ᐅ Single-family house floor plan, approximately 150 sqm, with east-facing garden
Created on: 9 Jan 2020 21:17
O
OWLer
Hello everyone,
after reading many threads here about how well-intentioned floor plans are expertly dissected, I’m now stepping out from the shadows. We plan to build this year and have already purchased the plot. We are currently in discussions with two providers. Provider 1 never really impressed us with their designs and plans very large houses without offering much living space. I’m bringing Provider 2 into the discussion here because, apart from the points mentioned below, we still like their design.
We hope the collective forum expertise will point out some pitfalls and maybe even help solve our hallway dilemma.
Sorry for the rough sketches of the measurements.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 610 sqm (648 with purchased noise barrier)
Slope: approx. 70cm (28 inches) over 19m (62 feet), sloping from north to south
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: 0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 3m (10 feet) from the street, 3m (10 feet) to neighbors north/south, building envelope 10m (33 feet) east-west
Edge development
Number of parking spaces
Number of stories: 2
Roof type: gable roof ≤45°
Architectural style
Orientation: ridge running north-south
Maximum heights / limits: max. ridge height 10.5m (34 feet), eaves max. 6.0m (20 feet)
Other requirements: On the east side, a noise barrier is built along half of the plot, with forest behind it. Due to the noise barrier, the garden is practically not visible from outside.
Clients’ Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: rather classic
Basement, number of floors: basement, 1.5 floors
Number of residents, age: currently 2 (ages 33 and 27 – planning 2 children)
Space requirements on ground floor: shower WC, open living space (kitchen, dining, living), study; upper floor: 2 kids’ rooms, bathroom, master bedroom (walk-in closet)
Office: home office (teaching profession)
Overnight guests per year: approx. 15
Open or closed architecture: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: conservative and brick-faced
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: preferably yes, budget permitting
Music / stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: carport / budget permitting
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Further wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons for why or why not something is desired
House Design
Designer: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
We really like the upper floor. Room sizes fit well. We can’t really assess the master bedroom on the south side yet. The kids’ rooms seem the right size and have a good layout in my opinion.
A guest room was not a requirement – apparently there was space on the upper floor. We are not unhappy about that.
The living-dining area really appeals to me. Kitchen opening to the terrace. My wife likes the pantry options with access to the garden, basement, and carport.
What don’t you like? Why?
What we don’t like is the narrow corridors. I imagine 1.2m (4 feet) and 1m (3 feet) very cramped. Between the carport and along the stairs, this wouldn’t bother me so much, but the entrance definitely should be wider.
The master bedroom on the south side does not convince me much.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: >440k€
Personal price limit for the house, including fittings: approx. 440k€
Preferred heating system: gas heating required by the plot purchase contract.
If you had to give up something, which details / features could you do without:
I could do without the pantry and use that space for the WC instead. My wife, however, sees this differently.
Which features can you not give up:
The study on the ground floor is a must due to my teaching profession. The idea is to be able to drop things off in the study after returning from school, close the door, and have some downtime without needing to go upstairs or downstairs.
The basement is also essential. Many friends and acquaintances who have built in recent years do so mostly without basements. It takes iron discipline to keep utility rooms “tidy.” We manage that in our rental now but want to move away from that. We don’t want to become hoarders but want more space to spread out. Also, I want to be able to store all my tools in the basement and comfortably repair my bicycles.
Why was the design made the way it is?
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
Large windows on the ground floor facing the garden, as it is not directly visible.
A bay window on the street side is mandatory for the look. The planned flat-roof bay will definitely be changed to a pitched roof. The plaster on the bay will be replaced by brick cladding. We find the bay window to the garden quite nice. Not a must-have, but it was part of the planning basis we provided and, in my opinion, positively impacts the kids’ rooms.
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What makes it particularly good or bad in your eyes?
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
How do you evaluate the usability of the pantry—does it work as well as we imagine it? What other ways, besides widening the house, do you see to widen the corridors? Does the indicated wardrobe area fit?
