ᐅ Floor plan: New construction on an existing bungalow basement, one-and-a-half stories
Created on: 19 Dec 2022 01:12
M
Mal Bauen
Hello to all forum members,
We are still relatively early in our building project and have many fundamental questions to clarify. Nevertheless, I would like to introduce the project here.
We recently became owners of a prefabricated bungalow from Streif Haus, built in 1987. It has a full concrete basement (by Betonkemmler).
Our plan is to demolish the bungalow down to the top edge of the basement and build a new house for our family (currently four, eventually five) on top. The existing basement (very solid construction) is to be integrated as a utility basement including a technical room. At the same time, the heating system will be modernized from oil heating to a heat pump.
Currently, we are in contact with both prefabricated house suppliers (Weberhaus, Danwood) and solid construction companies (Denkinger). The property is located in Baden-Württemberg (southern Baden).
Even though the floor plan is only a first draft, I would like to present it here for feedback (summary below).
In particular, I hope to get some thoughts on the following basic questions:
Here is the summary sheet (key points).
Many thanks in advance for your input, comments, and critiques. I will gladly report further developments here in the thread.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Size of the plot: 615m² (6620 sq ft)
Slope: North/South: <0.5m (1.6 ft) over 18m (59 ft), West-East: approx. 2m (6.6 ft) over 33m (108 ft) (see elevation profile)
Site coverage ratio: No development plan (Section 34 of German Building Code). The immediate neighborhood contains some generously built plots. We do not want to change the building footprint of the existing house but want to add a double garage (not currently present).
Floor area ratio: No development plan (Section 34 of German Building Code)
Building envelope, building line and boundary: No development plan (Section 34 of German Building Code). Property boundaries and existing building shown in aerial photo attached
Edge development: None
Number of parking spaces: None
Number of floors: 1.5 stories
Roof type: Gable roof
Architectural style: Modern detached family house
Orientation: see aerial photo. Entrance (currently): north
Maximum height/limits: No development plan
Immediate neighbors: Northern neighbor: 2 stories with flat roof. Southern: 1.5 stories with hipped roof. Western: 1.5 stories with gable roof.
Client Requirements
Style, roof form, building type: We want to transform the existing bungalow into a classic 1.5-story detached house with a gable roof and possibly shed dormers.
Basement, floors: Utility basement (existing, concrete basement), ground floor (living), upper floor (sleeping)
Number of persons, ages: Our family currently has four members (ages: 32, 30, 2, 0), with another child planned
Space requirements on ground and upper floor:
Ground floor: living room, kitchen (possibly with pantry), room for home office or guest room, guest WC with shower, cloakroom
Upper floor: master bedroom, 3 children’s bedrooms, bathroom
Office: family use or home office: Home office (100% for me)
Overnight guests per year: Few, less than 5 guests/nights
Open or closed architecture: Rather closed. Ability to separate kitchen and living room would be desirable.
Conservative or modern design: Modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Kitchen island not mandatory. Partly open kitchen: separation from living room would be good.
Number of dining seats: 5-8
Fireplace: Only if budget allows, not mandatory
Music/ stereo wall: No
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Double garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: No
Further wishes/special features/daily routine, including reasons for preferences or exclusions: The technical room should be located in the existing basement (e.g., in the former oil heating room). A sensible circulation concept is very important: front door/upper floor stairs/basement stairs. Ideally, short distances between garage and house as well as good accessibility of rooms within the house.
House Design
Designed by: Initial draft from the prefab house supplier after first meeting
What do you especially like? Why?: (Almost) all room requests fulfilled. Good accessibility of upper floor rooms via centrally located landing. Short distances from garage to house thanks to new front door position (west instead of north). Spacious cloakroom area. Living room oriented south/east with a nice view.
What do you not like? Why?: The draft was created after an initial discussion of the project. Some ideas and preferences developed or changed later on by us:
- Existing concrete stairs in the basement will not be used, causing extra costs for upgrading the basement (new stairs, new room layout).
