ᐅ Floor plan 9 x 11.30 m, for 4 people, including 2 home offices
Created on: 30 Dec 2021 15:24
C
chrimu27
Hello everyone,
We would greatly appreciate feedback on our floor plan draft. Our appointment with the architect is still ahead, but we want to be well prepared 🙂
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 400 m², approx. 15x27 m (161 ft², approx. 49x89 ft)
Slope: no
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio
Building window, building line, and boundary: 3 m (10 ft) distance from the street and neighbors (resulting in a 9 m (30 ft) house width), max. 14 m (46 ft) towards the garden
Edge development: See attachment; viewed from the street, there is a semi-detached house on the left, a detached house on the right, and behind the garden a row of low bungalows
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2
Roof shape: Any
Style: Any
Orientation: Any
Maximum heights / limits: Eaves height 6.50 m (21 ft), ridge height 11.0 m (36 ft)
Other requirements
Owners’ Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Classic detached house with a gable roof
Basement, floors: With basement, 2 floors
Number of occupants, age: 2 adults, 2 children (planned)
Room requirements on ground and upper floors
Office: Family use or home office?: 1 office for permanent home office use, 1 workspace for part-time home office (could be integrated in another room)
Guest bedrooms per year
Open or closed layout: Open living/dining area, preferably L-shaped so that the kitchen is somewhat separated
Conservative or modern construction style
Open kitchen, kitchen island
Number of dining seats: Space for a large table (8 people) desired
Fireplace
Music / stereo setup: Stereo system left and right of the TV
Balcony, rooftop terrace: Not needed
Garage, carport: Possibly carport
Utility garden, greenhouse
Other wishes/special features/daily routine, also reasons why some things should or should not be included
House Design
Who created the plan:
- Do-it-Yourself
What do you like especially? Why?
We wanted:
* Parents’ wing with walk-in closet as a “distribution space” (shift work: One should be able to sleep in the bedroom while the other uses the closet/bathroom)
* 2 children’s rooms, ideally acoustically separated by buffer rooms from each other and separated from the parents’ wing
* Living space in L-shape so you don’t always look directly into the kitchen from the sofa
* 2 workspaces
* In case of need, living on the ground floor later should be possible (office turns into bedroom, guest toilet to bathroom with shower)
* You should not have to walk through the living room to get upstairs.
The hard requirements seem to be met for now 😎
We tend to avoid the sun rather than seek it. Garden use mainly for grilling or sitting in the evening sun, possibly on a second terrace further back in the garden if the shade otherwise gets in the way.
What do you not like? Why?
We have no idea if what we planned will work and make sense, even if the hard criteria are met.
We are also unsure if the kitchen space is sufficient.
Price estimate from architect/planner:
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment:
Preferred heating technology: Air-to-water heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions
- could you give up:
- could you not give up:
Why is the design like it is now? For example
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What makes it particularly good or bad in your view?
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
We played a lot of Tetris, but have no idea if the rooms
a) feel right and
b) are practical.
What could be done in terms of design to enhance or improve the house?
Will the house be bright enough?
Thank you in advance for your input!
Happy New Year.
We would greatly appreciate feedback on our floor plan draft. Our appointment with the architect is still ahead, but we want to be well prepared 🙂
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 400 m², approx. 15x27 m (161 ft², approx. 49x89 ft)
Slope: no
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio
Building window, building line, and boundary: 3 m (10 ft) distance from the street and neighbors (resulting in a 9 m (30 ft) house width), max. 14 m (46 ft) towards the garden
Edge development: See attachment; viewed from the street, there is a semi-detached house on the left, a detached house on the right, and behind the garden a row of low bungalows
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2
Roof shape: Any
Style: Any
Orientation: Any
Maximum heights / limits: Eaves height 6.50 m (21 ft), ridge height 11.0 m (36 ft)
Other requirements
Owners’ Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Classic detached house with a gable roof
Basement, floors: With basement, 2 floors
Number of occupants, age: 2 adults, 2 children (planned)
Room requirements on ground and upper floors
Office: Family use or home office?: 1 office for permanent home office use, 1 workspace for part-time home office (could be integrated in another room)
Guest bedrooms per year
Open or closed layout: Open living/dining area, preferably L-shaped so that the kitchen is somewhat separated
Conservative or modern construction style
Open kitchen, kitchen island
Number of dining seats: Space for a large table (8 people) desired
Fireplace
Music / stereo setup: Stereo system left and right of the TV
Balcony, rooftop terrace: Not needed
Garage, carport: Possibly carport
Utility garden, greenhouse
Other wishes/special features/daily routine, also reasons why some things should or should not be included
House Design
Who created the plan:
- Do-it-Yourself
What do you like especially? Why?
