ᐅ Single-family home on a south-facing slope at an elevation of 900 meters above sea level
Created on: 3 Apr 2019 22:20
P
philipokHello everyone,
We have now received a floor plan from the architect that we really like. I would appreciate feedback from the forum with constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement. Let’s work from the bottom up:
Basement:
Two rooms are planned for commercial use here. That’s why there is a separate “customer entrance” on the south side. We need the utility entrance for coming back from gardening or skiing in winter. Sports equipment, etc., can be stored directly in the hobby room. Since we have planted a small orchard and I want to start beekeeping, there is a small storage room. A workshop corner in the technical room is mandatory.
Ground Floor:
We want an open kitchen-dining-living area for social gatherings, including a wood stove (we already had one in my parents’ house, and I love the cozy warmth it provides). The southwest view is unbeatable, so we need large windows here. The guest room is sized to fit a 120 x 200 cm (47 x 79 inch) care bed in case a parent is alone and requires care. If the care bed is placed against the wall (it should be on wheels), a wheelchair can approach it. The bathroom is planned to be accessible for people with disabilities.
Upper Floor:
There are five of us. Each child will have their own room. For when they reach puberty, the two girls will share one bathroom, and our son will share the large bathroom with us.
Regarding the heating system, I am still undecided. I have read a lot on the forum. Some say solar thermal systems are too expensive to install and not cost-effective. Does, for example, a ground source heat pump provide enough heat at our altitude (especially when coming in wet from skiing and needing to dry clothes)? The electricity usually comes from a photovoltaic system, which brings storage challenges. With a roof pitch of about 30–32° (86–89°) and typically four months of winter, power production will often be limited.
The local heating installer recommends a gas condensing boiler combined with a water-heated fireplace and a small solar thermal system. But that seems neither sustainable nor innovative to me.
Looking forward to your feedback. And please don’t be surprised if I’m offline for a day or two occasionally—I travel frequently for work.
We have now received a floor plan from the architect that we really like. I would appreciate feedback from the forum with constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement. Let’s work from the bottom up:
Basement:
Two rooms are planned for commercial use here. That’s why there is a separate “customer entrance” on the south side. We need the utility entrance for coming back from gardening or skiing in winter. Sports equipment, etc., can be stored directly in the hobby room. Since we have planted a small orchard and I want to start beekeeping, there is a small storage room. A workshop corner in the technical room is mandatory.
Ground Floor:
We want an open kitchen-dining-living area for social gatherings, including a wood stove (we already had one in my parents’ house, and I love the cozy warmth it provides). The southwest view is unbeatable, so we need large windows here. The guest room is sized to fit a 120 x 200 cm (47 x 79 inch) care bed in case a parent is alone and requires care. If the care bed is placed against the wall (it should be on wheels), a wheelchair can approach it. The bathroom is planned to be accessible for people with disabilities.
Upper Floor:
There are five of us. Each child will have their own room. For when they reach puberty, the two girls will share one bathroom, and our son will share the large bathroom with us.
Regarding the heating system, I am still undecided. I have read a lot on the forum. Some say solar thermal systems are too expensive to install and not cost-effective. Does, for example, a ground source heat pump provide enough heat at our altitude (especially when coming in wet from skiing and needing to dry clothes)? The electricity usually comes from a photovoltaic system, which brings storage challenges. With a roof pitch of about 30–32° (86–89°) and typically four months of winter, power production will often be limited.
The local heating installer recommends a gas condensing boiler combined with a water-heated fireplace and a small solar thermal system. But that seems neither sustainable nor innovative to me.
Looking forward to your feedback. And please don’t be surprised if I’m offline for a day or two occasionally—I travel frequently for work.
philipok schrieb:
Let’s work our way up from the bottom: If anyone wants to scroll back, especially looking for the questionnaire: https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/efh-suedhang-hilfe-bei-grundrissplanung.30106/
A lot has changed here (and someone has stolen the shell-themed corner). The design has traveled through a time machine to the present day, which might have been a bit too fast for some of the original character, regional style, and charm (?)
I don’t like the façades at all; each has one eave side and one gable side—the one is too strict, the other too wild. Is the line under the upper floor supposed to indicate a change in the façade surface?
All the double casement windows are shown with mullions, but there will have to be at least one without a mullion (a French window) for the second emergency exit.
According to the section drawing, the attic is still included within the thermal envelope—I assume this is due to the local weather conditions (?)
By the way, I only see the attic hatch indicated textually, not graphically ;-)
The differences compared to “my house” are purely a matter of taste; technically, I have no objections :-)
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
11ant schrieb:
In case anyone wants to scroll back, especially looking for the questionnaire: https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/efh-suedhang-hilfe-bei-grundrissplanung.30106/
A lot has changed (and someone stole the little cozy corner). The design has traveled through time into the present day, which might have been a bit too fast for some of the original character, regional style, and charm (?)