- (Small) pantry for food/storage on the ground floor would be great
- Better separation of kitchen and living room is desirable
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 520,000 € (approx. $560,000), turnkey (including 10kWp photovoltaic system with 10kW storage, fresh air heating with air-to-air heat pump), excluding demolition of existing bungalow, double garage, incidental building costs
Personal price limit for house including fittings: 700,000 € (rough estimate: demolition down to top of basement: 30,000 €, house: 530,000 €, incidental costs including basement statics: 50,000 €, double garage: 30,000 €, kitchen/furniture: 40,000 €, landscaping: 20,000 €)
Preferred heating technology: Heat pump with underfloor heating. If budget allows: ground-source heat pump with deep geothermal drilling. The prefab house supplier prefers fresh air heating.
If you had to give up something, which details or add-ons could you do without: Fireplace, new basement stairs
What can you absolutely not do without: Home office
Why is the design like it is now?
Individualized draft by the prefab supplier adapted to the existing basement footprint after discussing our rough (space) requirements.
We are still relatively early in our building project and have many fundamental questions to clarify. Nevertheless, I would like to introduce the project here.
We recently became owners of a prefabricated bungalow from Streif Haus, built in 1987. It has a full concrete basement (by Betonkemmler).
Our plan is to demolish the bungalow down to the top edge of the basement and build a new house for our family (currently four, eventually five) on top. The existing basement (very solid construction) is to be integrated as a utility basement including a technical room. At the same time, the heating system will be modernized from oil heating to a heat pump.
Currently, we are in contact with both prefabricated house suppliers (Weberhaus, Danwood) and solid construction companies (Denkinger). The property is located in Baden-Württemberg (southern Baden).
Even though the floor plan is only a first draft, I would like to present it here for feedback (summary below).
In particular, I hope to get some thoughts on the following basic questions:
- Has any forum member gained experience with building on an existing basement?
- Is there generally a preferred construction method for our project? We are still undecided whether to go for a prefab timber frame house or a masonry (brick or block) solid construction.
- So far, we have not discussed a double garage with the builders, but it will be needed. Where does it make more sense: northwest or southwest (directly next to the neighbor’s garage)?
- To what extent can the project be treated as a renovation with partial demolition in terms of building regulations? Background: Are there any possibilities for funding (still) available?
- What we want to achieve with the floor plan is short walking distances inside and around the house. Therefore, the main entrance was moved from the north side to the west side. However, since it is on the short side of the house, this results in more corridor space and longer routes inside (e.g., from the front door to the stairs to the upper floor). But as the saying goes, you have to accept some drawbacks — what is your opinion: front door facing north or west?
Here is the summary sheet (key points).
Many thanks in advance for your input, comments, and critiques. I will gladly report further developments here in the thread.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Size of the plot: 615m² (6620 sq ft)
Slope: North/South: <0.5m (1.6 ft) over 18m (59 ft), West-East: approx. 2m (6.6 ft) over 33m (108 ft) (see elevation profile)
Site coverage ratio: No development plan (Section 34 of German Building Code). The immediate neighborhood contains some generously built plots. We do not want to change the building footprint of the existing house but want to add a double garage (not currently present).
Floor area ratio: No development plan (Section 34 of German Building Code)
Building envelope, building line and boundary: No development plan (Section 34 of German Building Code). Property boundaries and existing building shown in aerial photo attached
Edge development: None
Number of parking spaces: None
Number of floors: 1.5 stories
Roof type: Gable roof
Architectural style: Modern detached family house
Orientation: see aerial photo. Entrance (currently): north
Maximum height/limits: No development plan
Immediate neighbors: Northern neighbor: 2 stories with flat roof. Southern: 1.5 stories with hipped roof. Western: 1.5 stories with gable roof.
Client Requirements
Style, roof form, building type: We want to transform the existing bungalow into a classic 1.5-story detached house with a gable roof and possibly shed dormers.
