Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Jun 07, 2015 3:27 pm Hi All, We just received the first sketch of our plans. We are thinking of moving the master bedroom to the front of the house so that access to the balcony is via the master, however this is impacting the stairs which in its current location isnt taking up too much space. We would greatly appreciate your input, suggestions and improvements you can think of. Thanks John Taake Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ - Ground Floor Layout, Nth up the page! Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ First Floor Help with Layout 2Jun 07, 2015 5:11 pm That looks great John! I like how the master is located, but I think think accessing any balcony (unless its strictly for private use) from a bedroom is just impractical. Having it off the rumpus effectively doubles the space in that room too. I'd also look at the blank wall space available in your family room, maybe do away with the middle window, that will give you more options re placement of furniture/tv. I also like doors, so would be wanting them into your study, pantry, wir. Also consider making your powder room a bathroom by including a shower, you have the space! Re: Help with Layout 3Jun 07, 2015 5:30 pm Do you really need a dedicated study? Would a smaller study-niche suffice. The reasoning is that you could then put a storage alcove or workshop area in your garage. Garages are smallish these days. Standard size used to be 6mx6m, however most are now 5.5m x 5.5m. Build thread: here Land Nov 12, Contract 6/07/13, Consent 15/08/13, Start 20/09/13, Slab 25/09/13, Frame 4/10/13, Brick 21/10/13, Roof 2/11/13, Lock-up 17/12/13, Handover 3/3/14 Re: Help with Layout 4Jun 07, 2015 5:41 pm FantasticFour: Thanks for your input mate, you raise some good points with the balcony, removal of window at ground floor and the need for doors. I will most definitely remove that middle window to create versatility in the family area and consider having doors and shower in the PDR. I was trying to avoid the balcony being easily accessible to my young children, however with your input I am thinking of having that access being lockable sliding doors. once again thanks for your input. much appreciated JT Re: Help with Layout 5Jun 07, 2015 5:44 pm Hi Maximus. Thanks for your input. The ground floor study will convert to a guess bedroom. Cheer JT Re: Help with Layout 6Jun 07, 2015 7:17 pm Agree with fantasticfour's comments. Dining area could be larger for those big occasions (dinner parties, xmas etc). Overall a good looking plan on an odd shape block. Pity you don't make more use of the space to the left. Re: Help with Layout 7Jun 07, 2015 7:39 pm See if you can have open corner stacker doors. It will add to the cost due to the engineering of structural elements required to support the upper level. I am regretting not doing this in my place. Also - have the floor of your alfresco at the same height as your main floor. Requires a channel is put in the slab for the door tracks/frames. Build thread: here Land Nov 12, Contract 6/07/13, Consent 15/08/13, Start 20/09/13, Slab 25/09/13, Frame 4/10/13, Brick 21/10/13, Roof 2/11/13, Lock-up 17/12/13, Handover 3/3/14 Re: Help with Layout 8Jun 07, 2015 7:59 pm I don't think it would be such a problem to move the master bed to the front if you wanted it that way. It would push the bed 2 into the back corner, and bath where bed 2 is now. Then the WIR and ensuite would go where the current bath is. The laundry chute could be a bit tricky, but should still be possible. It would get your rumpus into the north side of the house, but it is quite a large balcony to have exclusive to the master bedroom. If the only reasoning is the access by children, then most sliding doors have double cylinder deadlocks, so you can lock it with the key to prevent it being opened. On other issues, it would be good to get a shower into the downstairs bathroom. That way you have all services accessible downstairs if needed for the disabled or infirm. Re: Help with Layout 9Jun 07, 2015 9:36 pm Maximus: Thanks for the suggestion, I have been obsessing over the "stacker" for awhile now, must admit was a little surprised when I didnt see it on the plan, was the first thing I marked up, thanks. Onejohn: Considering everyone else's suggestions, I might leave the master where it is and go for sliding doors with deadlocks. Folks truly appreciate your feedback JT Re: Help with Layout 10Jun 08, 2015 12:46 am John Taake, your plan has a lot of West facing windows. This means your house could get VERY hot in summer. Generally it's recommended that you have the majority of windows facing north, so the windows are shaded in summer, but the sun will enter the house in winter, when the sun is lower in the sky. Western windows should be eliminated, as it's very difficult to shade these windows from hot, summer, afternoon sunshine. Levels of