We wanted:
* Parents’ wing with walk-in closet as a “distribution space” (shift work: One should be able to sleep in the bedroom while the other uses the closet/bathroom)
* 2 children’s rooms, ideally acoustically separated by buffer rooms from each other and separated from the parents’ wing
* Living space in L-shape so you don’t always look directly into the kitchen from the sofa
* 2 workspaces
* In case of need, living on the ground floor later should be possible (office turns into bedroom, guest toilet to bathroom with shower)
* You should not have to walk through the living room to get upstairs.
The hard requirements seem to be met for now 😎
We tend to avoid the sun rather than seek it. Garden use mainly for grilling or sitting in the evening sun, possibly on a second terrace further back in the garden if the shade otherwise gets in the way.
What do you not like? Why?
We have no idea if what we planned will work and make sense, even if the hard criteria are met.
We are also unsure if the kitchen space is sufficient.
Price estimate from architect/planner:
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment:
Preferred heating technology: Air-to-water heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions
- could you give up:
- could you not give up:
Why is the design like it is now? For example
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What makes it particularly good or bad in your view?
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
We played a lot of Tetris, but have no idea if the rooms
a) feel right and
b) are practical.
What could be done in terms of design to enhance or improve the house?
Will the house be bright enough?
Thank you in advance for your input!
Happy New Year.
Hello everyone,
Thank you all for your many questions – they’re really helpful and help to overcome "work blindness" over time 🙂
Yes, well, we started planning from the top. The parents’ wing is on the long north side so the children’s rooms get natural light downstairs. Since sound insulation is important to us, we also tried to position buffer rooms between the children’s rooms and the parents’ wing.
Regarding the stairs, we don’t really like slanted steps, so a straight staircase or a staircase with a landing would be preferred. But looking at the floor plan above, I don’t really see many other options besides a straight staircase, right?
If you do it that way, due to the 9 m (29.5 ft) width, only a narrow strip remains for the office. Do you have ideas on how to solve this differently? For us, the “nice side” feels like the one facing the garden, so the living/dining/kitchen area should be there, not the office.
Yes, we would like a second bathroom so that people can spread out a bit in the morning. Basically, we also like the guest WC to look “tidy,” which speaks in favor of a children’s bathroom upstairs. Currently, the children’s bathroom upstairs doesn’t take away much from the floor plan, I think.
We find age-appropriate planning important (someone could have an accident, for example...), but not at any cost. I mean: if you can do something more useful with the space saved by eliminating a shower on the ground floor or something else, or if it opens new possibilities, then we should do that and just plan that it could be reconfigured later if needed.
We would initially plan the basement as a utility cellar, i.e. technical room, laundry, storage. Additionally, we plan to convert one room into a “hobby room.” It could also be a guest room, a playroom for the kids, etc., depending on needs.
In any case, the route to the basement is not an everyday walking path. Therefore, we thought it might work with the staircase and accessibility to the storage room under the stairs. Otherwise, the office would just become an even longer narrow corridor...
Yes, that’s true. When it’s needed later on, a stair lift is also a valid option. So in terms of priority, I would say:
Priority 1 – live well and comfortably in the house now.
Priority 2 – do some advance planning for options you might need later or make preparations so they’re possible.
We will have a ceiling height of 2.64 m (8.7 ft), which should correspond to a floor-to-floor height of about 3.09 m (10.1 ft).
Initially, we had a design where the parents’ wing was on the right. The bathroom was then located above the living rooms and at the front corner with the best views. We were advised against placing wet rooms above living areas. Therefore, we discarded these plans.
We are building with Bien-Zenker.
Do you have any ideas on how to design the ground floor differently?
Thanks & best wishes for the New Year!
Thank you all for your many questions – they’re really helpful and help to overcome "work blindness" over time 🙂
ypg schrieb:
I don’t see it that way, because the office is too narrow.
Yes, well, we started planning from the top. The parents’ wing is on the long north side so the children’s rooms get natural light downstairs. Since sound insulation is important to us, we also tried to position buffer rooms between the children’s rooms and the parents’ wing.
Regarding the stairs, we don’t really like slanted steps, so a straight staircase or a staircase with a landing would be preferred. But looking at the floor plan above, I don’t really see many other options besides a straight staircase, right?
If you do it that way, due to the 9 m (29.5 ft) width, only a narrow strip remains for the office. Do you have ideas on how to solve this differently? For us, the “nice side” feels like the one facing the garden, so the living/dining/kitchen area should be there, not the office.
ypg schrieb:
This has nothing to do with the floor plan or the children’s bathroom issue. Apparently, the OP wants a children’s bathroom. Personally, I don’t like children’s bathrooms either, but it’s the OP’s plan, and the children’s bathroom doesn’t cause any problems: it doesn’t take necessary space from any room, and apparently the OP can afford it. I would point out, however, that this plan includes three showers for currently two people plus guests. That can be worked on – especially since the guest room will probably never be a bedroom anyway.