In principle, I would like to build it this way if only the narrow corridors weren’t an issue. Making the house 25-50cm (10-20 inches) wider is not technically feasible and probably financially difficult.
after reading many threads here about how well-intentioned floor plans are expertly dissected, I’m now stepping out from the shadows. We plan to build this year and have already purchased the plot. We are currently in discussions with two providers. Provider 1 never really impressed us with their designs and plans very large houses without offering much living space. I’m bringing Provider 2 into the discussion here because, apart from the points mentioned below, we still like their design.
We hope the collective forum expertise will point out some pitfalls and maybe even help solve our hallway dilemma.
Sorry for the rough sketches of the measurements.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 610 sqm (648 with purchased noise barrier)
Slope: approx. 70cm (28 inches) over 19m (62 feet), sloping from north to south
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: 0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 3m (10 feet) from the street, 3m (10 feet) to neighbors north/south, building envelope 10m (33 feet) east-west
Edge development
Number of parking spaces
Number of stories: 2
Roof type: gable roof ≤45°
Architectural style
Orientation: ridge running north-south
Maximum heights / limits: max. ridge height 10.5m (34 feet), eaves max. 6.0m (20 feet)
Other requirements: On the east side, a noise barrier is built along half of the plot, with forest behind it. Due to the noise barrier, the garden is practically not visible from outside.
Clients’ Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: rather classic
Basement, number of floors: basement, 1.5 floors
Number of residents, age: currently 2 (ages 33 and 27 – planning 2 children)
Space requirements on ground floor: shower WC, open living space (kitchen, dining, living), study; upper floor: 2 kids’ rooms, bathroom, master bedroom (walk-in closet)
Office: home office (teaching profession)
Overnight guests per year: approx. 15
Open or closed architecture: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: conservative and brick-faced
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: preferably yes, budget permitting
Music / stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: carport / budget permitting
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Further wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons for why or why not something is desired
House Design
Designer: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
We really like the upper floor. Room sizes fit well. We can’t really assess the master bedroom on the south side yet. The kids’ rooms seem the right size and have a good layout in my opinion.
A guest room was not a requirement – apparently there was space on the upper floor. We are not unhappy about that.
The living-dining area really appeals to me. Kitchen opening to the terrace. My wife likes the pantry options with access to the garden, basement, and carport.
What don’t you like? Why?
What we don’t like is the narrow corridors. I imagine 1.2m (4 feet) and 1m (3 feet) very cramped. Between the carport and along the stairs, this wouldn’t bother me so much, but the entrance definitely should be wider.
The master bedroom on the south side does not convince me much.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: >440k€
Personal price limit for the house, including fittings: approx. 440k€
Preferred heating system: gas heating required by the plot purchase contract.
If you had to give up something, which details / features could you do without:
I could do without the pantry and use that space for the WC instead. My wife, however, sees this differently.
Which features can you not give up:
The study on the ground floor is a must due to my teaching profession. The idea is to be able to drop things off in the study after returning from school, close the door, and have some downtime without needing to go upstairs or downstairs.
The basement is also essential. Many friends and acquaintances who have built in recent years do so mostly without basements. It takes iron discipline to keep utility rooms “tidy.” We manage that in our rental now but want to move away from that. We don’t want to become hoarders but want more space to spread out. Also, I want to be able to store all my tools in the basement and comfortably repair my bicycles.
Why was the design made the way it is?
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
Large windows on the ground floor facing the garden, as it is not directly visible.
A bay window on the street side is mandatory for the look. The planned flat-roof bay will definitely be changed to a pitched roof. The plaster on the bay will be replaced by brick cladding. We find the bay window to the garden quite nice. Not a must-have, but it was part of the planning basis we provided and, in my opinion, positively impacts the kids’ rooms.
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What makes it particularly good or bad in your eyes?
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
How do you evaluate the usability of the pantry—does it work as well as we imagine it? What other ways, besides widening the house, do you see to widen the corridors? Does the indicated wardrobe area fit?