I really don’t like the facades; each has one eave side and one gable side – one is too strict while the other is too wild. Is the line under the upper floor meant to indicate a change in facade material?
All the double casement windows are shown with mullions, but at least one will have to be a French casement window for the second emergency exit.
According to the sectional drawing, the attic is included in the thermal envelope – I assume this is due to the regional weather conditions (?).
By the way, the attic hatch is only indicated in writing ;-)
All differences compared to “my house” are now purely a matter of taste; technically, I have no complaints 🙂 Hello ant11,
the basement will of course be built with solid construction (I assume waterproof concrete). On top of that will be a timber construction with a wooden facade (either from the ground floor up or just the upper floor – this is still not entirely clear).
We were convinced from the start by the simple rectangular floor plan. The refinements are meant to be noticeable inside: naturally, to save costs, only as much volume will be created as necessary for comfortable living with the requirements described in the first post. We are currently very satisfied with this – although it is clear that some details (window positions relative to the bed, for example) will still need to be optimized.
Best regards
M
Mottenhausen4 Apr 2019 09:35The guest bathroom is poorly arranged, and there is no space for a mirror above the sink. Additionally, it bothers me that the guest bathroom includes a wellness shower (in terms of size), while the master bathroom has a cramped standard model.
Is the 2.72m (9 feet) ceiling height absolutely necessary? Especially on the children’s floor, the rooms might feel uncomfortable and small. The ceiling height should match the floor area; otherwise, the brain gets confused, and the room appears smaller than it actually is. Reducing it by 15–20cm (6–8 inches) wouldn’t hurt, and I don’t think you are particularly tall—otherwise, the interior doors would be larger. Ultimately, this could also save a lot of money.
Is the 2.72m (9 feet) ceiling height absolutely necessary? Especially on the children’s floor, the rooms might feel uncomfortable and small. The ceiling height should match the floor area; otherwise, the brain gets confused, and the room appears smaller than it actually is. Reducing it by 15–20cm (6–8 inches) wouldn’t hurt, and I don’t think you are particularly tall—otherwise, the interior doors would be larger. Ultimately, this could also save a lot of money.
Where has the prep kitchen gone?
With three entrances on three sides of the house and the height, someone must really enjoy snow shoveling.
I would arrange the basement differently; maybe Kaho will have some ideas. Have an entrance that leads to the office and the hobby room. Also, reduce the size of the hallway and give the laundry its own dedicated space. With five people, there is a lot to manage. Sorting is necessary — the washing machine won’t run constantly, and stains need soaking. Having the washing machine in the bathroom is something you usually see in rental apartments.
Do you really want such a narrow pantry on the ground floor? The cabinets shown there would also fit in the kitchen.
The guest bathroom should be reconsidered, especially if you plan to accommodate an elderly family member. Sitting down backwards on the toilet can be difficult for people with back problems or limited mobility. Some find it easier to approach the toilet from the side. On the available space (the heating chimney is inconvenient here), a barrier-free bathroom could fit.
Upstairs, the only issue is the washer and dryer in the bathroom.
Overall, a better and slightly smaller layout, right?
With three entrances on three sides of the house and the height, someone must really enjoy snow shoveling.
I would arrange the basement differently; maybe Kaho will have some ideas. Have an entrance that leads to the office and the hobby room. Also, reduce the size of the hallway and give the laundry its own dedicated space. With five people, there is a lot to manage. Sorting is necessary — the washing machine won’t run constantly, and stains need soaking. Having the washing machine in the bathroom is something you usually see in rental apartments.
Do you really want such a narrow pantry on the ground floor? The cabinets shown there would also fit in the kitchen.
The guest bathroom should be reconsidered, especially if you plan to accommodate an elderly family member. Sitting down backwards on the toilet can be difficult for people with back problems or limited mobility. Some find it easier to approach the toilet from the side. On the available space (the heating chimney is inconvenient here), a barrier-free bathroom could fit.
Upstairs, the only issue is the washer and dryer in the bathroom.
Overall, a better and slightly smaller layout, right?
Mottenhausen schrieb:
The guest bathroom is poorly arranged; there is no space for a mirror above the sink. Additionally, it bothers me that a wellness shower (in terms of size) is installed in the guest bathroom, while the master bathroom only has a standard, compact model.
Is the 2.72m (8 ft 11 in) ceiling height absolutely necessary? Especially on the children’s bedroom level, rooms might feel uncomfortable and small. The ceiling height should match the floor area, otherwise the brain gets confused and the room feels smaller than it really is. Reducing it by 15-20cm (6-8 inches) wouldn’t hurt—you’re probably not exceptionally tall; otherwise, the interior doors would be larger. In the end, this could also save a lot of money.Well, I am 1.93m (6 ft 4 in) and my wife is 1.85m (6 ft 1 in)… so we are above average height. We’d rather install a somewhat larger front door then ;-)
The ground-floor bathroom is planned so that we can care for a dependent parent there, for example, using a wheelchair to enter the shower. Hence the larger layout.
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