Hello dear community,
I’m voluntarily putting myself on the chopping block to present the current status of our planning.
We are currently planning the construction of our single-family home. We have a plot measuring 30 x 18.8 m (98 x 62 feet). The plot is oriented northeast-southwest. There are neighbors on the north and south sides. On the east side is the street/driveway, and opposite is a newly built multi-family building. Therefore, we want the living rooms and terrace to face west.
We decided to work with a regional general contractor (GC) who individually designs and builds each house. It will be built as a solid masonry structure according to the Energy Saving Ordinance. The basic floor plan without furniture comes from the GC’s planner and is based on our discussions. I then redrew it and furnished it to represent the "worst-case" scenario. What does this mean? For example, we don’t always have 10 people in the dining area; a table can be added if needed. However, there should be enough space for that. The same applies to the study. This will be a study 99% of the time. If we have children in the future, it would need to become a combined study/children’s room. Space should be available for this as well. The second work area would then move from the children’s room to the gallery. In this sense, the furnishing partly represents more of a future scenario than the present one. In any case, all dimensions are realistic.
Now to the questionnaire:
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 564 m² (6069 ft²)
Slope: none
Floor area ratio: 0.4
Gross floor area ratio: 0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 3 m (10 ft) all around
Edge development
Number of parking spaces: 4
Number of floors: 2 full stories
Roof type: free design
Style: free design
Orientation: northwest-southeast
Maximum heights/limits: none
Other requirements: none
Requirements of the homeowners
Style, roof type, building type: 2 full stories
Number of people, age: He 34, She 27, no children planned (still “worst-case” planning with one child)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor:
Ground floor: open living area, utility room, shower toilet, space for wardrobe
Upper floor: gallery with workspace, bedroom, study/child’s room, multifunction room (office 2/child’s room)
Office: He works 100% from home; She works 40% from home (if a child arrives, a small workspace will be set up in the gallery)
Guests per year: 0–1
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern building style: modern
Open kitchen, cooking island: cooking island – kitchen will be included
Number of dining seats: 10 for family gatherings (3–5 times per year)
Fireplace: no
Music/sound system wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double carport
Utility garden, greenhouse: garden shed
Other wishes, special features, daily routine, reasons why certain things are included or excluded:
Functional rooms on the east side (street side), living rooms facing west (not overlooked), terrace to the west. We are not really “south-terrace” people; I prefer to stay inside.
I’m still unsure about the actual feel of the open living area (whether it feels like a narrow corridor or not). This can probably be visually balanced by furnishing, color scheme, and decoration to reduce any sense of “length.”
House design
Planning by: planner of the construction company
What do you particularly like? Why? Open living space, west orientation
What do you dislike? Why?
Possibly not enough wardrobe space, although we currently manage well with 2 linear meters (6.5 feet). The stairway entrance in the foyer — we’ve already accepted that compromise.
Estimated price according to architect/planner: 260,000€
Personal budget limit for house including fittings (excluding building-related additional costs, garden, carport etc.): 300,000€
Preferred heating technology: air-to-water heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details or extensions could you do without?
- Could do without: half-landing staircase, kitchen directly at the house entrance
- Could not do without: orientation of living areas to the west, bedroom to the north
Why did the design turn out this way?
For example: The design developed through joint discussions with the GC’s planner, based on the room program, the plot, and our orientation preferences.
What is the most important or fundamental question about the floor plan in 130 characters or less?
Is the floor plan coherent, or have we developed blind spots and overlooked major planning mistakes?
With that, many thanks!
I’m voluntarily putting myself on the chopping block to present the current status of our planning.
We are currently planning the construction of our single-family home. We have a plot measuring 30 x 18.8 m (98 x 62 feet). The plot is oriented northeast-southwest. There are neighbors on the north and south sides. On the east side is the street/driveway, and opposite is a newly built multi-family building. Therefore, we want the living rooms and terrace to face west.
We decided to work with a regional general contractor (GC) who individually designs and builds each house. It will be built as a solid masonry structure according to the Energy Saving Ordinance. The basic floor plan without furniture comes from the GC’s planner and is based on our discussions. I then redrew it and furnished it to represent the "worst-case" scenario. What does this mean? For example, we don’t always have 10 people in the dining area; a table can be added if needed. However, there should be enough space for that. The same applies to the study. This will be a study 99% of the time. If we have children in the future, it would need to become a combined study/children’s room. Space should be available for this as well. The second work area would then move from the children’s room to the gallery. In this sense, the furnishing partly represents more of a future scenario than the present one. In any case, all dimensions are realistic.
Now to the questionnaire:
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 564 m² (6069 ft²)
Slope: none
Floor area ratio: 0.4
Gross floor area ratio: 0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 3 m (10 ft) all around
Edge development
Number of parking spaces: 4
Number of floors: 2 full stories
Roof type: free design
Style: free design
Orientation: northwest-southeast
Maximum heights/limits: none
Other requirements: none
Requirements of the homeowners
Style, roof type, building type: 2 full stories
Number of people, age: He 34, She 27, no children planned (still “worst-case” planning with one child)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor:
Ground floor: open living area, utility room, shower toilet, space for wardrobe
Upper floor: gallery with workspace, bedroom, study/child’s room, multifunction room (office 2/child’s room)
Office: He works 100% from home; She works 40% from home (if a child arrives, a small workspace will be set up in the gallery)
Guests per year: 0–1
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern building style: modern
Open kitchen, cooking island: cooking island – kitchen will be included
Number of dining seats: 10 for family gatherings (3–5 times per year)
Fireplace: no
Music/sound system wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double carport
Utility garden, greenhouse: garden shed
Other wishes, special features, daily routine, reasons why certain things are included or excluded:
Functional rooms on the east side (street side), living rooms facing west (not overlooked), terrace to the west. We are not really “south-terrace” people; I prefer to stay inside.
