ᐅ Floor Plan: Semi-Detached House 8x12 m – Feedback and Creative Ideas Welcome :)
Created on: 28 Apr 2020 13:37
J
Jucruzlo
Hello everyone,
I’ve also been experimenting a bit with floor plans for our plot.
Background: At the moment, we are in contact with a general contractor (GC) and a prefab home builder. It will probably end up being a combination of an independent architect and a GC (thanks for the tip @ant11). However, it is very difficult to find an architect right now – but of course, I couldn’t just sit still and had to try a little myself. I worked with the app MagicPlan. Although we have already received a floor plan from the prefab builder, it really didn’t suit us at all. So, here we go – thank you in advance to everyone who takes a look :-*
I’m also happy to take any tips on how to find an architect who doesn’t only work on projects over 1 million (dollars/pounds). :-P
A quick note on orientation: The balcony on the upper floor and the living room face southwest. It has to be that way. The rear side borders directly onto open fields.
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 410m2 (4,410 sq ft)
Slope: no
Building window: 5m (16 ft) from the street, 12m (39 ft) house length, 8.1m (27 ft) width for the house, and 3m (10 ft) width for the garage. Plot dimensions 11.1m (36 ft) × 37m (121 ft)
Number of parking spaces: -
Number of floors: Max. 2 full floors, no knee walls allowed
Roof type: pitched roof with a 25–45 degree slope
Architectural style: any
Orientation: southwest
Maximum height / limits: ridge height 9m (30 ft), wall height max. 4.70m (15 ft)
Owners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: nice :-P
Basement, floors: no basement, almost 2 full floors (slight slopes from 1.80m (5 ft 11 in) due to prescribed wall height)
Number of people, age: 3 people, including a toddler (2 years old) – another child planned
Space requirement ground floor, upper floor: 140–160m2 (1,500–1,720 sq ft)
Office: guest room on ground floor used as office
Guests per year: currently rarely – in older age, space for parents/in-laws desired
Open or closed layout: open floor plan
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony for drying laundry
Garage, carport: garage – carport would also be acceptable if advantages prevail
House design
Designed by: me (trained architect through various apps :-P – just kidding)
What do you like most? Why?
What don’t you like? Why?
Why did the design turn out as it is now?
We wanted an open floor plan because we have a lot of visitors, and I always find it a shame to disappear into the kitchen while everything is happening in the living area. It was also important for us to have a separate parents’ area for complete privacy and a balcony for drying laundry in summer. A guest shower on the ground floor was needed, and it is important to me to do laundry on the upper floor (where the laundry is generated).
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
Note:
The windows are just placed approximately. I also don’t know how to view the exterior – of course, we will position the windows accordingly.
I’ve also been experimenting a bit with floor plans for our plot.
Background: At the moment, we are in contact with a general contractor (GC) and a prefab home builder. It will probably end up being a combination of an independent architect and a GC (thanks for the tip @ant11). However, it is very difficult to find an architect right now – but of course, I couldn’t just sit still and had to try a little myself. I worked with the app MagicPlan. Although we have already received a floor plan from the prefab builder, it really didn’t suit us at all. So, here we go – thank you in advance to everyone who takes a look :-*
I’m also happy to take any tips on how to find an architect who doesn’t only work on projects over 1 million (dollars/pounds). :-P
A quick note on orientation: The balcony on the upper floor and the living room face southwest. It has to be that way. The rear side borders directly onto open fields.
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 410m2 (4,410 sq ft)
Slope: no
Building window: 5m (16 ft) from the street, 12m (39 ft) house length, 8.1m (27 ft) width for the house, and 3m (10 ft) width for the garage. Plot dimensions 11.1m (36 ft) × 37m (121 ft)
Number of parking spaces: -
Number of floors: Max. 2 full floors, no knee walls allowed
Roof type: pitched roof with a 25–45 degree slope
Architectural style: any
Orientation: southwest
Maximum height / limits: ridge height 9m (30 ft), wall height max. 4.70m (15 ft)
Owners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: nice :-P
Basement, floors: no basement, almost 2 full floors (slight slopes from 1.80m (5 ft 11 in) due to prescribed wall height)
Number of people, age: 3 people, including a toddler (2 years old) – another child planned
Space requirement ground floor, upper floor: 140–160m2 (1,500–1,720 sq ft)
Office: guest room on ground floor used as office
Guests per year: currently rarely – in older age, space for parents/in-laws desired
Open or closed layout: open floor plan
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony for drying laundry
Garage, carport: garage – carport would also be acceptable if advantages prevail
House design
Designed by: me (trained architect through various apps :-P – just kidding)
What do you like most? Why?
- Garage access through utility room
- Few hallway areas but still with a wardrobe
- Open living concept and straight staircase (platform stairs couldn’t be depicted)
- Separate bathroom for kids
- Spacious walk-in closet
- Laundry room on upper floor
- Access through bedroom/bath to walk-in closet
What don’t you like? Why?
- No pantry on the ground floor
- Kids’ rooms on the north side
- Having to enter the parents’ walk-in closet first – would prefer two wall closets like houses in America
- Upper floor hallway very narrow and access to kids’ room 1 hardly feasible – on the other hand, I don’t like wasted space and enlarging the hallway would reduce kids’ room sizes. Any solutions?
- I find the garage quite practical but it takes away window area – will the ground floor be too dark, and should we rather go with a carport?
Why did the design turn out as it is now?
