Hello everyone,
We are also considering building a house and are currently in the planning phase. We have found a plot of land that we like.
We want to start planning now, and over the past few weeks I have been thinking about the floor plan. This is my second draft, after the architect rightly pointed out that the first one was not very practical (garage on the upper west side with a long driveway and the house almost reaching the eastern boundary).
Since we have another appointment soon where the architect will present their proposal, I wanted to gather my thoughts beforehand. I am quite satisfied so far and would like to hear your opinions. In the early stages, it’s easy to overlook things.
PS: The plot is about 3-5 meters (10-16 feet) longer to the south and west; this is just a rough overview.
Our priorities are:
Maximizing space on the south and west sides
Kitchen with a view of the entrance area and street
The upper floor should be separable with an additional wall
Pantry should be accessible near the entrance
All “bedrooms” should be versatile, about 15m² (160 ft²) each, suitable for use after the children have grown up
We are also considering building a house and are currently in the planning phase. We have found a plot of land that we like.
We want to start planning now, and over the past few weeks I have been thinking about the floor plan. This is my second draft, after the architect rightly pointed out that the first one was not very practical (garage on the upper west side with a long driveway and the house almost reaching the eastern boundary).
Since we have another appointment soon where the architect will present their proposal, I wanted to gather my thoughts beforehand. I am quite satisfied so far and would like to hear your opinions. In the early stages, it’s easy to overlook things.
PS: The plot is about 3-5 meters (10-16 feet) longer to the south and west; this is just a rough overview.
Our priorities are:
Maximizing space on the south and west sides
Kitchen with a view of the entrance area and street
The upper floor should be separable with an additional wall
Pantry should be accessible near the entrance
All “bedrooms” should be versatile, about 15m² (160 ft²) each, suitable for use after the children have grown up
B
Baustelle201624 Feb 2015 12:07Then I think the kitchen has enough space, and the hallway in the rear area should be bright enough. I would measure to see if it is wide enough. The narrow passage where the hallway turns left seems a bit uncomfortable. By the way, there are also many corners in the hallway. I assume you are planning for 1.5 floors (one and a half stories). The window placement in the basement and upper floor appears quite irregular—have you created an exterior view to see if you like it that way?
@Ellie: The chimney is correct, it’s not fixed yet. It currently goes up through the bathroom, but it should be possible to move it to a proper position.
@TillDieter: The clear passage width is the key issue in all the designs, since we want the living wall to be at least 3.50m (11.5 ft) and on the other side the kitchen plus pantry.
This doesn’t fully work together. However, it is currently 1m (3.3 ft). It looks very tight in this layout, especially since I also used thick walls.
@TillDieter: The clear passage width is the key issue in all the designs, since we want the living wall to be at least 3.50m (11.5 ft) and on the other side the kitchen plus pantry.
This doesn’t fully work together. However, it is currently 1m (3.3 ft). It looks very tight in this layout, especially since I also used thick walls.
B
Baustelle201624 Feb 2015 12:21If you are doing the work with floor plans (and that takes a lot of time!), plan using the final wall thicknesses. Otherwise, you always have the mental loophole that everything will appear much more spacious in reality due to the thin walls, which prevents you from focusing on truly important detailed solutions... and a 1m (3.3 ft) passage width is definitely too narrow in this area!
Hello,
this can’t be the architect’s drawing, right? 😱
Please inform us again about the missing parameters. Here you can see the necessary information needed to evaluate and possibly improve a design.
I don’t understand the idea of placing a pantry in the center of a house and planning the rooms around it, which causes issues with corners, angled walls, expensive sliding doors, and narrow passages that essentially make each room less functional.
On top of that, a chimney flue is planned on the only wall of the pantry, which is supposed to keep food cool.
The missing dimensions as well as the minimal furnishing in the children’s rooms make any evaluation impossible.
Not good at all, says Yvonne
this can’t be the architect’s drawing, right? 😱
Please inform us again about the missing parameters. Here you can see the necessary information needed to evaluate and possibly improve a design.
I don’t understand the idea of placing a pantry in the center of a house and planning the rooms around it, which causes issues with corners, angled walls, expensive sliding doors, and narrow passages that essentially make each room less functional.
On top of that, a chimney flue is planned on the only wall of the pantry, which is supposed to keep food cool.
