ᐅ Preliminary floor plan design for a 220 m² single-family house
Created on: 20 Jun 2017 22:41
R
R.Hotzenplotz
Hello!
We have already gone through several plans with our architect and I think we are almost there, about to start the detailed planning phase. Before that, I’m looking forward to getting feedback from other users.
Development plan/restrictions: §34 – two full stories
Plot size: 1,085m² (1,1679 yd²)
Basement, floors – 2 full stories plus partial basement
Number of people, ages – 3 people (37, 34, 1, second child planned)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor – the requirement was that bedrooms and the study should be about 17m² (183 ft²) each; the entire house should be approximately 220m² (2,368 ft²)
Office: family use
Guests per year: 1
Open or closed architecture: closed
Traditional or modern design: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island – no open kitchen, but yes to a kitchen island
Number of dining seats – 6
Fireplace – yes
Music/stereo wall – TV wall
Balcony, roof terrace – balcony
Garage, carport – large garage
Additional wishes/special features/daily routines, preferably with reasons why certain things should or should not be included – everyone should be able to sleep as undisturbed as possible in their bedrooms, even if other family members are awake. The husband is sometimes up as early as 4 a.m. Otherwise, watching TV in the evening should be possible without disturbing those sleeping upstairs.
House design
Who created the design:
- Architect (freelancer for a general contractor)
What do you like most? Why?
The upper floor with well-sized rooms and the location of the rooms exactly where they should be (only the washroom area we would still like to move to the outer right corner so that you don’t have to pass it every time you use the toilet). On the ground floor, the access through an airlock, the kitchen, and the dining area with the study next to it are especially liked.
Also appreciated is that after adjustments, the study now faces the garden instead of the street.
What don’t you like? Why?
We originally wanted the distance from wall to wall where the sofa and TV stand is to be about 6.40m (21 ft) (large screen & surround system), but so far only 5.69m (19 ft) has been realized.
Laundry room as described.
Kitchen larger in square meters than needed; the approx. 3m² (32 ft²) could theoretically be used well in the living area.
Price estimate according to architect/planner:
720,000 euros (including construction incidentals)
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment:
800,000 euros
Preferred heating technology:
Gas
If you have to give up on something, which details/features can you do without?
- Can do without:
Technical systems like controlled residential ventilation
- Cannot do without:
Space (except for the kitchen)
Why is the design the way it is now? For example:
Is this a standard design from the planner?
The architect has largely implemented our wishes; the only issue is the living room situation.
What makes it particularly good or bad in your opinion?
Patient, quick to implement, has already gotten to know us well.
No negative points.
Do you notice any other points that might not fit or that we should consider, which we might have overlooked?
In the basement, the room currently labeled as home cinema might possibly be used as one medium- to long-term. For the foreseeable future, it will be a storage room.
We have already gone through several plans with our architect and I think we are almost there, about to start the detailed planning phase. Before that, I’m looking forward to getting feedback from other users.
Development plan/restrictions: §34 – two full stories
Plot size: 1,085m² (1,1679 yd²)
Basement, floors – 2 full stories plus partial basement
Number of people, ages – 3 people (37, 34, 1, second child planned)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor – the requirement was that bedrooms and the study should be about 17m² (183 ft²) each; the entire house should be approximately 220m² (2,368 ft²)
Office: family use
Guests per year: 1
Open or closed architecture: closed
Traditional or modern design: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island – no open kitchen, but yes to a kitchen island
Number of dining seats – 6
Fireplace – yes
Music/stereo wall – TV wall
Balcony, roof terrace – balcony
Garage, carport – large garage
Additional wishes/special features/daily routines, preferably with reasons why certain things should or should not be included – everyone should be able to sleep as undisturbed as possible in their bedrooms, even if other family members are awake. The husband is sometimes up as early as 4 a.m. Otherwise, watching TV in the evening should be possible without disturbing those sleeping upstairs.
House design
Who created the design:
- Architect (freelancer for a general contractor)
What do you like most? Why?
The upper floor with well-sized rooms and the location of the rooms exactly where they should be (only the washroom area we would still like to move to the outer right corner so that you don’t have to pass it every time you use the toilet). On the ground floor, the access through an airlock, the kitchen, and the dining area with the study next to it are especially liked.
Also appreciated is that after adjustments, the study now faces the garden instead of the street.
What don’t you like? Why?
We originally wanted the distance from wall to wall where the sofa and TV stand is to be about 6.40m (21 ft) (large screen & surround system), but so far only 5.69m (19 ft) has been realized.
Laundry room as described.
Kitchen larger in square meters than needed; the approx. 3m² (32 ft²) could theoretically be used well in the living area.
Price estimate according to architect/planner:
720,000 euros (including construction incidentals)
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment:
800,000 euros
Preferred heating technology:
Gas
If you have to give up on something, which details/features can you do without?
- Can do without:
Technical systems like controlled residential ventilation
- Cannot do without:
Space (except for the kitchen)
Why is the design the way it is now? For example:
Is this a standard design from the planner?
The architect has largely implemented our wishes; the only issue is the living room situation.
What makes it particularly good or bad in your opinion?
Patient, quick to implement, has already gotten to know us well.
No negative points.
Do you notice any other points that might not fit or that we should consider, which we might have overlooked?
In the basement, the room currently labeled as home cinema might possibly be used as one medium- to long-term. For the foreseeable future, it will be a storage room.
