ᐅ Planning a Single-Family Home with a Bicycle Workshop
Created on: 26 Aug 2024 11:00
H
HäuschenAmFeld
Hello everyone, from an enthusiastic lurker.
My partner and I were initially looking for an existing property and had already viewed several, but hadn’t found anything convincing. Mostly, the houses were either too small or much too large, requiring extensive renovation and modernization. By chance, we came across an offer for building plots in a location that suits us, and we have reconsidered the idea of new construction. First of all, here is my completed questionnaire:
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 919m2 (with restrictions, e.g., a compensation area with specific planting must be created over more than 7m at the rear part of the plot)
Slope – no, or at most minimal
Site coverage ratio: 0.25
Floor area ratio: (could not be found in the documents I have)
Building area, building line, and boundary: front 20m facing the street
Edge development: no
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: gable or hipped roof
Style: modern, I would say
Orientation: open, although a southwest-facing roof might be suitable?
Maximum height/limits
Additional requirements
Requirements from the builders
Style, roof shape, building type: We are open. In the immediate surroundings there are typical “village houses directly on the street,” townhouses, bungalows, etc. We would like to keep as much usable garden space as possible.
Basement, floors: 2 floors (the upper floor does not need to be full height but should have at least an extended knee wall). Originally, we wanted a basement, but that seems difficult budget-wise.
Number of people, age: 2 persons, 30 years old
Space requirements on ground floor (GF), upper floor (UF):
Office: home office, twice. Not large, but separate rooms are necessary.
Overnight guests per year: no one who stays more than a few nights
Open or closed architecture: –
Conservative or modern construction style: –
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Ideally with access to the dining/living area. It should be possible for two people to work simultaneously in the kitchen.
Number of dining seats: 4 or 6, not mainly for eating but for inviting friends/family for board games or similar. Daily use: 2
Fireplace: very much preferred but realistically more of a nice-to-have
Music/stereo wall: –
Balcony, roof terrace: –
Garage, carport: we are already planning to include this, but it is not essential to build immediately.
Utility garden, greenhouse: yes, later
Other wishes/special features/daily routine, including reasons why certain things should or should not be included: It is important to have a heated workshop for bicycles. Our idea was to plan a “guest room” on the ground floor, which would have an outside door/patio door through which a bike can be brought directly inside. It would also be conceivable to start cycling directly from there and enter the house again through this side door. For this use case, a short route to a bathroom on the ground floor (with shower) would be nice as well.
This idea was proposed as an alternative to the basement in order to save costs, but it would have the downside of requiring a significantly larger footprint than we need upstairs. Typical floor plans usually have 2 children’s rooms + a master bedroom and bathroom upstairs. Our offices don’t need to be that large. Possibly 3 “children’s rooms” could be considered so that an additional small “hobby room” is created.
House design
Who designed the plan:
- House company, it is a standard floor plan example
What do you like? Why?
- Everything fits well, kitchen connected to living/dining area (possibly the kitchen could expand further over a kitchen island?)
What do you dislike? Why?
- The upper floor doesn’t quite fit yet, the door to the “workshop” is missing, and we haven’t looked in detail at windows and patio doors; we are still at the rough layout stage.
Price estimate from architect/planner: no detailed figures yet, but something like this was presented within our budget. However, when calculating with the commonly assumed 3000€/m2, I don’t see how it fits; this matches our feeling that the house might be too large for us.
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment: around 400k for everything except the plot
Preferred heating technology: air-to-water heat pump with underfloor heating, we would like to use photovoltaics
If you had to compromise, on which details/features
- Could give up: basement, fireplace, space on the upper floor, workshop room (if we can find another winter-suitable solution), exterior landscaping except for a rainwater cistern
- Cannot give up: 2 offices, 2 bathrooms or at least 1 guest bathroom
Why is the design the way it is now?
E.g.
Standard design from the planner? Yes
We welcome better ideas. We initially planned to build a very standard floor plan via a large general contractor, as shown in the catalog, hoping for few additional costs and that hopefully not much could go wrong.
However, that didn’t quite work with having a basement and the bicycle requirements. The plot is rather narrow but elongated. If we want space for a double carport or double garage (to the right side at the plot boundary where the driveway is), not every house footprint fits well.
My partner and I were initially looking for an existing property and had already viewed several, but hadn’t found anything convincing. Mostly, the houses were either too small or much too large, requiring extensive renovation and modernization. By chance, we came across an offer for building plots in a location that suits us, and we have reconsidered the idea of new construction. First of all, here is my completed questionnaire:
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 919m2 (with restrictions, e.g., a compensation area with specific planting must be created over more than 7m at the rear part of the plot)
Slope – no, or at most minimal
Site coverage ratio: 0.25
Floor area ratio: (could not be found in the documents I have)
Building area, building line, and boundary: front 20m facing the street
Edge development: no
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: gable or hipped roof
Style: modern, I would say
Orientation: open, although a southwest-facing roof might be suitable?
Maximum height/limits
Additional requirements
Requirements from the builders
Style, roof shape, building type: We are open. In the immediate surroundings there are typical “village houses directly on the street,” townhouses, bungalows, etc. We would like to keep as much usable garden space as possible.
Basement, floors: 2 floors (the upper floor does not need to be full height but should have at least an extended knee wall). Originally, we wanted a basement, but that seems difficult budget-wise.
Number of people, age: 2 persons, 30 years old
Space requirements on ground floor (GF), upper floor (UF):
Office: home office, twice. Not large, but separate rooms are necessary.
Overnight guests per year: no one who stays more than a few nights
Open or closed architecture: –
Conservative or modern construction style: –
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Ideally with access to the dining/living area. It should be possible for two people to work simultaneously in the kitchen.