Basement, floors: Utility basement (existing, concrete basement), ground floor (living), upper floor (sleeping)
Number of persons, ages: Our family currently has four members (ages: 32, 30, 2, 0), with another child planned
Space requirements on ground and upper floor:
Ground floor: living room, kitchen (possibly with pantry), room for home office or guest room, guest WC with shower, cloakroom
Upper floor: master bedroom, 3 children’s bedrooms, bathroom
Office: family use or home office: Home office (100% for me)
Overnight guests per year: Few, less than 5 guests/nights
Open or closed architecture: Rather closed. Ability to separate kitchen and living room would be desirable.
Conservative or modern design: Modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Kitchen island not mandatory. Partly open kitchen: separation from living room would be good.
Number of dining seats: 5-8
Fireplace: Only if budget allows, not mandatory
Music/ stereo wall: No
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Double garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: No
Further wishes/special features/daily routine, including reasons for preferences or exclusions: The technical room should be located in the existing basement (e.g., in the former oil heating room). A sensible circulation concept is very important: front door/upper floor stairs/basement stairs. Ideally, short distances between garage and house as well as good accessibility of rooms within the house.
House Design
Designed by: Initial draft from the prefab house supplier after first meeting
What do you especially like? Why?: (Almost) all room requests fulfilled. Good accessibility of upper floor rooms via centrally located landing. Short distances from garage to house thanks to new front door position (west instead of north). Spacious cloakroom area. Living room oriented south/east with a nice view.
What do you not like? Why?: The draft was created after an initial discussion of the project. Some ideas and preferences developed or changed later on by us:
- Existing concrete stairs in the basement will not be used, causing extra costs for upgrading the basement (new stairs, new room layout).
- (Small) pantry for food/storage on the ground floor would be great
- Better separation of kitchen and living room is desirable
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 520,000 € (approx. $560,000), turnkey (including 10kWp photovoltaic system with 10kW storage, fresh air heating with air-to-air heat pump), excluding demolition of existing bungalow, double garage, incidental building costs
Personal price limit for house including fittings: 700,000 € (rough estimate: demolition down to top of basement: 30,000 €, house: 530,000 €, incidental costs including basement statics: 50,000 €, double garage: 30,000 €, kitchen/furniture: 40,000 €, landscaping: 20,000 €)
Preferred heating technology: Heat pump with underfloor heating. If budget allows: ground-source heat pump with deep geothermal drilling. The prefab house supplier prefers fresh air heating.
If you had to give up something, which details or add-ons could you do without: Fireplace, new basement stairs
What can you absolutely not do without: Home office
Why is the design like it is now?
Individualized draft by the prefab supplier adapted to the existing basement footprint after discussing our rough (space) requirements.
M
Mal Bauen5 Jun 2023 22:53Thank you for the many responses. Some points are making me think again...
The built-in shelf (at about 1m (3 feet 3 inches) height) is intended to make use of the otherwise unused space above the basement stairs. We will still need some thermal insulation between the shelf and the basement stairs, since the basement is outside the thermal envelope.
Yes, the semi-separate dressing room also came about somewhat “by chance” from the idea that we probably have enough space in the attic floor. I can see the practical benefit that the partner is less disturbed when getting dressed in the morning. Still, it is not an absolute must. Maybe you’d like to briefly explain how you would arrange the bedroom without the dressing room (bed position, wardrobe)?
We want to take a middle ground here: the children’s room 3 and bathroom open-plan, the rest of the attic as attic space, also for possible later use as an office, hobby room, etc. The pull-down staircase in our current rental apartment annoys us (despite rare use due to an existing basement), so for now we prefer to stick with a fixed staircase. We also want to make the space under the stairs accessible and usable from the bedroom or bathroom/shower as much as possible.
Yes, the visibility of the ground floor WC still bothers us. Instead of an additional wall, we have so far discussed separating it with well-placed furniture. Perhaps a wall would be more consistent after all. The wardrobe is located under the ground floor stairs and on the wall towards the open-plan area. The space might be too tight for double doors.
Thank you for the suggestion. Children’s rooms 1 to 3 make much more sense like this. You swapped the WC with the bathtub to remove it from the direct line of sight from the door, right? Without the staircase, the bathroom and dressing room obviously gain much more space. I’m wondering now how important this staircase really is to me.
Heating is done using a heat pump. According to our local architect, we will get permission for the dormer. We’ll see.
