar)
Dining seats: 4-6
Fireplace: planned but not mandatory
Music/stereo wall: standard TV wall
Balcony, roof terrace: small terrace on the slightly extended garage towards southwest, terrace towards southeast
Garage, carport: double garage with a single door
Utility garden, greenhouse: standard
Other wishes/notes/daily routine, including reasons why some things are wanted or not: a small shower in the guest WC is very important to us, as well as a small room for the home office. Since I work from home 80% of the time, this is essential. Also, a small storage room for vacuum cleaner etc.
House design
Who designed it: architect
What do you particularly like? The dining and living area looks bright and cozy in our opinion. Not too big and not too small with a great view.
What don’t you like? Why? Bathroom layout feels too tight and awkward, hallway in the upper floor too narrow?
Preferred heating system: air source heat pump
If you had to give up some features, which ones?
Fireplace
Why did the design end up like it is now?
The original design was larger and included more details such as corner and roof windows, but it was optimized for cost.
However, the room layout and overall room concept basically remained unchanged.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
I would appreciate further suggestions, especially regarding the aspects we don’t like. Overall, we are quite happy with it. Do you see any major “no-gos”?
If any information is incomplete or unclear, I’m happy to check it again.
Zoning plan/restrictions: Zoning plan and restrictions considered by the architect
Plot size: 675m² (7260 sq ft)
Slope: yes, running diagonally across the plot (see elevation plan)
Building window, building line and boundary: 3 m (10 feet) on all sides
Edge development: yes, neighbor to the southeast
Number of parking spaces: 2 in garage and 2 in front of garage
Number of floors: 2.5
Roof type: gable roof, 36 degrees
Architectural style: simple
Orientation: southwest
Maximum heights/limits: same as neighboring buildings, sufficiently high
Other requirements: none
Street: cul-de-sac; our house is at the end, with neighbors on one side and open view of forest, meadow, and valley on the other
Owners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: interior as open and straightforward as possible, exterior simple
Basement, floors: basement, ground floor (GF) and upper floor (UF)
Number and age of occupants: currently 2 (both 28 years old), planning 1-2 children
Space requirements for GF, UF: approx. 140 m² (1507 sq ft) of living space
Office: absolutely necessary due to 80% remote work
Guest bedrooms: very rare use
Open or closed layout: open
Conservative or modern construction: conservative (mostly because it’s usually more affordable)
Open kitchen, cooking island: open kitchen with bar or island (due to space and layout, more likely a bar)
Dining seats: 4-6
Fireplace: planned but not mandatory
Music/stereo wall: standard TV wall
Balcony, roof terrace: small terrace on the slightly extended garage towards southwest, terrace towards southeast
Garage, carport: double garage with a single door
Utility garden, greenhouse: standard
Other wishes/notes/daily routine, including reasons why some things are wanted or not: a small shower in the guest WC is very important to us, as well as a small room for the home office. Since I work from home 80% of the time, this is essential. Also, a small storage room for vacuum cleaner etc.
House design
Who designed it: architect
What do you particularly like? The dining and living area looks bright and cozy in our opinion. Not too big and not too small with a great view.
What don’t you like? Why? Bathroom layout feels too tight and awkward, hallway in the upper floor too narrow?
Preferred heating system: air source heat pump
If you had to give up some features, which ones?
Fireplace
Why did the design end up like it is now?
The original design was larger and included more details such as corner and roof windows, but it was optimized for cost.
However, the room layout and overall room concept basically remained unchanged.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
I would appreciate further suggestions, especially regarding the aspects we don’t like. Overall, we are quite happy with it. Do you see any major “no-gos”?
If any information is incomplete or unclear, I’m happy to check it again.
Our kitchen is similar and easily accommodates 2 to 8 people.
The design still has some flexibility.
If an appliance or cabinet door on the left in the passageway is open, it blocks all walkways. It’s an inconvenient corner, allowing for only 1 to 4 workstations. The dishwasher door cannot remain open, and so on.
The design still has some flexibility.
If an appliance or cabinet door on the left in the passageway is open, it blocks all walkways. It’s an inconvenient corner, allowing for only 1 to 4 workstations. The dishwasher door cannot remain open, and so on.
More important to me than the kitchen is still the orientation, access driveway, and parking spaces (whether inside the house or not). Am I understanding the plan correctly as follows?
If so, you are completely ignoring the best side of this truly great plot with its priceless view and privacy. The kitchen, dining area, terrace, balcony, and children’s room are all squeezed against the neighboring buildings, overlooking their rooftops or your paved area. Throughout the upper floor, there is no possibility for a nice view at all (except maybe when brushing your teeth or using the bathroom). The eastern corner of the house is being dug into the slope, while the other sides of the house somehow extend out of the terrain—the office will likely have the most freedom in this regard. The very long access driveway spoils the entire—uniquely beautiful!!!—west side, and it won’t work as shown anyway because the slope indicated on the lower part of the staircase does not actually exist in reality. Also, it’s unclear to me how the 6m (20 feet) wide driveway into the garage will work while ignoring the slope.
I generally find the floor plan itself okay, but it doesn’t seem to fit well into the slope. Or have I completely misunderstood?
If it is really intended this way and you don’t want to make major changes to the floor plan, I would at least consider mirroring it and/or seriously reconsidering the internal garage layout. Perhaps you could also place the entrance centrally in the house (currently on the left garage section). That would save you the current long access path, allow you to use the corridor space on the ground floor, and provide a practical mudroom area at the entrance with enough space for coats and shoes 🙂
However, I still find the better option would be a more elongated two-story house oriented to the west with the cars parked somewhere at the edge of the property.
If so, you are completely ignoring the best side of this truly great plot with its priceless view and privacy. The kitchen, dining area, terrace, balcony, and children’s room are all squeezed against the neighboring buildings, overlooking their rooftops or your paved area. Throughout the upper floor, there is no possibility for a nice view at all (except maybe when brushing your teeth or using the bathroom). The eastern corner of the house is being dug into the slope, while the other sides of the house somehow extend out of the terrain—the office will likely have the most freedom in this regard. The very long access driveway spoils the entire—uniquely beautiful!!!—west side, and it won’t work as shown anyway because the slope indicated on the lower part of the staircase does not actually exist in reality. Also, it’s unclear to me how the 6m (20 feet) wide driveway into the garage will work while ignoring the slope.
I generally find the floor plan itself okay, but it doesn’t seem to fit well into the slope. Or have I completely misunderstood?
If it is really intended this way and you don’t want to make major changes to the floor plan, I would at least consider mirroring it and/or seriously reconsidering the internal garage layout. Perhaps you could also place the entrance centrally in the house (currently on the left garage section). That would save you the current long access path, allow you to use the corridor space on the ground floor, and provide a practical mudroom area at the entrance with enough space for coats and shoes 🙂
However, I still find the better option would be a more elongated two-story house oriented to the west with the cars parked somewhere at the edge of the property.
Arango18 schrieb:
To be honest, I expected the biggest criticism from your side to be the kitchen. It is quite small.
Does anyone have a kitchen of this size and can possibly share whether it is sufficient or if they would have planned it differently afterwards? I did criticize it!
For two people, we have more countertop length—about 3 meters (10 feet) of work surface + 1.80 meters (6 feet) tall cabinets + refrigerator + 1.80 meters (6 feet) island with a depth of 90cm (35 inches)… and last year we had to build an extension for the coffee machine (the space for fruit/vegetables and kitchen appliances like a stand mixer, soda maker, etc., alongside the countertop, was no longer enough, as habits change over time).
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