We wanted an open floor plan because we have a lot of visitors, and I always find it a shame to disappear into the kitchen while everything is happening in the living area. It was also important for us to have a separate parents’ area for complete privacy and a balcony for drying laundry in summer. A guest shower on the ground floor was needed, and it is important to me to do laundry on the upper floor (where the laundry is generated).
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
- General opinion on the floor plan
- See “what I don’t like” – suggestions for improvements welcome
Note:
The windows are just placed approximately. I also don’t know how to view the exterior – of course, we will position the windows accordingly.
S
saralina8728 Apr 2020 15:01I didn’t include it, no. I wanted to avoid any discussions about storage space.
But I can tell you what’s different in our case (though I think it mainly comes down to personal preference):
- We definitely didn’t want the staircase in the living area; I don’t want my kids' friends having to walk past me while I’m lounging on the sofa in my pajamas.
- We preferred a large bathroom instead of separate kids’ and master bathrooms (especially since we also have a small shower in the guest toilet downstairs). The house’s size simply doesn’t allow for both.
- Our utility room is almost 13 square meters (140 square feet), mainly because the pantry only fits under the stairs — after all, we need somewhere to store water crates, recycling bags, and similar items.
- We placed the kids’ bedrooms facing south, since they will need more natural light in their rooms than we do.
What kind of heating system do you have installed?
But I can tell you what’s different in our case (though I think it mainly comes down to personal preference):
- We definitely didn’t want the staircase in the living area; I don’t want my kids' friends having to walk past me while I’m lounging on the sofa in my pajamas.
- We preferred a large bathroom instead of separate kids’ and master bathrooms (especially since we also have a small shower in the guest toilet downstairs). The house’s size simply doesn’t allow for both.
- Our utility room is almost 13 square meters (140 square feet), mainly because the pantry only fits under the stairs — after all, we need somewhere to store water crates, recycling bags, and similar items.
- We placed the kids’ bedrooms facing south, since they will need more natural light in their rooms than we do.
What kind of heating system do you have installed?
Curly schrieb:
How much space is left in width for the dining area? It looks very tight.
Best regards,
SabineAbout 2.70 m (9 feet), although we could also go up to 3 m (10 feet).
But it really depends on the space available – especially since we actually only sit there for about 15 minutes once a day. Even with guests, the area is used very rarely.
I’m glad you stopped by.
He appreciates the best thanks when his name is spelled correctly :-(
Where did you ask? Even in OF, HG (or was it somewhere else again) there aren’t only star architects or those who charge fees at that level.
But a MILF definitely brings prestige at school
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Jucruzlo schrieb:
Thanks for the tip, @ant11
He appreciates the best thanks when his name is spelled correctly :-(
Jucruzlo schrieb:
I’m also happy to get tips on how to find an architect who doesn’t only take on projects starting at 1 million
Where did you ask? Even in OF, HG (or was it somewhere else again) there aren’t only star architects or those who charge fees at that level.
saralina87 schrieb:
I don’t want my kids’ friends to have to walk past me in my PJs slouching on the sofa someday
But a MILF definitely brings prestige at school
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
11ant schrieb:
I’m glad you came here.
The best thanks you can give is to spell it correctly :-(Oh no! I’m very sorry – but hey, always look on the bright side, it was ALMOST right.
11ant schrieb:
Where did you ask?
Even in OF, HG (or wherever it was exactly), not only star architects or those with at least such fees are found. In the Rhine-Main area. Either no one answered or there was no demand. We’re just at the beginning of making phone calls. Thankfully, there is a wide selection here. At first, we just googled a bit, looked at websites, and set some preferences. But I think we should lower our expectations a bit.
S
saralina8728 Apr 2020 15:45At the beginning of our planning, I really wanted to have the washing machine and dryer upstairs, but I quickly realized that the fact we don’t have a balcony ruins that idea. You would have to carry the laundry down again anyway (to the terrace) to dry it. I’m not sure how practical that is for you since you have to go out of the bathroom and across your bedroom to get to the balcony… Maybe it’s better to have a balcony for the kids and move the washing machine downstairs? But then the utility room would need to be larger again.
I would seriously reconsider the staircase, but if you say you prefer it that way, then it’s your choice. Personally, I’d probably rather not know every detail... and I was glad my parents didn’t know everything.
Do you really need three showers for four people? Otherwise, you might be able to rearrange things on the ground floor a bit, maybe remove the shower there and create a small pantry?
By the way, because of the lighting issue you mentioned, we planned a carport instead of a garage. At the back, there will be a larger garden shed or storage room.
Is the utility room only accessible through the garage? Or is there a “hidden” passage from the kitchen? Otherwise, you could consider creating a one-meter-wide (3 feet) space between the utility room and kitchen that is accessible through the kitchen.
I would seriously reconsider the staircase, but if you say you prefer it that way, then it’s your choice. Personally, I’d probably rather not know every detail... and I was glad my parents didn’t know everything.
Do you really need three showers for four people? Otherwise, you might be able to rearrange things on the ground floor a bit, maybe remove the shower there and create a small pantry?
By the way, because of the lighting issue you mentioned, we planned a carport instead of a garage. At the back, there will be a larger garden shed or storage room.
Is the utility room only accessible through the garage? Or is there a “hidden” passage from the kitchen? Otherwise, you could consider creating a one-meter-wide (3 feet) space between the utility room and kitchen that is accessible through the kitchen.
Jucruzlo schrieb:
Almost rightAssembling such a large structure upside down is quite an unusual achievement. Jucruzlo schrieb:
in the Rhine-Main areaI’ll check our email correspondence later, as it gives more details. I have a school friend who is an architect in Frankfurt.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
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