Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jan 02, 2010 10:01 am OK, I'm no architect and this is my first post.
We have recently purchased 1 acre of land in Melbourne. A new subdivision which is nearing completion. Settlement should occur by mid March 2010. For some weeks now, I have been playing around with a proposed floorplan. I have something we like, and the next step would be to get a draftsman/architect to progress. I have attached the proposed plan we have come up with; feedback will be much appreciated. While the patio / pool area have been included here for completeness, it is unlikely I'll be able build these straight away because of the 3 existing trees would need to go first !!! (council being difficult). I am told by my aborist that they are on their way out (2-3yrs max before they die) Note the block slopes upwards from the front to the back. Over the length of the proposed building, there is a approx a 2.5m increase in height. I don't particularly want a split level home, so my plan would be to elevate the front of the home by about 1m (6 steps at the front door), have a 1.5m retaining wall at the back, and dig the garage in so from the garage to the house there is a few steps up. We are leaning towards building on slab. http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/7295/proposedfloorplan201001.jpg Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 2Jan 02, 2010 10:22 am Hi rotanon, Welcome to the forum! I can't comment about your floorplan - I can't read it! Any chance of making it a bit clearer? As for building on a slope, we too will be building on one. Our is sloping up from the street. We have had to drop the garage level below the house level, and have an internal split of 2 steps on the ground floor. The good news is that we have minimised the need for massive retaining walls at the back. We will terrace the backyard in time, but won't have the requirement to do so straight away. As for the trees, I feel your pain. I hope for your sake the council agrees with the arborist to get rid of them, especially if they are sick. Cheers Bel Still not in. Don't ask!? Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 3Jan 02, 2010 11:18 am same here, even when I zoom in I cant make any of the sizes/rooms out. I can guess what there are but that kinda defeats the purpose Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 5Jan 05, 2010 9:48 am For those of you who responded to the poll, thanks for your feedback. A number of you indicated you 'liked the floorplan with minor changes', I'd love to hear what your proposed changes would be. I also like to hear peoples general comments on the floorplan. If you could describe what you like, dont like and what changes you'd recommend... would be great input. We are looking to finalise the layout in the next few weeks.... Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 6Jan 05, 2010 1:23 pm You really need to make the plan easier to read... Try making the font sizes smaller as you can't see where doors are etc...More along the lines of the room labels might be easier... Just quickly though points on the site layout... Which direction is north? Which direction does the breeze come from? Where are the boundaries? What clearances do you have to boundaries? What are the contours? Where is the view? Few points on the house, from what I can read... Are they 1000 wide openings into the sitting and study? Are they doors on these? Consider going wider, with double cavities... I don't like how the billiard room is completely segregated from the house, with the only entry throug the kitchen, I think it needs to be better integrated into the floor plan... It looks like an afterthought... Do you need access from the billiard room directly to outside the house... Consider kids running in and out... Is the walk in pantry deep enough? 1500 isn't much room.. Consider increasing this so you can have a prep bench on one side, and shelving on the other... I think the hall store is a good idea, but badly located... Consider moving it to the garage area... Two option on a big shuffle... One... I would do is to move the bedroom wing across to the left... Make the master bedroom/bed2 wall line up with the hall toilet wall... In doing so, you would also move the bed 3/4 wall across with the BIW wall, so the BIW wall lines up with the garage wall... Two... Move the hall toilet into where the BIW currently is, and push the BIW to the outer wall of bed 4... Do you really need a hall toilet? It's not big enough to be a powder room, and given there are 3 others... The BIW's look an odd size? 1500x???? if they are 1500, then they needn't be any deeper than 700, otherwise wasted space... Bed 2/3 and 4 are huge... May be best to consider BIW along one entire length of each room, rather than a pokey square... 3300x3300 is ample for a bedroom! Consider in the design of you house the roof lines you like... Clean makes for cheap! Also the external walls.. The less nooks and crannies, the straighter walls... The cheaper the material cost, the less bracing... The less manhours to install... The cheaper! Think about placing your furniture in the rooms... Particularly the meals/family room... Where will the TV go? Where will the lounge sit? What about a "dining" table for more formal dining? These are just some quick comments on the plan.. Good start though! Electrical Engineer... Don't hold that against me... And keen owner builder... Mainly the building part!! Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 7Jan 05, 2010 2:59 pm Its an interesting plan, seems kind've like a 'ranch style' house. Regarding the previous post, 1500 should be fine for the size of your WIP though you'll only be able to use the sides and back wall of the WIP as bench space. My WIP is actually 1500 deep but only 2510 wide. I like the room sizes, its a big property and a pretty big house so I think its a good idea to put in the big rooms as your kids will likely be around for longer than you expect. I assume your BIRs are actually WIRs. There is something about it that seems a bit 'off' though, its probably all the little corners and the really long hall ways leading to the bedrooms which I think will appear very dark. I would also combine the guest toilet and neighbouring storage area into a proper guest bathroom. As in the previous post, try to eliminate the edges unless they're there for aesthetics. The more needlessly complex you get the more expensive it gets. Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 8Jan 05, 2010 3:21 pm Thanks for the feedback guys... much appreciated. To answer some of the questions: - North is to the left of the property - All wadrobes are 'walk in wadrobes'. I have seen walk-in wadrobes of 1500*2100 and am happy with size. - I have made all bedrooms purposely big. I think 3300*3300 is way too small - We currently have a formal dining room, and have never used it hence it is not featured on the design - I hear you point on the billard/games room. I need to think about other ways of integrating, nothing has come to mind yet. My biggest issue I have with the floor plan is the long hallways as well. Keep the ideas coming !!! Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 9Jan 07, 2010 6:49 am I guess the big thing with all of this... Do you have a budget figure as yet? I think you'll be suprised at the cost of this design! How many square meters is it? Long hall ways are fine if they are wide enough... Need to be 1100 minimum for long ones... Keep in mind with WIR's that the corners are pretty much useless... So it can be best to make them shallower and wider as Built ins instead... With the bedrooms, the size comes down to how you'll bring up your kids... Will they be room hermits, with computers in each room... Or is it better to have multiple computers in the Study so you can keep an eye on what's happening... Personally, our kids rooms are 3600x3600, and having grown up in 3300x3600 with a desk, bookcases and queen bed, I know this is ample for a teenage kid... 3300x3300 would be a minimum for the 4th bedroom in any house I design... But remembering those sizes don't incudes the BIRs... Be careful here because some house designs give room sizes includign the BIR meaning you actually loose 650mm because of the robe! Best thing with any room, and trying to figure it out is draw in the furntiure you'll have... Also measure it out in your own house and try the size out... Look at heaps of display homes too! Door placements, windows, WIR/BIR's can all affect the usabililty of that space! What is the plan for the "sitting room"... If you didn't use the formal lounge now, why have a sitting room? What about media room? or Rumpus room? Do you actually have a billiard table? Electrical Engineer... Don't hold that against me... And keen owner builder... Mainly the building part!! Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 10Jan 07, 2010 7:24 am great plan http://burbankascent2500.blogspot.com/ https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=28503 [url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/] HOUSE COMPLETED IN 119 DAYS PCI Complete Handover 24th August Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 11Jan 07, 2010 7:29 am I like your floorplan! I think B2,3&4 are great sizes, I personally wouldn't downsize bedrooms just because you can get away with it. I like the WIRobes in those rooms too, as well as the store rooms you've included. We have 4 kids - with lots of stuff - so extra storage is never a problem. How big is your guest toilet? I don't think it looks too small for a powder room! I like that the bedrooms are in a seperate wing. I have no problems with halls as long as they serve a purpose. I also like the balance of the study & sitting room off the entry. Again, we would definitely use the sitting room as "quiet space" - ie no toys or tvs. I love your bifolds onto the big entertaining area. Will make a great view from the living areas.The billiard room does look a little inaccessable for us. For my family I'd make it more open or lead off a different room. Remember that everyone has a different set of likes and requirements for their situation. What is perfect for your family will certainly not be right for everyone here. Re: Feedback on proposed floor plan 12Jan 07, 2010 8:21 am Heya, regarding the billiard room, I just had an idea but would involve redrawing the 'kitchen side' of the plan. I haven't thought it the whole way through but is more of a goal than a method... How about putting the billiard room/wetbar on the pool side of the house by putting it on the other side of the kitchen. You can add internal and external access and would be great for parties. You could cut into the alfresco a little to add internal access and have it open out to the alfresco/pool area for external access. If you wanted you could replace the billiard room with a rumpus of slightly smaller size (straightening up some of the external lines on the facade) or get rid of it and reconfigure a little (I haven't thought that far through). With your house slightly wrapping around the entertaining area, I think it'd add a great feel of multiple wings to your house. Also will assure people actually use your billiard room instead of it being a hidden away teen's play room. Hi there! Absolutely agree on the wasted space. We have no desire for the master to be that oversized, but it occurred when we increased the depth of the garage. We have… 4 12499 6 55347 Do you really want to accommodate the window? What is on the outside of the window? Do you want to be able to see your towels from outside? I would blank the window from… 2 8408 |