R
R.Hotzenplotz17 Jul 2017 16:22On Thursday, we have an appointment to discuss the cost estimate after finalizing the design. Then we will see if any minor or moderate adjustments are still necessary.
The architect just called to say that the structural engineer has now informed him that we will not be able to avoid support beams in the living room, as was previously suspected here. However, he said this is not a problem since dimmable LED lighting can be used. I didn’t quite understand that and didn’t have time to discuss it further over the phone. We may need to revisit this on Thursday. It would, of course, be unfortunate to have to start over again because of these support beams. From what I’ve read in this forum, it certainly seems like the support beams must be avoided at all costs!
What other points do you think should be clarified to finalize the design phase before moving into the construction documentation phase? Flooring, etc., presumably not yet. Building services? That is usually handled by a specialist planner for building technology or one of the contractors involved, especially if one wants to save money by not hiring a building services engineer.
The architect just called to say that the structural engineer has now informed him that we will not be able to avoid support beams in the living room, as was previously suspected here. However, he said this is not a problem since dimmable LED lighting can be used. I didn’t quite understand that and didn’t have time to discuss it further over the phone. We may need to revisit this on Thursday. It would, of course, be unfortunate to have to start over again because of these support beams. From what I’ve read in this forum, it certainly seems like the support beams must be avoided at all costs!
What other points do you think should be clarified to finalize the design phase before moving into the construction documentation phase? Flooring, etc., presumably not yet. Building services? That is usually handled by a specialist planner for building technology or one of the contractors involved, especially if one wants to save money by not hiring a building services engineer.
R.Hotzenplotz schrieb:
The architect just called to say that the structural engineer has now informed him that we actually cannot do without support beams in the living room, as was already suspected here. [...] It would of course be bad to have to start all over again because of these beams. The discussions here in the forum gave the impression that support beams absolutely could not be allowed! Why should support beams absolutely not be allowed?
I’m just curious where the joker plans to place them: a possible ceiling section would be living room – pantry – study. Actually, a beam would be needed near the corner above where the drain pipe runs. But that’s not possible since you can’t rest a beam on top of a window lintel. The corner where the patio door is recessed would also be a good spot. But that’s not possible either because the chimney is in the way. Placing it in the middle would be possible, but would look the worst.
R.Hotzenplotz schrieb:
He said that wouldn’t be a problem since dimmable LED lighting could be used. I didn’t understand that and didn’t have time to go into it on the phone. We might have to revisit that on Thursday. He probably means that by using LEDs instead of low-voltage halogen lights, the issue with transformers on or in the ceiling would be less problematic.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
R
R.Hotzenplotz17 Jul 2017 16:49Regarding the beams, I was referring to this post here:
matte1987 schrieb:
I’m definitely not a structural engineer, but I could imagine that these points need to be supported by beams on the ground floor, which are far from visually appealing.
I would rather ask the architect about that and clearly communicate that you don’t want beams visible in the living area (unless you actually prefer an exposed steel beam).
Alternatively, a suspended ceiling could be used to conceal the necessary beam.
What I meant is that you need to consider whether you want to have a visible steel beam. You can use an I-beam, and then create indirect ceiling lighting with the help of an LED strip. However, in my opinion, these are just temporary solutions. I personally wouldn’t want that.
I would much rather consider a suspended ceiling, which also simplifies the ventilation installation and offers many more options for lighting design. At the current planning stage, it should not be a problem to raise the ground floor shell by 20cm (8 inches) to avoid losing finished ceiling height. Of course, all of that costs a lot of money: steel beam, higher shell construction, longer staircase, suspended ceiling. Quite a chain reaction.
I am now at the stage of the electrical rough-in. Since I now know what options are only possible with a suspended ceiling, next time I would definitely build with a suspended ceiling, at least on the ground floor.
Basically, having a support beam is not a bad thing, but whether it’s acceptable or not is something only you can decide.
I would much rather consider a suspended ceiling, which also simplifies the ventilation installation and offers many more options for lighting design. At the current planning stage, it should not be a problem to raise the ground floor shell by 20cm (8 inches) to avoid losing finished ceiling height. Of course, all of that costs a lot of money: steel beam, higher shell construction, longer staircase, suspended ceiling. Quite a chain reaction.
I am now at the stage of the electrical rough-in. Since I now know what options are only possible with a suspended ceiling, next time I would definitely build with a suspended ceiling, at least on the ground floor.
Basically, having a support beam is not a bad thing, but whether it’s acceptable or not is something only you can decide.
R
R.Hotzenplotz17 Jul 2017 17:44No, I don’t want to see any steel beams in the living room. I’d rather have the plans revised again. An open space only works for me if the ceilings are also nicely high. We were thinking about 2.65 m (8 ft 8 in). And to artificially raise everything for that—definitely not. That won’t fit the budget either. Paying for 20 cm (8 inches) more ceiling height just to hide beams is not worth it. A customized floor plan with the same room area will definitely be much cheaper.
Oh man... so it’s still not really over yet... and time is running out...
Oh man... so it’s still not really over yet... and time is running out...
R.Hotzenplotz schrieb:
Oh man.... so it's really not over yet..... and time is running out..... Well, then please reconsider my suggestion to build on the existing basement. I'm sure you can still achieve something even nicer – well-designed and solid.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Similar topics