In principle, I would like to build it this way if only the narrow corridors weren’t an issue. Making the house 25-50cm (10-20 inches) wider is not technically feasible and probably financially difficult.
kaho674 schrieb:
A standard version with, in my opinion, optimal space utilization, ...I also like it very much. I would probably try to add a bit more depth to the living room at the expense of the now very large office.
ltenzer schrieb:
I really like it too. I would probably try to give the living room a bit more depth at the expense of the currently very large office.That was exactly my thought as well, and of course, I have already prepared something:Two more views:
I was quite proud that I managed to position the chimney perfectly over the hallway—both on the ground floor and the upper floor. But then it went right through the ridge. What a bummer! Of course, we can't just cut it. So it has to stay as it is, or we'll have to do without it entirely and buy an aquarium, piano, or minibar instead.
kaho674 schrieb:
Liquor bar.Always important! Also as an alternative currency in case of an apocalypse!
kaho674 schrieb:
[ATTACH alt="WZ-Tiefe 435.jpg"]41799[/ATTACH]Really cool! Thanks!!!! We discussed all the floor plans again over the weekend with the family. We now agree that the original design from the general contractor has significant flaws.
However, with your design, we still have the issue that one of the best corners in terms of natural light is occupied by the pantry and WC. That is the southwest corner of the house.
kaho674 schrieb:
[ATTACH alt="Ostgarten-EG.jpg"]41789[/ATTACH]I find this solution much better. However, my wife is against placing the office facing the garden. The argument is again the "show side of the house." Although with this design, I would even consider widening the WC and moving the main entrance entirely to the north side.
At the moment, we are seriously considering moving the office to the upper floor. The general contractor’s design managed that well, and it would of course open up entirely different possibilities on the ground floor and greatly ease the "unfavorable" location of the plot and the building envelope.
I’ve been thinking for a long time about what task I should give the general contractor for the next meeting.
What’s clear:
Ground floor must be redone.
An entrance, preferably from the north side.
Kitchen at least 3.5m (11.5 feet) wide.
Living-dining area along the entire east side.
Uncertain:
Kitchen on the southwest side
Office on the upper floor
How large should an office be at minimum for it to work including large shelving units? Another topic is the possibility of retrofitting stairs for an attic conversion. The general contractor said that for the straight staircase, you could simply add a third steel staircase for attic access. For that to work, the stairs must be built fairly central near the ridge, right? Like in the design above by @kaho674, that wouldn’t work in the bay window, would it?
This whole planning process is really exhausting! I naïvely thought that only the actual construction with constant on-site supervision would be stressful. But the fear of making mistakes is also no joke....
Fortunately, it’s great to have so much help here!
These are decisions that no one can make for you.
What is more important? Afternoon sun in the living room or a wide opening of the house towards the garden. For me, it would clearly be the latter, as long as there is enough daylight in the rooms during the day. In summer, life happens about 90% on the terrace or in the garden. It’s a completely different experience when all the main rooms open out there.
Expanding the attic peak, I think, is nonsense. Who actually installs a staircase afterwards just to gain how many square meters? 10? What knee wall height are you planning now?
I don’t understand why the pantry would have more right than the office to be located next to the garden. I would strongly advise against using the valuable rooms in the house as storage for garden tools or similar. For that, you have cheap wooden sheds. Or is there another reason?
Office size – if it’s well planned, about 8 to 9m² (85 to 97 sq ft) is enough. Include realistic furniture in the plans and then you’ll know.
What is more important? Afternoon sun in the living room or a wide opening of the house towards the garden. For me, it would clearly be the latter, as long as there is enough daylight in the rooms during the day. In summer, life happens about 90% on the terrace or in the garden. It’s a completely different experience when all the main rooms open out there.
Expanding the attic peak, I think, is nonsense. Who actually installs a staircase afterwards just to gain how many square meters? 10? What knee wall height are you planning now?
I don’t understand why the pantry would have more right than the office to be located next to the garden. I would strongly advise against using the valuable rooms in the house as storage for garden tools or similar. For that, you have cheap wooden sheds. Or is there another reason?
Office size – if it’s well planned, about 8 to 9m² (85 to 97 sq ft) is enough. Include realistic furniture in the plans and then you’ll know.
The knee wall is 1.25m (4 feet) high. This means there is plenty of space in the attic. Although it doesn’t meet the DIN standard, it should be sufficient for teenagers. At my parents' house, we finished the space later on, and despite the 2m (6.5 feet) height with a width of only 1.5m (5 feet), I often used the room.
The pantry facing the garden has already been ruled out in my planning.
The pantry facing the garden has already been ruled out in my planning.
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