southern & eastern windows should be quite low. This is most easily achieved by designing a house with the long axis facing north & south (the opposite to your plan). I'd recommend designing an L-shaped house, by moving the dining room to the Western side of the family room, & the outdoor area to the west of this. With this plan you'll greatly reduce the number of Western windows, while having a northern window in the dining room, family room & kitchen. Resulting in a cooler house in summer, & a warmer house in winter. The government has a website about efficient house design here, http://www.yourhome.gov.au/passive-design Re: Help with Layout 11Jun 08, 2015 9:46 am Agree with ddaroch above. West facing windows are a killer in summer so you need to either minimise them along that side or allow for generous shading devices. The only thing I'd add is that your rumpus is not the biggest so I'd cut back on the depth of that balcony and add that space to the rumpus. Numerous friends and clients have front balconies and have all admitted that they seldom use them so why not make that kids room a decent size. You also don't have to have the north wall for that study nook over the bottom tread of the stairs either. Seeing as it looks like you are going for 2700mm high ceilings you could move it up over that third riser to align with the bathroom wall so if you wanted to you could put a door in there. Stewie Re: Help with Layout 13Jun 11, 2015 10:58 am Stewie D, Joker & ddaroch, thanks you all for your valuable inputs, I have taken all your inputs on board, I sent a detailed mark up along with a number of questions to the designer. Will update you soon. Cheers JT Re: Help with Layout 14Jun 11, 2015 1:10 pm You really are very lucky with your block shape. It's very desirable to have a north facing backyard, as living areas can face this direction. However most modern blocks are quite narrow, meaning that not many rooms can face the backyard. You're very lucky that your block's width increases towards the rear. You'll be able to have more rooms facing the backyard, & more importantly these rooms will face north. So they'll stay warmer in winter & cooler in summer. There are plenty of designers who have very little knowledge of passive solar design, & some architects too (thankfully that's changing). I'd recommend you read up on the website I gave you, & arm yourself with as much information as possible. It is you, who will be living in this house, not your designer, so you definitely want to get this right. Re: Help with Layout 15Jun 24, 2015 12:50 pm Joker If worried about cutting too much light then consider skylights for top level. I have to admit, I'm not a big fan of skylights. Yes they're necessary in occasions, but you can usually get by without them. Due to their lower levels of insulation, & the fact they're at roof level, skylights leak a lot of heat in winter. As they can't usually be shaded, they let in a lot of unwanted heat in summer. My parents upper storey apartment has a long, narrow design. With living areas on a short, North facing side. Bedrooms on a short, South facing side. Longer East & West facing party walls. Much like a terrace, this could have lead to a very dark central section of the home. But instead of skylights, this apartment has North facing clerestory windows, over its central section. These central rooms, a short hallway & two bathrooms, are very well lit, & the apartment is very light & airy. These Clerestory windows also allow ventilation in the bathrooms, which is often difficult to achieve in apartments. As these windows are north facing, with appropriate length eaves, they are shaded in summer, but let in abundant levels of sunlight in winter. Clerestory windows should be double glazed in colder areas, as like skylights, they can leak heat in winter. But in summer they can be opened up at night. Due to the stack effect (hot air rises), they are very effective at ventilating a house. Re: Help with Layout 16Jun 24, 2015 2:15 pm ddaroch, you really should check out later styles of skylights. They are more roof windows and far removed from the older style acrylic domes of yesteryear. The Velux range has a lot of sizes and can be fixed, opening, double glazed with accessories like automated, solar blinds etc. In this situation a couple of decent sized double glazed roof windows would be ideal. They aren't cheap but are very effective. Stewie You never have a fridge against wall as you’ve drawn. The doors can’t open past 90 degrees and it’s difficult and maybe impossible to remove drawers 2 8097 Thanks for the suggestion. The space between shower and sinks was too tight. I agree about the toilet location. So I have tried two other options: The lower one is… 3 4559 Possibly both depending on the sizing. Idea of working from the centre is that you dont have a 20mm thin tile at one end and a 400mm at the other end. A quick search on… 3 6203 |