ᐅ Hillside House in the Southwest Palatinate – Our Home Construction 2.0
Created on: 9 Sep 2022 18:13
K
kati1337
Good evening everyone
I’m starting a small collection thread here for photos and progress updates on our second building project.
We’ve already moved to the Palatinate region to be closer to the construction site. Now we’re watching eagerly and happily as our (hopefully final) dream home takes shape near family.
One big challenge still ahead of us is the facade design. I really love the Nordic style with brickwork and mullioned windows. That won’t be possible here for two reasons: firstly, no one here can do bricklaying, and secondly, it would stand out too much. We will be going with a rendered facade. How to design the colors of the facade and windows to still create some country house / cottage charm is currently still a work in progress mentally.
Otherwise, I’m sharing our plans here and how it will eventually be built.
The support pillar marked near the kitchen island could be removed for a small extra cost, so that will be gone.
The room for “garden equipment” under the garage will get a partition wall for structural reasons.
It won’t be fully finished living space like in the house, but underfloor heating will be installed, along with a lockable door and a window. It’s meant to store garden tools but also some of the building services equipment, since the utility room (HAR) is quite small, and maybe be used as a party room.
We had three construction companies in the final selection. In the end, we chose the “doer” – a builder recommended to us here by friends and family. No website, no smartphone, but he is on site every day himself working in overalls. He has a very good reputation in this area and now rarely builds single-family homes. We were a bit lucky through personal connections and a very friendly initial phone call to get our foot in the door. So far we are very satisfied with this choice.
I’m starting a small collection thread here for photos and progress updates on our second building project.
We’ve already moved to the Palatinate region to be closer to the construction site. Now we’re watching eagerly and happily as our (hopefully final) dream home takes shape near family.
One big challenge still ahead of us is the facade design. I really love the Nordic style with brickwork and mullioned windows. That won’t be possible here for two reasons: firstly, no one here can do bricklaying, and secondly, it would stand out too much. We will be going with a rendered facade. How to design the colors of the facade and windows to still create some country house / cottage charm is currently still a work in progress mentally.
Otherwise, I’m sharing our plans here and how it will eventually be built.
The support pillar marked near the kitchen island could be removed for a small extra cost, so that will be gone.
The room for “garden equipment” under the garage will get a partition wall for structural reasons.
It won’t be fully finished living space like in the house, but underfloor heating will be installed, along with a lockable door and a window. It’s meant to store garden tools but also some of the building services equipment, since the utility room (HAR) is quite small, and maybe be used as a party room.
We had three construction companies in the final selection. In the end, we chose the “doer” – a builder recommended to us here by friends and family. No website, no smartphone, but he is on site every day himself working in overalls. He has a very good reputation in this area and now rarely builds single-family homes. We were a bit lucky through personal connections and a very friendly initial phone call to get our foot in the door. So far we are very satisfied with this choice.
kati1337 schrieb:
I generally worry that rendered facades, especially colored ones, don’t maintain their appearance over time. That was one of the reasons I really liked brick cladding. In Lower Saxony, you can find farmhouses over 120 years old with brickwork that, while weathered, still looks nice. I don’t know of any rendered house that still looks good after 120 years.I completely agree with that 😉. But sometimes it’s just not possible.My landlord used a gray-white render and painted the window reveals a darker gray shade. The windows have white frames, but it’s an older house. By the way, for the narrow windows, they used a type of glazing bar called a "Viennese bar"—so it’s not divided into individual panes, but the bars aren’t placed on the inside either. After more than 8 years, the render hasn’t shown visible damage yet. Still, eventually, it will require maintenance—repainting, possibly patching the render.
The right half wasn’t finished yet, by the way.
Yesterday was the selection appointment for the windows and so on.
The windows and window sills will now be white on both sides instead of anthracite – this results in a credit since white is apparently cheaper. The entire house will have divided-light windows, except for the large fixed glazing in the hallway, which will act as a highlight. The additional cost for this is around 1000€.
For the window sills, we are currently looking at white aluminum. With a small extra charge, we could also get artificial stone. Is that worth it? Visually, it doesn’t matter much to us.
For the veranda door, we are leaning towards a lift-and-slide system. It definitely looks higher quality. Also, with a regular sliding window, you could accidentally lock yourself out – something I can imagine happening to me. 😀 The extra cost for this would be about 1500€.
However, due to the installation depth, this would mean a visible roller shutter box inside, which I definitely want to avoid. Therefore, we are considering switching from a roller shutter to an external venetian blind for the wide veranda door. This would add another 600-1000€ depending on whether the blind is divided into two parts or not. But that would also have practical advantages: you could shade the room without making it completely dark, depending on the angle of the slats.
I think I could also live with the regular sliding window. We also have another garden door (a standard door) right next to it. This would save us quite a bit in extra costs (around 2500€), so we would only have the extra charge for the divided lights, which essentially balances out with the cheaper color choice.
The windows and window sills will now be white on both sides instead of anthracite – this results in a credit since white is apparently cheaper. The entire house will have divided-light windows, except for the large fixed glazing in the hallway, which will act as a highlight. The additional cost for this is around 1000€.
For the window sills, we are currently looking at white aluminum. With a small extra charge, we could also get artificial stone. Is that worth it? Visually, it doesn’t matter much to us.