11ant schrieb:
I would leave out the wall between the staircase and the built-in shelf.
The built-in shelf (at about 1m (3 feet 3 inches) height) is intended to make use of the otherwise unused space above the basement stairs. We will still need some thermal insulation between the shelf and the basement stairs, since the basement is outside the thermal envelope.
ypg schrieb:
What a beautiful bedroom it would be if you gave up the separate dressing room.
Yes, the semi-separate dressing room also came about somewhat “by chance” from the idea that we probably have enough space in the attic floor. I can see the practical benefit that the partner is less disturbed when getting dressed in the morning. Still, it is not an absolute must. Maybe you’d like to briefly explain how you would arrange the bedroom without the dressing room (bed position, wardrobe)?
11ant schrieb:
Because of the full basement, I consider the attic space at most redundant. At best, I would reduce it to a crawl space accessed by a pull-down staircase and otherwise design the attic floor as open-plan (with "tree house" structures over the children’s rooms).
We want to take a middle ground here: the children’s room 3 and bathroom open-plan, the rest of the attic as attic space, also for possible later use as an office, hobby room, etc. The pull-down staircase in our current rental apartment annoys us (despite rare use due to an existing basement), so for now we prefer to stick with a fixed staircase. We also want to make the space under the stairs accessible and usable from the bedroom or bathroom/shower as much as possible.
ypg schrieb:
I would shield the door to the dining area with a wall. I would use double doors between the hallway and the open-plan area. Where would the wardrobe be? By the stairs going up?
Yes, the visibility of the ground floor WC still bothers us. Instead of an additional wall, we have so far discussed separating it with well-placed furniture. Perhaps a wall would be more consistent after all. The wardrobe is located under the ground floor stairs and on the wall towards the open-plan area. The space might be too tight for double doors.
hanghaus2023 schrieb:
Here is the version with the modified bathroom. How is it heated? Surely not with oil. Is the large dormer allowed?
Thank you for the suggestion. Children’s rooms 1 to 3 make much more sense like this. You swapped the WC with the bathtub to remove it from the direct line of sight from the door, right? Without the staircase, the bathroom and dressing room obviously gain much more space. I’m wondering now how important this staircase really is to me.
Heating is done using a heat pump. According to our local architect, we will get permission for the dormer. We’ll see.
Mal Bauen schrieb:
The built-in shelf (at about 1 m (3 ft) height) is intended to make use of the otherwise unused air space above the basement stairs. We will still need some thermal insulation between the shelf and the basement stairs because the basement lies outside the thermal envelope. [...], the remaining area will be used as an attic space, also for possible later use as an office, hobby room, etc. The pull-down staircase in our current rental apartment annoys us (despite its infrequent use due to the existing basement) to the point that we want to keep the fixed stairs for now. Here, too, we want to make the space under the stairs accessible and usable from the bedroom or bathroom/shower as much as possible.You don’t have such extreme space constraints. Don’t make the house feel cramped, like on a boat or in a camper van, by trying to use every single liter of volume.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Both Child 2 and 3 have narrow rooms with sloping ceilings.
Why do the children need a balcony? You can’t place a desk on the east side to enjoy the view. If there is a balcony, why don’t the parents have their bedroom with the view? The children will probably not live in the house as long as the parents.
How do you plan to wash laundry for 5 people in that bathroom? Clothes, bed linens as far as the eye can see in that room. A dedicated laundry room would be important to me.
Also, the staircase to the attic is a waste of space; instead, we use a pull-down attic ladder or whatever it’s called, which is very convenient.
Why do the children need a balcony? You can’t place a desk on the east side to enjoy the view. If there is a balcony, why don’t the parents have their bedroom with the view? The children will probably not live in the house as long as the parents.
How do you plan to wash laundry for 5 people in that bathroom? Clothes, bed linens as far as the eye can see in that room. A dedicated laundry room would be important to me.
Also, the staircase to the attic is a waste of space; instead, we use a pull-down attic ladder or whatever it’s called, which is very convenient.