I’m still unsure about the actual feel of the open living area (whether it feels like a narrow corridor or not). This can probably be visually balanced by furnishing, color scheme, and decoration to reduce any sense of “length.”
House design
Planning by: planner of the construction company
What do you particularly like? Why? Open living space, west orientation
What do you dislike? Why?
Possibly not enough wardrobe space, although we currently manage well with 2 linear meters (6.5 feet). The stairway entrance in the foyer — we’ve already accepted that compromise.
Estimated price according to architect/planner: 260,000€
Personal budget limit for house including fittings (excluding building-related additional costs, garden, carport etc.): 300,000€
Preferred heating technology: air-to-water heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details or extensions could you do without?
- Could do without: half-landing staircase, kitchen directly at the house entrance
- Could not do without: orientation of living areas to the west, bedroom to the north
Why did the design turn out this way?
For example: The design developed through joint discussions with the GC’s planner, based on the room program, the plot, and our orientation preferences.
What is the most important or fundamental question about the floor plan in 130 characters or less?
Is the floor plan coherent, or have we developed blind spots and overlooked major planning mistakes?
With that, many thanks!
Imaginary dimensions lead to sloppy work and/or unnecessarily frequent use of the stone saw. When designing the floor plan, it seems the motto was "quick and easy." The savings potential of a rectangular shape can also be overestimated. Maybe @Würfel feels like some DIY after Katja was unfortunately pushed out :-("
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Ok, I’ll try to address this chronologically.
@K1300S / @hanse987 – correct, the dryer/washing machine will be in the utility room. Exact placement is not defined yet.
@pagoni2020
Which pieces of furniture do you think are incorrectly planned? I thought I had checked carefully. I agree with you regarding the bathroom. So far, we haven’t come up with a better positioning. In a previous design, the entrance was where the shower is now, and the shower was where the small storage room is. I didn’t like that much either. Do you mean you would like more windows in the gallery?
@11ant / @K1300S
Admittedly, this design certainly won’t win any innovation awards. But that wasn’t the goal. The building envelope is based on the plot dimensions, with a 3-meter (10 feet) setback all around. So, 24 x 12.8 meters (79 x 42 feet). Because of the orientation, we’d like to have the terrace at the back of the house, on the west side. That’s also why we ended up with a rectangular shape. This was not primarily a financial decision. The suggestion actually came from the builder. From your point of view, @11ant, what would be a reasonable size for the masonry work?
I hope I covered all points. If not, please point them out again.
Thanks!
@K1300S / @hanse987 – correct, the dryer/washing machine will be in the utility room. Exact placement is not defined yet.
@pagoni2020
Which pieces of furniture do you think are incorrectly planned? I thought I had checked carefully. I agree with you regarding the bathroom. So far, we haven’t come up with a better positioning. In a previous design, the entrance was where the shower is now, and the shower was where the small storage room is. I didn’t like that much either. Do you mean you would like more windows in the gallery?
@11ant / @K1300S
Admittedly, this design certainly won’t win any innovation awards. But that wasn’t the goal. The building envelope is based on the plot dimensions, with a 3-meter (10 feet) setback all around. So, 24 x 12.8 meters (79 x 42 feet). Because of the orientation, we’d like to have the terrace at the back of the house, on the west side. That’s also why we ended up with a rectangular shape. This was not primarily a financial decision. The suggestion actually came from the builder. From your point of view, @11ant, what would be a reasonable size for the masonry work?
I hope I covered all points. If not, please point them out again.
Thanks!
hbf2021 schrieb:
What would be a reasonable dimension for the mason from your point of view, @11ant?Well, always sticking to the modular dimension — for example, windows 88.5 instead of 90 cm (35 inches) wide, the front door 176 instead of 173.5 cm (69 inches), or wall sections 136.5 instead of 140 cm (54 inches), and 161.5 instead of 158.5 cm (63 inches), and so on (almost everywhere here the modular dimension is being deviated from). But first find a reasonable framework for the exterior dimensions. The system is still wrong here (building envelope minus terrace equals house) — that’s like the tail wagging the dog. At least you’re only "playing" with the terrace — in many other cases I usually see the garage acting as the boss.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
P
pagoni20203 Aug 2020 16:05hbf2021 schrieb:
Which furniture do you think is not accurately depicted? In my opinion, the table is too large and bulky for this space, and the sofa also seems oversized and positioned in a way that it would face directly into the hallway. Adding a proper coffee table might help you better understand the tightness of the space.
hbf2021 schrieb:
So far, we haven't come up with a better layout given the current positioning. In an earlier draft, the entrance was where the shower is now, and the shower was where the small storage closet is. I didn’t really like that either. That’s something a professional planner should figure out... They really need to put more effort into integrating your preferences thoughtfully into the design.
hbf2021 schrieb:
Do you mean adding more windows in the gallery? I think the windows on the ground floor don’t provide enough light. The living room wall has none, there are a few on the long side, and some in the kitchen. Since the ceiling isn’t open upwards, the space might feel a bit cramped.
hbf2021 schrieb:
Admittedly, the design probably won’t win any innovation awards. But that wasn’t the point. And why not? Of course, when you build once, you should get something that you really like; that much time and effort should be invested!
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