ᐅ Renovating Existing Buildings: Always an Exciting Challenge
Created on: 9 Dec 2019 22:55
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Reudnitzer
Since I don’t want to overuse the house photo thread, but have come across several projects in the forum where members are clearly dealing with old buildings, renovating gradually, and repeatedly discovering valuable features worth preserving, I’d like to start this thread.
Many of us face similar challenges, such as damp basements, unusual floor plans, thick-bed mortar, legacy issues—problems that typically don’t occur in a “standard” new build. I think it would be great to exchange ideas here. How have you solved such problems? Were there any unpleasant surprises? What would you do differently today? Feel free to include before-and-after pictures.
Many of us face similar challenges, such as damp basements, unusual floor plans, thick-bed mortar, legacy issues—problems that typically don’t occur in a “standard” new build. I think it would be great to exchange ideas here. How have you solved such problems? Were there any unpleasant surprises? What would you do differently today? Feel free to include before-and-after pictures.
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Reudnitzer12 Dec 2019 21:43So, I’ve pushed myself a bit further and tried to draw the actual layout into the "theoretical" floor plan. I hope it’s clear enough to understand.
It would have been an interesting experiment to post the floor plan here and ask for your opinions on it.
The biggest issue by far seems to be the kitchen. We often have guests, sometimes quite a few, and somehow everyone ends up squeezing into the kitchen. When I want to cook, it gets really tight. However, I don’t see any way to change this without completely rearranging the house, and we don’t want to do that.
That said, renovating the kitchen is definitely an urgent matter, which I’m currently just avoiding.
It would have been an interesting experiment to post the floor plan here and ask for your opinions on it.
The biggest issue by far seems to be the kitchen. We often have guests, sometimes quite a few, and somehow everyone ends up squeezing into the kitchen. When I want to cook, it gets really tight. However, I don’t see any way to change this without completely rearranging the house, and we don’t want to do that.
That said, renovating the kitchen is definitely an urgent matter, which I’m currently just avoiding.
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Reudnitzer12 Dec 2019 22:39I should probably mention: Child 1 has already moved out, Child 2 is currently finishing high school. And yes, we only lived on the ground floor; the upper floor is rented out. The 110 sqm (1,184 sq ft) on the ground floor have been more than enough over the last 20 years, despite the awkward layout. An additional 100 sqm (1,076 sq ft) on the first floor—what do you do with so much space?
We considered moving the kitchen into the living room to create an open-plan kitchen and living area, but that would be difficult because of water supply and drainage. Then, we thought about extending the bathroom into the old kitchen area, but that would make a 15 sqm (161 sq ft) bathroom, which nobody really needs...
We considered moving the kitchen into the living room to create an open-plan kitchen and living area, but that would be difficult because of water supply and drainage. Then, we thought about extending the bathroom into the old kitchen area, but that would make a 15 sqm (161 sq ft) bathroom, which nobody really needs...
If Child1 is already gone: convert Child1’s room and the bathroom into the kitchen, then move the bathroom into the kitchen. After that, I would probably swap the living and sleeping areas, and, as haydee already mentioned, include the hallway. This way, there will be enough space for a large living/dining/kitchen area that should also be able to accommodate a larger number of guests.
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