Hello everyone,
I have always liked roof terraces, even when you have a garden and a patio. However, I have also heard some negative opinions lately. I am therefore interested to know, if you have already built one, whether you think your roof terrace was a good investment.
Best regards
Hausbauer1
I have always liked roof terraces, even when you have a garden and a patio. However, I have also heard some negative opinions lately. I am therefore interested to know, if you have already built one, whether you think your roof terrace was a good investment.
Best regards
Hausbauer1
It’s not really about having the option to spend time either upstairs or downstairs. Whether it’s enjoyable...
Plants require maintenance: whether it’s scattered trees in the garden with lawn (not to mention a beautiful landscaped garden), even a rooftop terrace looks bleak without greenery and isn’t comfortable.
You mow the lawn downstairs 2-3 times a week, water the trees every day in summer (flowers?, perennials?, shrubs?), pinch off blossoms, get rid of ants, and weed, only to then be exhausted when watering the plant containers upstairs?
Anyone who plans or has a rooftop terrace as an extension of the garden either has an expensive irrigation system or enough money for a gardener.
Let me put it this way: if you don’t want to water the bamboo in the south-facing spot every day, fertilize it weekly, and sweep up dried leaves and fish them out of the drain every other day, then don’t bother.
A garden takes work, a rooftop terrace even more.
A terrace is only worth as much as how easily you can reach the kitchen to grab a sundowner.
Regards, Yvonne
Plants require maintenance: whether it’s scattered trees in the garden with lawn (not to mention a beautiful landscaped garden), even a rooftop terrace looks bleak without greenery and isn’t comfortable.
You mow the lawn downstairs 2-3 times a week, water the trees every day in summer (flowers?, perennials?, shrubs?), pinch off blossoms, get rid of ants, and weed, only to then be exhausted when watering the plant containers upstairs?
Anyone who plans or has a rooftop terrace as an extension of the garden either has an expensive irrigation system or enough money for a gardener.
Let me put it this way: if you don’t want to water the bamboo in the south-facing spot every day, fertilize it weekly, and sweep up dried leaves and fish them out of the drain every other day, then don’t bother.
A garden takes work, a rooftop terrace even more.
A terrace is only worth as much as how easily you can reach the kitchen to grab a sundowner.
Regards, Yvonne
We have automatic irrigation for the garden and roof terrace. Especially the pots up there would be difficult to maintain without it, given the south-facing aspect.
I don’t understand the need for a short route to the kitchen just for the sundowner. Occasionally restocking the fridge upstairs and washing the dishes by hand doesn’t bother me. However, I wouldn’t consider grilling with six people up there...
I don’t understand the need for a short route to the kitchen just for the sundowner. Occasionally restocking the fridge upstairs and washing the dishes by hand doesn’t bother me. However, I wouldn’t consider grilling with six people up there...
I also believe that a rooftop terrace only makes sense under certain conditions.
With our rooftop terrace, we have a beautiful view over the river valley, which is also visible from the living room, but no longer from the regular terrace. The main terrace is fully visible to the neighbors (parents and a third party, and in the future potentially 5 more parties in a multi-family building) because they are situated at a higher level.
Because of the flat roof and these circumstances, the rooftop terrace almost became a necessity.
The following aspects were important to us for the rooftop terrace:
- Complete privacy from the neighbors.
- Dry access to the terrace, so there cannot be an external staircase as the only access route.
- Water and electricity connections for a garden shower, hot tub, or sauna.
- An anteroom with space to store plants, cushions, etc., and to have a refrigerator at this level.
We have managed to achieve all of this, and on top of that, we are now planning to install a wastewater connection in the anteroom as a precaution, in case we decide later to convert the refrigerator space into a small kitchenette.
We are aware that the ease of use largely determines the value of a rooftop terrace. If I have to go downstairs for every little thing, the enjoyment will eventually disappear.
Looking at the costs:
- Additional cost for walkable surface ~ €3500
- Masonry parapet ~ No idea (around €1000?)
- Additional half flight of stairs ~ €3000
- Additional cube as an anteroom and extension of the stairs, 9.5m² (102 sq ft) at €2000/m² (€186/sq ft) = €19,000
So the rooftop terrace likely costs at least €30,000. That’s quite a lot of money, considering we are only building with a carport and no basement.
Who knows, I might admit in five years that this was the most expensive mistake of my life. However, given the conditions, we don’t expect that to be the case. And now that we have already been up there, we are all the more happy about the terrace.
With our rooftop terrace, we have a beautiful view over the river valley, which is also visible from the living room, but no longer from the regular terrace. The main terrace is fully visible to the neighbors (parents and a third party, and in the future potentially 5 more parties in a multi-family building) because they are situated at a higher level.
Because of the flat roof and these circumstances, the rooftop terrace almost became a necessity.
The following aspects were important to us for the rooftop terrace:
- Complete privacy from the neighbors.
- Dry access to the terrace, so there cannot be an external staircase as the only access route.
- Water and electricity connections for a garden shower, hot tub, or sauna.
- An anteroom with space to store plants, cushions, etc., and to have a refrigerator at this level.
We have managed to achieve all of this, and on top of that, we are now planning to install a wastewater connection in the anteroom as a precaution, in case we decide later to convert the refrigerator space into a small kitchenette.
We are aware that the ease of use largely determines the value of a rooftop terrace. If I have to go downstairs for every little thing, the enjoyment will eventually disappear.
Looking at the costs:
- Additional cost for walkable surface ~ €3500
- Masonry parapet ~ No idea (around €1000?)
- Additional half flight of stairs ~ €3000
- Additional cube as an anteroom and extension of the stairs, 9.5m² (102 sq ft) at €2000/m² (€186/sq ft) = €19,000
So the rooftop terrace likely costs at least €30,000. That’s quite a lot of money, considering we are only building with a carport and no basement.
Who knows, I might admit in five years that this was the most expensive mistake of my life. However, given the conditions, we don’t expect that to be the case. And now that we have already been up there, we are all the more happy about the terrace.
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