Browse Forums Building A New House Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2225Jun 16, 2017 1:14 pm Following a minor regulatory hiccup and consultation with neighbours, a revised plan (losing a little width and gaining a little depth: Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Ended up being a little more house than we were aiming for in terms of floor area (we get the retreat 'extra') due to having to realign the upper floor - same external wall area, same roof and slab area, just enclosing more second storey space. Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2226Jul 02, 2017 12:34 pm Hi everyone, I have enjoyed looking through many house plans on here and reading people's suggestions for optimising the plans. Now we have finally got a block for our forever home. It is a 354m2 corner block, approx 17m wide and 21m deep. The orientation isn't ideal in that north is to the street. I would love to hear your comments about this sketch up I have done. I've tried to get northern light to the living areas and maximise backyard space. We are a couple with 3 pre-school aged boys and plan to live in this house until we are empty-nesters. I apologise the sketches are not professional quality, but I hope my markings are clear. The garage is placed where there is an existing driveway, and it directly mirrors the next door neighbours garage. I'd love to be able to shrink this somehow, currently it is 235m2 including walls and garage, but without front porch, back deck etc. Thanks all so much Jess Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2227Jul 02, 2017 10:08 pm JessieNewie Hi everyone, I have enjoyed looking through many house plans on here and reading people's suggestions for optimising the plans. Now we have finally got a block for our forever home. It is a 354m2 corner block, approx 17m wide and 21m deep. The orientation isn't ideal in that north is to the street. I would love to hear your comments about this sketch up I have done. I've tried to get northern light to the living areas and maximise backyard space. We are a couple with 3 pre-school aged boys and plan to live in this house until we are empty-nesters. I apologise the sketches are not professional quality, but I hope my markings are clear. The garage is placed where there is an existing driveway, and it directly mirrors the next door neighbours garage. I'd love to be able to shrink this somehow, currently it is 235m2 including walls and garage, but without front porch, back deck etc. Thanks all so much Jess Hi Jess I have exactly the same issue re orientation, with front of block facing north (plans are a few posts back). So I'm glad to see we've got a similar solution, to use courtyards to get the light to the back living areas! My laundry is also in a similar position to yours so just behind garage, and I've put the internal access from garage through the laundry so it can double as a mud room. Currently my primary school kids come into the house and dump all their stuff just inside the garage access which is the rumpus, and it's drives me mad ! Something I found quite useful re designing house plans is the Undercover Architect podcast/blog. She takes you through all the aspects of designing a house, even room by room and I've incorporated many of her suggestions in my plans! She's sometimes in these forums too. Best of luck in your build, if you start a thread I'd love to follow it! Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2228Jul 03, 2017 12:59 pm JessieNewie Hi everyone, I have enjoyed looking through many house plans on here and reading people's suggestions for optimising the plans. Now we have finally got a block for our forever home. It is a 354m2 corner block, approx 17m wide and 21m deep. The orientation isn't ideal in that north is to the street. I would love to hear your comments about this sketch up I have done. I've tried to get northern light to the living areas and maximise backyard space. We are a couple with 3 pre-school aged boys and plan to live in this house until we are empty-nesters. I apologise the sketches are not professional quality, but I hope my markings are clear. The garage is placed where there is an existing driveway, and it directly mirrors the next door neighbours garage. I'd love to be able to shrink this somehow, currently it is 235m2 including walls and garage, but without front porch, back deck etc. Thanks all so much Jess Hi Jess, I think you've got some good ideas there considering the constraints of the block. Some thoughts: Consider moving the downstairs living areas around so that the playroom is to the west and the dining/sitting to the east. That way you'd be able to make better use of the northern light (over the 'study wing') compared to the smaller lightwell behind the garage. Additionally, that would also better capture nice morning sun into those areas, and help shield them from afternoon heat - playrooms are generally less sensitive to heat and light issues compared to dining and sitting areas, and a light-filled kitchen/dining is a great way to start the day. Maybe even consider re positioning the kitchen to be along the south wall with both the dining and the sitting to the north of it (and playroom to the west). I'd like to shrink our plan a little, too, but I don't think we can without giving up too much of the required 'specifics'! In your case you do have a fair amount of dead space due to corridors. Do you really want a void? If you move the stairs further south (keeping a drop zone near the front door), then you'd be able to reduce the amount of upstairs corridor space (basically 'cutting off' the stub outside the master bedroom where the stairs currently are). This could be combined with rethinking the linen/nook downstairs - this isn't a great location for a study nook - do you have a specific purpose in mind? Moving the stairs further south (and you can still have cupboards/nooks under stairs) would also enable you to shrink the entry width, saving some more space. I hope that all makes sense! Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2230Jul 04, 2017 10:31 pm Nice! That wide corridor will make it feel very spacious. Did you want feedback? Maybe a small hand basin in the main toilet for hand washing if someone else is using the bathroom. Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2231Jul 04, 2017 10:51 pm Loving the master suite! Is it missing a garage? That would be a deal breaker for most people if you were to ever sell in the future Building in Springlake Mount Barker SA Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2232Jul 05, 2017 9:49 am hi there, thanks for your feedback, no the garage is under the house, its a semi basement, access to garage is via stairs in the laundry. Our current house doesnt have a garage, and not having one is a pain! Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2233Jul 05, 2017 9:51 am Hillsbuilds - Yes we would love some feedback! Good idea about the basin in the main toilet Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2234Aug 29, 2017 6:27 pm Custom Build on 1000sqm - feedback and ideas welcome!! We're finally ready to build on our block and have selected a builder, and are up to design stage. It's a custom design and Im ready to submit my sketch and wanted any feedback anyone may have..good or bad..I know some doorways and windows need tweaking but mostly hoping anyone might see any obvious mistakes or better layout options. It's our second build and we have two kids. North is the long left hand side and we will have polished concrete floors so I have tried to design a solar efficient house but I don't know a whole lot about it! We do want the big bedrooms and the games Room has to be that size to fit our pool table and bar. We have an ocean view to the front of the house which is why the big porch but didn't want our living that direction as its west and don't want the glaring sun. Cheers Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2235Aug 30, 2017 5:04 pm Hi! It's good to see that you've considered both passive solar design as well as site-specific aspects such as views. That gets you off to a very strong start! For the passive solar aspect, I think your basic layout is quite sound, with one exception. My main concern would be the placement of the alfresco - I'm assuming it's under the roofline? If so, then it'll block off all your northerly light (and hence passive solar heating). For passive solar you definitely don't want any extra roofline in front of your north-facing living areas. Also, is there any option to get more northern light into the games room? On the layout itself, you *might* want to consider moving the laundry to the SE corner so all your plumbing and wet areas are closer together - it's more energy efficient for hot water and also can save on plumbing costs. Moving the laundry there might also give easier access to the yard /clothesline, depending upon where that ends up. Mind you, I can also see your reasons for having the laundry where it is, so the trade-offs might well be worth it for you. Internal toilet spaces (without windows) aren't necessarily the nicest places - you might consider rearranging the ensuite/bathroom area to give W/C 2 its own window (moving the laundry to the SE corner might help with this). Interior spaces are generally better utilised by areas such as WIRs and cupboards/storage areas. Those issues aside, I'm quite liking your plan on first glance - there's generally a good flow to it, there's some good details that show you've considered things such as sightlines, it looks structurally straightforward and I'm not picking up any major 'gotchas'. Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2236Aug 30, 2017 7:25 pm It's easy to see you've been thinking about the best way to lay this out. As said above - if alfresco is under roof, that will block off almost all your northern light into the house itself. Maybe could consider those motorised louvred roof systems for it?? Can angle according to the sun to let in light. Also consider breezes for summer - often in the late afternoon a cooling breeze will come from somewhere - where is that for you? Try to position windows to take advantage of this. Will your fridge be along the southern wall of kitchen cabinetry? This looks like it will be a great house! Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2237Aug 30, 2017 10:27 pm Hey guys thanks for your feedback! I was worried about the alfresco blocking all the sun as it is under the main roof. I love the motorised louvre idea but I know it'll blow our already stretched budget. We're building in regional WA so the price is already about 100k more to build on average. I moved the laundry to the back and I think I prefer it there too I forgot about the plumbing being cheaper together. Due to a big shed taking up the whole back end of the block I can't really completely move our outdoor area which is in the best position to be sheltered from the strong sea breeze but still get a nice breeze through in summer, but have made a few changes which should help.. thoughts?? Oh also I managed to get one toilet to the window and will probably be able to get the other one too, and fridge is going in southern wall of cabinets - have updated with a spot to show Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2239Sep 02, 2017 2:54 pm Hi guys, I've designed a dual occupancy development, can someone please take a look at it and see if any more passive heating can be achieved to unit 1? There is a raked ceiling with clerestory windows to the first floor but Im not sure what i could do to the ground floor. https://www.dropbox.com/s/rbvjqgxilhjau ... D.pdf?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/zz25f568pjwm2 ... T.pdf?dl=0 thanks Re: Custom Design floor plan thread post them here!! 2240Sep 03, 2017 12:38 am JAMBY Hey guys thanks for your feedback! I was worried about the alfresco blocking all the sun as it is under the main roof. I love the motorised louvre idea but I know it'll blow our already stretched budget. We're building in regional WA so the price is already about 100k more to build on average. I moved the laundry to the back and I think I prefer it there too I forgot about the plumbing being cheaper together. Due to a big shed taking up the whole back end of the block I can't really completely move our outdoor area which is in the best position to be sheltered from the strong sea breeze but still get a nice breeze through in summer, but have made a few changes which should help.. thoughts?? Definitely looking better, but the alfresco is still blocking a lot of good light. Do you really need northern light into the master? Northern light is generally better utilised in living areas than bedrooms, and northerly aspects to bedrooms *can* lead to overheating in summer; east/south orientations tend to be better for bedrooms (that being said, it does depend on your particular situation - our own plan has a northerly master bedroom window to suit our specific needs and wants). In your case, moving the master to have its window in the east wall instead (basically flipping it and the WIR) would still give you lots of good light in the morning, and would enable you to move the alfresco further east to give more direct light into your living areas. It'd also put the WIR between you and the living areas/kitchen, which might be attractive (extra noise insulation). As a compromise you could move the master to the east while still keeping the northern window; this would still enable you to move the alfresco further to the east compared to where it is now. Alternatively, having a low roof pitch for the alfresco and utilising clerestory windows to get light over the alfresco roof into the main living area could be an option. It'd also make your living space look quite spectacular, although it is definitely a more expensive option (and possibly out of the question if your budget is already stretched). Hi, Seeking volume or semi-custom builder in victoria(east), which have existing double story wide floor plans. Seeking 18-20m wide homes with depth of 12-15m long. Or… 0 18249 6 42928 Yep, very good point. I’ll do more research and see what figures I get. Thank you! 8 2462 |