Number of dining seats: 4 or 6, not mainly for eating but for inviting friends/family for board games or similar. Daily use: 2
Fireplace: very much preferred but realistically more of a nice-to-have
Music/stereo wall: –
Balcony, roof terrace: –
Garage, carport: we are already planning to include this, but it is not essential to build immediately.
Utility garden, greenhouse: yes, later
Other wishes/special features/daily routine, including reasons why certain things should or should not be included: It is important to have a heated workshop for bicycles. Our idea was to plan a “guest room” on the ground floor, which would have an outside door/patio door through which a bike can be brought directly inside. It would also be conceivable to start cycling directly from there and enter the house again through this side door. For this use case, a short route to a bathroom on the ground floor (with shower) would be nice as well.
This idea was proposed as an alternative to the basement in order to save costs, but it would have the downside of requiring a significantly larger footprint than we need upstairs. Typical floor plans usually have 2 children’s rooms + a master bedroom and bathroom upstairs. Our offices don’t need to be that large. Possibly 3 “children’s rooms” could be considered so that an additional small “hobby room” is created.
House design
Who designed the plan:
- House company, it is a standard floor plan example
What do you like? Why?
- Everything fits well, kitchen connected to living/dining area (possibly the kitchen could expand further over a kitchen island?)
What do you dislike? Why?
- The upper floor doesn’t quite fit yet, the door to the “workshop” is missing, and we haven’t looked in detail at windows and patio doors; we are still at the rough layout stage.
Price estimate from architect/planner: no detailed figures yet, but something like this was presented within our budget. However, when calculating with the commonly assumed 3000€/m2, I don’t see how it fits; this matches our feeling that the house might be too large for us.
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment: around 400k for everything except the plot
Preferred heating technology: air-to-water heat pump with underfloor heating, we would like to use photovoltaics
If you had to compromise, on which details/features
- Could give up: basement, fireplace, space on the upper floor, workshop room (if we can find another winter-suitable solution), exterior landscaping except for a rainwater cistern
- Cannot give up: 2 offices, 2 bathrooms or at least 1 guest bathroom
Why is the design the way it is now?
E.g.
Standard design from the planner? Yes
We welcome better ideas. We initially planned to build a very standard floor plan via a large general contractor, as shown in the catalog, hoping for few additional costs and that hopefully not much could go wrong.
However, that didn’t quite work with having a basement and the bicycle requirements. The plot is rather narrow but elongated. If we want space for a double carport or double garage (to the right side at the plot boundary where the driveway is), not every house footprint fits well.
N
nordanney27 Aug 2024 15:15K a t j a schrieb:
Why? If the room meets the same requirements as a living space, it will cost just as much. And for a workshop in winter, you have the same requirements, or what do you want to leave out? Of course, the room is built completely differently and—for example, as a wooden extension to the carport—it costs only a fraction of the price of living space inside the house. We’re talking about workshop costs in the low thousands of euros. Dry, sealed, electricity, electric heating (fan heater, infrared, or whatever).
The workshop doesn’t have to be insulated or made of solid masonry. You just need a space to work—and when you do, you turn the heating on. A small garden shed would also work. I would never consider sacrificing valuable living space for regular bike maintenance.
N
nordanney27 Aug 2024 15:18K a t j a schrieb:
Also, a workshop outside the thermal envelope has to be carefully heated first, which can take hours.It takes less than a few minutes with a proper fan heater. You don’t need 22 degrees Celsius (72°F), just a temperature comfortable enough to work. And the volume is only about 15–20 cubic meters (530–710 cubic feet).
nordanney schrieb:
The workshop doesn’t need to be insulated or built with solid masonry. You just need to be able to work in it – and when you do, you turn the heating on. In this case, I understood it differently. The OP works frequently and extensively in the workshop, especially in winter.
nordanney schrieb:
It takes less than a few minutes with a good fan heater. You don’t need 22 degrees, just a temperature that allows you to work. And the volume is only about 15–20 cubic meters (530–710 cubic feet). Heating up an uninsulated room in the depths of winter with a fan heater takes forever, and you’re still cold. We have an insulated workshop without heating. It takes hours with a fan heater and an additional radiator. We are considering installing an electric heater. However, warming up still takes a long time, so you’re usually done with your work before the room gets warm. So the OP should carefully consider when and how often the room will be needed during the week. Ideally, it would be a room that could be used for other purposes in the summer...
K a t j a schrieb:
In this case, I understood it differently. The original poster (OP) works often and for long periods in the workshop, especially during winter. HäuschenAmFeld schrieb:
Unfortunately, the cold, damp season is when the bike requires the most maintenance, at least for everyday bikes that are also used for commuting. As I understand it, this is simply about maintaining value and possibly a hobby cyclist who occasionally wants to replace parts on their bike.
And if it’s a nice standard garage, maybe even with a skylight, you can work comfortably in there once the space is heated to 15°C (59°F) in about 10 minutes. Nobody needs constant temperatures of 20–22°C (68–72°F) with underfloor heating, as is often found in a single-family house.
ypg schrieb:
... if the room is warmed up to 15 degrees in 10 minutes. Never! Honestly, we have the experience to say so. You can’t heat a workshop to 15°C (59°F) in 10 minutes if it’s 0°C (32°F) outside. And it shouldn’t be as small as a phone booth either, since presumably at least two bikes need to go in and out. In addition, the original poster requested a connection to the shower.
I’m afraid you are too influenced by your own ideas about cycling. To me, this sounds like two athletes who spend most of their free time on their bikes.
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