ᐅ Floor plan design for a hillside house with 5 children's bedrooms
Created on: 17 Jun 2017 12:31
A
Arifas
Dear fellow contributors,
I’m sharing our first attempt at the floor plan. Unfortunately, I can’t fill out the list because copying it over on my phone doesn’t work properly, sorry.
Key data:
5 children between 0 and 11 years old
2 adults in their mid-thirties
Plot of about 900 sqm (9700 sq ft), facing north
Building window edge on the street side: 17.35 m (57 ft)
Sloped site; within the building window, the ground rises about 2 m (7 ft) over 10 m (33 ft) from front to back
We want 5 small children’s bedrooms, a slightly larger office for working from home, a master bedroom, three showers, three toilets, a bathtub, and access to the garden through the living room on the upper floor. One wall in the children’s rooms should be removable later.
The attic is walkable.
We are allowed to build 2 full stories, with a ridge height of about 12 m (39 ft) and an eave height of 11.6 m (38 ft).
We would prefer a hip roof.
The current drawing is 9.5 by 11 m (31 by 36 ft), but we would like to have around 195 to 205 sqm (2100 to 2200 sq ft) of living space later; garage or storage will be added.
The back wall of the house is embedded up to about 2 m (7 ft) into the slope.
I will try to attach a rough overview of the plot.
I’m sharing our first attempt at the floor plan. Unfortunately, I can’t fill out the list because copying it over on my phone doesn’t work properly, sorry.
Key data:
5 children between 0 and 11 years old
2 adults in their mid-thirties
Plot of about 900 sqm (9700 sq ft), facing north
Building window edge on the street side: 17.35 m (57 ft)
Sloped site; within the building window, the ground rises about 2 m (7 ft) over 10 m (33 ft) from front to back
We want 5 small children’s bedrooms, a slightly larger office for working from home, a master bedroom, three showers, three toilets, a bathtub, and access to the garden through the living room on the upper floor. One wall in the children’s rooms should be removable later.
The attic is walkable.
We are allowed to build 2 full stories, with a ridge height of about 12 m (39 ft) and an eave height of 11.6 m (38 ft).
We would prefer a hip roof.
The current drawing is 9.5 by 11 m (31 by 36 ft), but we would like to have around 195 to 205 sqm (2100 to 2200 sq ft) of living space later; garage or storage will be added.
The back wall of the house is embedded up to about 2 m (7 ft) into the slope.
I will try to attach a rough overview of the plot.
I am missing the measurements on the plot plan.
Because I would probably design the house a bit narrower and longer, based on the location, north/south orientation plus slope, so that the living and dining areas can benefit from each other.
I would also place the children’s rooms on the ground floor, along with a utility room where laundry is done (I know households with four machines side by side).
And then a proper kids’ bathroom – which is already a challenge to keep clean even without laundry.
Upstairs, I would plan the kitchen with a panoramic window facing the garden/terrace to the north, the dining area in the middle, and the living room to the south with a panoramic view. It doesn’t help otherwise; you have to consider the situation as a whole, although the dining area can benefit from sunlight from the south – the other way around is less effective, as direct access from the kitchen to the terrace/garden makes more sense. @kbt09 has already mentioned this.
A spacious storage room on the upper floor could also serve as a pantry.
...
Maybe the sofa area could be placed a bit into an alcove…
Bathrooms should definitely be stacked, that should be possible as well.
I would position the staircase closer to the entrance to allow for the possibility of future division.
Best regards, Yvonne
Because I would probably design the house a bit narrower and longer, based on the location, north/south orientation plus slope, so that the living and dining areas can benefit from each other.
I would also place the children’s rooms on the ground floor, along with a utility room where laundry is done (I know households with four machines side by side).
And then a proper kids’ bathroom – which is already a challenge to keep clean even without laundry.
Upstairs, I would plan the kitchen with a panoramic window facing the garden/terrace to the north, the dining area in the middle, and the living room to the south with a panoramic view. It doesn’t help otherwise; you have to consider the situation as a whole, although the dining area can benefit from sunlight from the south – the other way around is less effective, as direct access from the kitchen to the terrace/garden makes more sense. @kbt09 has already mentioned this.
A spacious storage room on the upper floor could also serve as a pantry.
...
Maybe the sofa area could be placed a bit into an alcove…
Bathrooms should definitely be stacked, that should be possible as well.
I would position the staircase closer to the entrance to allow for the possibility of future division.
Best regards, Yvonne
Arifas schrieb:
Haydee, what would be the advantages of giving up the open-plan living and dining area?
Oh, and thank you all very much so far for your suggestions. They really help us to question things critically!
I could imagine that there might be a lack of private retreat spaces. The children play on the terrace, one is practicing piano, another comes home from school in the afternoon and wants to eat quietly.
I would have combined cooking and dining, and separated the living area at least with large sliding doors.
I’m not an expert, but I think that the extra cost for a proper staircase and a finished attic might be less than gaining square meters by increasing the building’s footprint. Retaining walls and earthworks also cost.
Many thanks!! So many great ideas! Tonight, when hopefully the kids go to bed early, I’ll redraw the plans!