The missing dimensions as well as the minimal furnishing in the children’s rooms make any evaluation impossible.
Not good at all, says Yvonne
I completely agree with Yvonne on this. What you need are honest opinions, but you can only get those if floor plans are provided here, at least with the most basic information. Dimensions, including the 2m (6.5 ft) line on the upper floor and a north arrow.
The pantry is a joke 😉 and the fireplace location definitely needs to be taken seriously.
The pantry is a joke 😉 and the fireplace location definitely needs to be taken seriously.
So, thanks for the feedback. I have now created a completely simple design and wondered why I didn’t think of this earlier. The pantry had to be relocated, that became clear to me.
EDIT: I focused only on the ground floor, the upper floor is shown in the picture above.
Summary of important details:
Development plan / restrictions:
Plot size: 5.2 ares (25 x 21 m) (2,800 sq ft approx.)
Orientation:
Slope: gentle south slope, 1 m (3 ft) decline over 25 m (82 ft)
Building line, building boundary: 2.5 m (8 ft)
Border development: garage
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 1.5 floors (4 m / 13 ft)
Roof type: gable roof
Client requirements:
Basement
Number of occupants, age: 2 + child (2 years)
Room requirement: approx. 135-140 sqm (1,450-1,500 sq ft)
Office: family use
Conservative construction method
Open kitchen: possibly (only L-shaped) or with sliding door
Number of dining seats: standard: 4, otherwise up to 12
Fireplace: yes
Music / stereo wall: minimum length 3.5 m (11.5 ft)
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double garage or garage + carport
House design
- Do-it-yourself by you
What do you particularly like?
The orientation of the living/dining area is especially pleasing: kitchen southeast facing the street/driveway, dining east/west, living room west. Overall, I currently find only minor issues.
What do you not like?
The fireplace still needs planning, it looks a bit cramped.
I’m not sure if the wardrobe in the entrance area is sufficient.
Separability with/without basement is not possible with a straight wall.
Possibly extend the living room / kitchen by 0.5 m (1.5 ft) downwards.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: €280,000
Preferred heating technology:
Gas / solar / possibly water-based fireplace
If you must give up anything, which details / features
-can you do without:
-cannot do without:
Pantry close to the kitchen, separatable living units, toilet with shower, only the ground floor fully livable.
EDIT: I focused only on the ground floor, the upper floor is shown in the picture above.
Summary of important details:
- Driveway only possible on the southeast side, so the entrance is on the south. (Garage in the southeast, see image on page 1)
- Pantry close to the kitchen
- Separatable living units
- Only the ground floor fully livable
- Basement
- Approx. 135-140 sqm (1,450-1,500 sq ft)
- Knee wall height 4 m (13 ft)
Development plan / restrictions:
Plot size: 5.2 ares (25 x 21 m) (2,800 sq ft approx.)
Orientation:
Slope: gentle south slope, 1 m (3 ft) decline over 25 m (82 ft)
Building line, building boundary: 2.5 m (8 ft)
Border development: garage
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 1.5 floors (4 m / 13 ft)
Roof type: gable roof
Client requirements:
Basement
Number of occupants, age: 2 + child (2 years)
Room requirement: approx. 135-140 sqm (1,450-1,500 sq ft)
Office: family use
Conservative construction method
Open kitchen: possibly (only L-shaped) or with sliding door
Number of dining seats: standard: 4, otherwise up to 12
Fireplace: yes
Music / stereo wall: minimum length 3.5 m (11.5 ft)
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double garage or garage + carport
House design
- Do-it-yourself by you
What do you particularly like?
The orientation of the living/dining area is especially pleasing: kitchen southeast facing the street/driveway, dining east/west, living room west. Overall, I currently find only minor issues.
What do you not like?
The fireplace still needs planning, it looks a bit cramped.
I’m not sure if the wardrobe in the entrance area is sufficient.
Separability with/without basement is not possible with a straight wall.
Possibly extend the living room / kitchen by 0.5 m (1.5 ft) downwards.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: €280,000
Preferred heating technology:
Gas / solar / possibly water-based fireplace
If you must give up anything, which details / features
-can you do without:
-cannot do without:
Pantry close to the kitchen, separatable living units, toilet with shower, only the ground floor fully livable.
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