ᐅ Windows (French balcony or divided)

Hi,
I am currently building a house (semi-detached). Right now, I am considering how to design the windows. You can see my ideas in the picture. The only difference is in the windows on the first floor.
Which would you prefer? L1 or L2? R1 or R2? Divided windows or windows with a single pane in front?
L: house from the back
R: house from the front

Thank you

I would consider whether floor-to-ceiling windows are really necessary everywhere there. It looks like bathrooms and children's rooms, and it could feel like being on display.

Otherwise, with fixed panels at the bottom, you should think about how to clean them.

Fixed elements at the bottom are really difficult to clean. I’m speaking from experience here. I wouldn’t choose these floor-to-ceiling windows again anyway. You can easily see inside from outside. We have film applied to the lower part now. It’s not attractive either, but still better than before.

In my opinion, having floor-to-ceiling windows should not be problematic since the house is located far back on the property and not along the street. There is already another house along the street. Also, the visible rooms are not bathrooms.

Hello,

shenja schrieb:
Fixed elements at the bottom are a pain to clean.

But that also applies to the glass version of the French balcony. In my opinion, these things are completely impractical.

With floor-to-ceiling windows, I would always make the lower part fixed. The advantage is that you can place something directly on the floor in front of the window in a child’s room and still open a window.
Our daughter loves sitting on her cushion in front of her floor-to-ceiling window and looking outside. That wouldn’t be possible with regular windows.

But regarding the original poster: even though I am a fan of lots of window space, the exterior appearance seems a bit too much to me. It might look visually calmer if the outer windows on the upper floor were normal windows. That way, the upper floor’s appearance would be closer to that of the ground floor.

Best regards,
Andreas

A disadvantage of fixed glazed sections at the bottom could be that the roller shutter needs to be opened further to allow air in. This also lets in more light. For doors that reach the floor, a gap at the bottom of the roller shutter is enough to improve ventilation. Especially in summer, you might want to sleep with the window open but without having to open the roller shutter halfway.