Yes, we would like a second bathroom so that people can spread out a bit in the morning. Basically, we also like the guest WC to look “tidy,” which speaks in favor of a children’s bathroom upstairs. Currently, the children’s bathroom upstairs doesn’t take away much from the floor plan, I think.
We find age-appropriate planning important (someone could have an accident, for example...), but not at any cost. I mean: if you can do something more useful with the space saved by eliminating a shower on the ground floor or something else, or if it opens new possibilities, then we should do that and just plan that it could be reconfigured later if needed.
ypg schrieb:
So, now I wanted to show the improvements but have to say that the plan doesn’t work at all because the basement stairs are blocked by the access to the storage room.
We would initially plan the basement as a utility cellar, i.e. technical room, laundry, storage. Additionally, we plan to convert one room into a “hobby room.” It could also be a guest room, a playroom for the kids, etc., depending on needs.
In any case, the route to the basement is not an everyday walking path. Therefore, we thought it might work with the staircase and accessibility to the storage room under the stairs. Otherwise, the office would just become an even longer narrow corridor...
ypg schrieb:
Again regarding the office (later a bedroom): You have to play Tetris with the layouts. One reason people repeatedly say “later we want to live on one level” is the fear of not being able to climb stairs anymore. What isn’t considered: the bathroom won’t suffice, and you won’t be able to get to the basement laundry anymore...
Yes, that’s true. When it’s needed later on, a stair lift is also a valid option. So in terms of priority, I would say:
Priority 1 – live well and comfortably in the house now.
Priority 2 – do some advance planning for options you might need later or make preparations so they’re possible.
hanse987 schrieb:
Depending on story height, the straight staircase might be 0.5 m to 1 m (1.6 to 3.3 ft) too short.
We will have a ceiling height of 2.64 m (8.7 ft), which should correspond to a floor-to-floor height of about 3.09 m (10.1 ft).
11ant schrieb:
Then why are you showing us the draft with the staircase in the cheaper location only as a small part of the site plan?
You should name it here – we know some people and their different skills in developing good models or adapting them to customer requests.
Initially, we had a design where the parents’ wing was on the right. The bathroom was then located above the living rooms and at the front corner with the best views. We were advised against placing wet rooms above living areas. Therefore, we discarded these plans.
We are building with Bien-Zenker.
Do you have any ideas on how to design the ground floor differently?
Thanks & best wishes for the New Year!
chrimu27 schrieb:
At first, we had a design where the master suite was on the right side. In that plan, the bathroom was located above the living areas and at the front, in the best corner. We were especially advised against placing rooms with plumbing above the living space, so we discarded those plans. Not having the bathroom above the living room does not necessarily lead directly to a different staircase layout (at least not in one step).
chrimu27 schrieb:
We are building with Bien-Zenker. They offer a wide range of options – did you not find any base model that suited your needs?
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
The planning is based on the Evolution 162. Our maximum width of 9 meters (30 feet) means that many of the larger floor plans with more rooms no longer work as well or become somewhat "narrow." The original floor plan here is 9.42 meters (31 feet).
I’m not sure if a direct link to Bien-Zenker is allowed. Basically, the standard floor plan without any extras looks like the "Evolution 162 V4" (Google directly leads to the floor plan), just without the bay window.
I’m not sure if a direct link to Bien-Zenker is allowed. Basically, the standard floor plan without any extras looks like the "Evolution 162 V4" (Google directly leads to the floor plan), just without the bay window.
The maximum width of 9 meters (29.5 feet) makes certain things simply not feasible. Your straight staircase effectively divides the house into two halves. You have to prioritize what you want. If a ground floor bedroom with a minimum of 3 meters (10 feet) is necessary, then the kitchen must also be on that side. And when you start planning upstairs, you should keep in mind that there needs to be a room the size of a bedroom downstairs as well.
Also, the staircase will naturally be positioned against a wall upstairs, which can cause difficulties in distributing room access on one side.
A house that is 9 meters (29.5 feet) wide or a building plot of 400 square meters (4305 square feet) is not rocket science, but you have to be willing to compromise and not cling to stubborn wishes.
I assume your age is 27 (why do we even have to guess here when the questionnaire explicitly asks this question... it’s impossible to be constructive otherwise). Then I ask you: why are you planning for 50 years ahead?
And honestly: if you had completed the questionnaire, you would already be further along... you would have received some improvements and could confidently, well prepared with documents for the architect, head into the new year.
Nevertheless, I wish everyone involved a Happy New Year.