Earthworks: The soil is sandy loam. The house starts at about 30 cm (12 inches) above street level at the front. The slope rises from the street up to around 20 m (66 feet) deep by about 2.5 m (8 feet). The house will be approximately 10–11 m (33–36 feet) deep.
Based on this information, is it possible to estimate the earthwork costs? And disposal? Would around 20,000 be sufficient? (The single tree within the building area does not need to be included; it is estimated at 1,300 for removal including roots.)
The excavation is planned to be partly stored behind the house on the slope and further up in the garden behind L-shaped retaining walls. Does that make sense?
Earthworks: The soil is sandy loam. The house starts at about 30 cm (12 inches) above street level at the front. The slope rises from the street up to around 20 m (66 feet) deep by about 2.5 m (8 feet). The house will be approximately 10–11 m (33–36 feet) deep.
Based on this information, is it possible to estimate the earthwork costs? And disposal? Would around 20,000 be sufficient? (The single tree within the building area does not need to be included; it is estimated at 1,300 for removal including roots.)
The excavation is planned to be partly stored behind the house on the slope and further up in the garden behind L-shaped retaining walls. Does that make sense?
Regarding the topic of architect versus general contractor and the house features: we already had a great floor plan from the general contractor, but it was optimized for a different plot of land. So, I expect they can adjust it here as well. However, we want to plan carefully ourselves to ensure everything really fits in the end.
As for the features, we are fine with what’s offered, except we want underfloor heating and vinyl flooring instead of laminate, as well as a gas heating system combined with solar for domestic hot water instead of the planned air heat pump. And all of this at KfW 55 standard. But this was already included in the price.
Walk-in showers are also included at no extra cost—do you think they make sense?
Windows, tiles, and so on don’t matter much to us. We are easy to please there. It’s really just about having enough space for the children in the garden and living areas, and everyone having their own little personal space.
Instead of a garage, it will probably be a shed for bikes and strollers next to the house, and a large garden shed for tools, a workbench, garden furniture, etc., in the garden.
Our total budget is between 430,000 and 450,000. The plot with additional costs is about 88,000.
I hope this is all doable in the end.
By the way, can I also post a design plan for the landscaping here? Or would it be better to start a separate thread for that?
As for the features, we are fine with what’s offered, except we want underfloor heating and vinyl flooring instead of laminate, as well as a gas heating system combined with solar for domestic hot water instead of the planned air heat pump. And all of this at KfW 55 standard. But this was already included in the price.
Walk-in showers are also included at no extra cost—do you think they make sense?
Windows, tiles, and so on don’t matter much to us. We are easy to please there. It’s really just about having enough space for the children in the garden and living areas, and everyone having their own little personal space.
Instead of a garage, it will probably be a shed for bikes and strollers next to the house, and a large garden shed for tools, a workbench, garden furniture, etc., in the garden.
Our total budget is between 430,000 and 450,000. The plot with additional costs is about 88,000.
I hope this is all doable in the end.
By the way, can I also post a design plan for the landscaping here? Or would it be better to start a separate thread for that?
Arifas schrieb:
Can I also post a plot layout plan here? Or would it be better to create a separate thread for that? People have different preferences. Some don’t like long threads with twenty pages, while others don’t want to have to follow a project spread across three threads. Personally, I “hate” it when someone asks about a detail and you have to scroll back a year and a half in their post history to figure out which house it belongs to. Or when in the floor plan thread someone refers to something mentioned in the plot thread. That’s almost as “time-consuming” as when someone uploads PDFs.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
DNL schrieb:
The general contractor’s team had better ideas, especially ones that were easier to implement and more realistic.
What I mean is: The general contractor doesn’t have to have a bad architect/planner. This can also be a good option. Nordlys schrieb:
I agree with the previous speaker. Architects often get caught up in aesthetic ideas, while planners working for the builder have no issues building something square, practical, and cost-effective. That’s what you need. A practical person. Clients’ architects don’t necessarily have to be overly imaginative, nor do architects employed by builders lack creativity. Being “partial to one party” doesn’t automatically mean being “bad for the other.” If the interests of each side are clear, both can be handled. The more overlap there is in interests, the smoother working with the builder’s architect will be. It’s basically a difference in principle, although exceptions exist everywhere.
ypg schrieb:
The property sketch is missing the dimensions. A grid square represents half a meter (about 1.6 feet); think of it as wireframe model lines, meaning wall thicknesses need to be added mentally.
ypg schrieb:
I would probably design the house a bit narrower and longer because of the location, north/south orientation plus slope, so that the living and dining areas can benefit from each other. My approach is the opposite: to keep the dimension along the main slope direction as small as possible to reduce the height difference between the front and back.
haydee schrieb:
I’m a layperson, but I could imagine that the additional cost for a proper staircase and finished attic might be less than gaining space by increasing the footprint. You can’t borrow being a layperson.
In my opinion, this question is posed incorrectly: a proper staircase and finished attic are related, but the purpose of a finished attic mainly depends on the room layout. If the room program can be divided reasonably into two equal parts, a two-and-a-half-story design does not offer much advantage (and if it’s not required due to floor area ratio restrictions, it can be omitted without pain—as living space, that is).
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
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