For the veranda door, we are leaning towards a lift-and-slide system. It definitely looks higher quality. Also, with a regular sliding window, you could accidentally lock yourself out – something I can imagine happening to me. 😀 The extra cost for this would be about 1500€.
However, due to the installation depth, this would mean a visible roller shutter box inside, which I definitely want to avoid. Therefore, we are considering switching from a roller shutter to an external venetian blind for the wide veranda door. This would add another 600-1000€ depending on whether the blind is divided into two parts or not. But that would also have practical advantages: you could shade the room without making it completely dark, depending on the angle of the slats.
I think I could also live with the regular sliding window. We also have another garden door (a standard door) right next to it. This would save us quite a bit in extra costs (around 2500€), so we would only have the extra charge for the divided lights, which essentially balances out with the cheaper color choice.
I don’t really understand the appeal of (lift-and-) sliding doors. Because next to them, you always have an even larger fixed panel. Once the movable part is more than 1.5m (5 feet) wide, it also becomes quite heavy to operate. I would prefer two sashes with a mullion or go for a folding system like @hampshire. But everyone has their own preference. My tendency here would clearly be towards the more affordable option, although I would still recommend the external venetian blind.
C
Costruttrice9 Nov 2022 09:37If you don’t mind the appearance of having roller shutters everywhere and only one window with Venetian blinds (besides the price, of course), I think that’s a good solution. I was annoyed in our old house to have roller shutters instead of Venetian blinds in the living area, as we often stayed inside in the dark during the height of summer heat.
This time, we will also go for two-part windows, which we didn’t consider the first time. I often wished to shade the fixed part while keeping the other open, and that was definitely a must for me this time.
We will choose stone window sills; I didn’t like the sound of raindrops on the aluminum sills, which really bothered me and I couldn’t ignore it. We had a window appointment yesterday, and stone was recommended to us too, but we haven’t decided which type we will take yet.
I don’t know if I’m good advice for you. I clearly prefer lift-and-slide doors for barrier-free access, Venetian blinds for shading options, and stone window sills for noise reasons — unfortunately, all are extra-cost options.
This time, we will also go for two-part windows, which we didn’t consider the first time. I often wished to shade the fixed part while keeping the other open, and that was definitely a must for me this time.
We will choose stone window sills; I didn’t like the sound of raindrops on the aluminum sills, which really bothered me and I couldn’t ignore it. We had a window appointment yesterday, and stone was recommended to us too, but we haven’t decided which type we will take yet.
I don’t know if I’m good advice for you. I clearly prefer lift-and-slide doors for barrier-free access, Venetian blinds for shading options, and stone window sills for noise reasons — unfortunately, all are extra-cost options.
C
Costruttrice9 Nov 2022 09:51Tolentino schrieb:
When the moving part is wider than 1.5m (5 feet), it already becomes cumbersome. We have tried even larger ones, which were surprisingly easy to operate and glided almost effortlessly. But there is probably a wide range of options here, which is reflected in the budget.
In my opinion, when dealing with a large window element, you have no choice but to go for a sliding panel, since you don’t want a huge window sash jutting into the room.
Alternatively, a folding system is an option, but that also means different costs. However, personally, I would be bothered by the folded glass panels on the side, and insect screens are no longer possible—or only very expensive—in that case.
Tolentino schrieb:
I don’t really understand the appeal of (lift-and-) sliding doors. Because next to them, there’s always an even larger fixed panel. Once the moving part is over 1.5m (5 feet) wide, it also becomes quite heavy to operate. I’d rather go for two sashes with a mullion or a folding system like What does "with stulp" mean?
We were shown a door with a turn handle. When you turned it a quarter turn, the window tilted open; if you turned it a bit further, it came loose at the bottom and you could slide it away. To close it, you turn the lever back to the quarter position and if you push it firmly, the door snaps back in at the bottom (basically into the tilt position). If you accidentally do this from the outside, you lock yourself out.
Costruttrice schrieb:
If the appearance of shutters everywhere but only external venetian blinds on one window doesn’t bother you (plus the price, of course), I think that’s a good solution. What annoyed me in our old house was having shutters in the living area instead of venetian blinds; we often sat inside in darkness during the midsummer heat.
This time we will also do a split panel; we hadn’t considered this the first time. I often wished I could shade the fixed panel while keeping the other open, and for me, that was a must this time. That’s good to know and a helpful tip. The window fitter also recommended lift-and-slide doors and venetian blinds. I never considered them because of the cost, but especially for the large living area, it would actually be quite nice. Although our room doesn’t face south, so it might not be as critical. We should definitely do the split panels because it makes a lot of sense.
Costruttrice schrieb:
We’ll choose stone window sills; what bothered me about aluminum sills is the sound of raindrops – that drives me crazy and I can’t tune it out. We had a window appointment yesterday, and they also recommended stone. We don’t know yet which one we will pick. Are they noisier? I actually like the sound of rain, but I’m not familiar with aluminum window sills. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a house with those. Definitely a good point. As far as I know, they aren’t much more expensive. The window fitter said aluminum has become so costly that artificial stone isn’t much more expensive than that. Only natural stone would be significantly pricier.
Costruttrice schrieb:
I don’t know if I’m good advice for you. You are 🙂
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