M
Mal Bauen19 Sep 2023 22:55evelinoz schrieb:
Both Child 2 and 3 have narrow rooms with sloped ceilings.
Why do the children need a balcony? You can’t place a desk on the east side to enjoy the view. If there is a balcony, why don’t the parents have their bedroom with the view? The children probably won’t live in the house as long as the parents. It is actually being considered to swap the master bedroom and Child 3’s room. Then all the children’s rooms would face south and be roughly the same size. The master bedroom would then be, as you suggested, in the northeast, and we would probably use built-in wardrobes to make use of the sloped ceilings in the knee wall area of about 40cm (16 inches) depth. The balcony (which is a prime candidate for removal right after the chimney) would then have a divider shared with Child 2.
evelinoz schrieb:
How do you plan to do laundry for 5 people in that bathroom? Clothes, bed linen as far as the eye can see in that room. A laundry room would be important to me. Although we do have the option of a laundry room in the basement, we prefer to have the washing machine upstairs for convenience. The battle with clothes will then have to be managed with solutions like a laundry system or cabinet (50cm (20 inches) space on the east wall). Clothes will be hung out to dry either on the balcony or in the attic.
evelinoz schrieb:
Also, the staircase to the attic is a waste of space; instead, we will open a pull-down attic ladder or whatever it’s called, which is much more comfortable. I can understand the reservations. Removing the staircase would, among other things, give us the chance to create a separate laundry room on the upper floor… Nevertheless, this “feature” is a cherished idea from the very early planning days. It allows access to the attic, for which we already have various ideas in different directions (play area, jam studio, Lego showroom, etc.). With the staircase, where possible, we want to use the dead spaces on the north (under-sink cabinet), west (shower niche), or south (shelf) side.
M
Mal Bauen2 Dec 2023 00:33Planning is progressing, and there are new plans that I want to briefly share here.
After submitting the building permit application two months ago, some documents had to be provided afterwards (including a waste disposal concept due to demolition), which has slightly delayed the approval. We now expect the building permit probably by early February.
In the meantime, our architect has started working on the detailed construction plans.
Construction method:
Here are some changes that have been incorporated, partly based on suggestions from this forum (thanks for that! 🙂 ):
What is still not quite right:
Do you have any further advice, criticism, or tips?
After submitting the building permit application two months ago, some documents had to be provided afterwards (including a waste disposal concept due to demolition), which has slightly delayed the approval. We now expect the building permit probably by early February.
In the meantime, our architect has started working on the detailed construction plans.
Construction method:
- Ground floor: aerated concrete 42.5cm (17 inches), interior walls: aerated concrete or calcium silicate blocks
- Top floor: dormer and interior walls: timber frame
- Ceiling ground floor/top floor: concrete slab 20cm (8 inches), with suspended ceiling for installations
- Ceiling top floor/roof peak: collar beam ceiling
Here are some changes that have been incorporated, partly based on suggestions from this forum (thanks for that! 🙂 ):
- Removal of wardrobe in the bedroom
- Bedroom moved to the east side
- Removal of fireplace (might be retrofitted later on the west side exterior)
What is still not quite right:
- Insulation of basement stairs needs to be on the interior side
- Interior walls on the upper floor need to be shifted 10–20cm (4–8 inches) toward the top of the plan for more bedroom space
- Windows on the ground floor have no lintel but are not floor-to-ceiling because of the roller shutter placement
- Functional layout for shower/toilet on the ground floor
- We still need to consider a separation between the dining area and the shower/toilet (line of sight), possibly using furniture
- A suitable location for an installation shaft (central mechanical ventilation, electrical, heating) is still a mystery for us. In the existing basement, we are theoretically flexible with selecting the technical room. The current technical room (top left on the plan) does not seem very compatible with a shaft.
Do you have any further advice, criticism, or tips?
I noticed the parapet height of 1.00 meter (3 ft 3 in), which seems to be measured from the raw floor level. However, your floor construction is at least 16 cm (6 inches), and it’s unclear whether the final floor covering is already planned. This means that the finished parapet height in the kitchen will only be a maximum of 84 cm (33 inches). You should definitely check this with your kitchen design.
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