Edit: I think your problem is that 9.42 meters (31 feet) is fixed in the building timeline, so 9 meters (29.5 feet) is not possible. Or you take the 8.17 meters (26.8 feet)!
Also, the staircase will naturally be positioned against a wall upstairs, which can cause difficulties in distributing room access on one side.
A house that is 9 meters (29.5 feet) wide or a building plot of 400 square meters (4305 square feet) is not rocket science, but you have to be willing to compromise and not cling to stubborn wishes.
I assume your age is 27 (why do we even have to guess here when the questionnaire explicitly asks this question... it’s impossible to be constructive otherwise). Then I ask you: why are you planning for 50 years ahead?
And honestly: if you had completed the questionnaire, you would already be further along... you would have received some improvements and could confidently, well prepared with documents for the architect, head into the new year.
Nevertheless, I wish everyone involved a Happy New Year.
Edit: I think your problem is that 9.42 meters (31 feet) is fixed in the building timeline, so 9 meters (29.5 feet) is not possible. Or you take the 8.17 meters (26.8 feet)!
Where exactly does the basement access lead to? (I’m a bit confused here.) With straight staircases, it’s often directly underneath, but that area is used as the storage room entrance. Or is it possible to have access without hitting your head? Since the basement stairs are presumably shorter due to a lower floor height? Is that really practical?
What stands out to me mostly are the many small corners built in everywhere. In the storage room (which also means less closet space?), behind the sofa (is that some kind of built-in cupboard?), and partly upstairs as well. This is especially noticeable when you compare it to the 162-v4 floor plan.
(As a newbie, I find it difficult to suggest more precise improvements 😉)
What stands out to me mostly are the many small corners built in everywhere. In the storage room (which also means less closet space?), behind the sofa (is that some kind of built-in cupboard?), and partly upstairs as well. This is especially noticeable when you compare it to the 162-v4 floor plan.
(As a newbie, I find it difficult to suggest more precise improvements 😉)
We are in our early 30s. But you’re right — maybe we just have to drop the requirement for a bedroom on the ground floor and think of another option if needed.
I still find the office (without the bedroom requirement) acceptable in terms of layout. If the shower in the guest bathroom downstairs is removed, that could free up some space. Then the kitchen could be made deeper — but that would somehow result in losing the coat area at the entrance, which is also needed.
Do you think the basic layout on the ground floor is okay?
The idea was that the basement stairs run under the other staircase but are slightly offset to the left. Based on the floor-to-ceiling height, I thought this might still work. So you enter the basement from the living room through a door, with a small landing where you can either access the storage room or go down the stairs on the left.
As an alternative, the storage room could be omitted and that space added to the office. Then a large cabinet for the vacuum cleaner and such could be placed there, which is also conceivable.
We feel that the living room currently has quite limited options for furniture placement, for example for a bookshelf. The idea was to place one behind the sofa here. But that is indeed a point — too little space for cabinets in the living/dining area. Maybe there just are too many windows at the moment...
In some places, we tried to create enough space in this “Tetris” by adding small corners for each purpose — but maybe that was too much. I’ll take this impression on board!
I still find the office (without the bedroom requirement) acceptable in terms of layout. If the shower in the guest bathroom downstairs is removed, that could free up some space. Then the kitchen could be made deeper — but that would somehow result in losing the coat area at the entrance, which is also needed.
Do you think the basic layout on the ground floor is okay?
mayglow schrieb:
Where exactly is the entrance to the basement? (I’m kind of confused about that.) With straight staircases, it’s often directly underneath, but there’s the storage room entrance there. Or is it still possible to get through (without bumping your head??), since the basement stairs are presumably a bit shorter due to lower floor height? Is that really practical?
The idea was that the basement stairs run under the other staircase but are slightly offset to the left. Based on the floor-to-ceiling height, I thought this might still work. So you enter the basement from the living room through a door, with a small landing where you can either access the storage room or go down the stairs on the left.
As an alternative, the storage room could be omitted and that space added to the office. Then a large cabinet for the vacuum cleaner and such could be placed there, which is also conceivable.
mayglow schrieb:
What mainly stands out to me is that there are lots of small corners everywhere. In the storage room (which also limits shelf space?), behind the sofa (is that some kind of built-in cabinet?), and partly upstairs as well. This is especially noticeable when comparing the 162-v4 floor plan.
(It’s hard for me as a beginner to suggest more precise improvements 😉)
We feel that the living room currently has quite limited options for furniture placement, for example for a bookshelf. The idea was to place one behind the sofa here. But that is indeed a point — too little space for cabinets in the living/dining area. Maybe there just are too many windows at the moment...
In some places, we tried to create enough space in this “Tetris” by adding small corners for each purpose — but maybe that was too much. I’ll take this impression on board!
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