Browse Forums Building A New House Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 21Aug 07, 2014 12:12 pm Hi Guys, As my block is narrow only 12.5m wide, i dont think i will be able to fit in like that. Can you please let me know what best can i do in my current floor plan to suit this. Moving the bedrooms to the east and living area to the west ? Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 22Aug 07, 2014 12:22 pm Eid a design that fits your block? Will be cheaper 5han moving walls around. Otherwise get a custom disign Creator of superduperonium, expert at expert things, nobel laureate, can hold my breath for 10 minutes. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 23Aug 07, 2014 10:43 pm Ponzu Eid a design that fits your block? Will be cheaper 5han moving walls around. Otherwise get a custom disign Sorry didnot get that...what's a custom design... Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 24Aug 08, 2014 6:27 am A custom design is exactly that. You work witb a draftsman or architect to design something from scratch rather than chosing a plan from a builder. Seems you have a lot of reading still to do, grasshopper. Creator of superduperonium, expert at expert things, nobel laureate, can hold my breath for 10 minutes. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 25Aug 08, 2014 8:07 am Instead of engaging a draftsman or architect privately, you can also work with a builder who does custom work. That's what we've done with Hotondo though we also looked at GJ Gardner and a couple of smaller, local builders. I agree with thinking about how you use the house and also how long you plan to live in it. We are building our "forever home" on a north-facing block - we did a KDR (knock-down rebuild) after living there for over 10 years so we know the weather patterns extremely well. The old house had all the living facing west with big windows and sliding doors and it was a nightmare in summer, especially as our neighbour to the west has a flat roof so we don't get any shade advantage on that side. And there was no real way for us to get the southerly breezes through the house when a cool change came. Considerations for us included that I work from home and like to be at the front so I can see the door and the street. My husband is a teacher and January is very slow for my work (I often take leave) so all four of us are home over the summer school holidays and keeping cool is a priority. In winter it's either just me at home or we're out and about on weekends. Oh, and we weren't able to move our crossover to the other side of the block so the garage had to stay on the eastern side of the frontage. So we had to make some compromises from the "ideal" north-facing design to accommodate the block itself and our lifestyle, but we're happy with what we've done. We're lucky we have a wide frontage so can have my study and a lounge room as well as the master bedroom and double garage across the front. Having a narrower block definitely increases the degree of difficulty. Also remember that even people with blocks that don't have north at the front often get the design and orientation VERY wrong. Our rear neighbours (so the back of their block is north) have their house about 3 m from the fence with their clotheslines on the northern wall and no windows. Their E wall has their minor bedrooms, laundry, bathroom, etc, getting the lovely morning sun and their living areas all face west and south (and most of that under a giant patio they built for shade) - it must be a VERY dark and cold house as I know our old one was but at least we had some north-facing windows in the lounge and study. ~ Anne I used to be indecisive but now I'm not quite sure. Eeek - We're embarking on a knockdown rebuild! Click here for our build thread Our blog: kdrhome.wordpress.com Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 26Aug 08, 2014 8:26 am Slightly Random Instead of engaging a draftsman or architect privately, you can also work with a builder who does custom work. That's what we've done with Hotondo though we also looked at GJ Gardner and a couple of smaller, local builders. I agree with thinking about how you use the house and also how long you plan to live in it. We are building our "forever home" on a north-facing block - we did a KDR (knock-down rebuild) after living there for over 10 years so we know the weather patterns extremely well. The old house had all the living facing west with big windows and sliding doors and it was a nightmare in summer, especially as our neighbour to the west has a flat roof so we don't get any shade advantage on that side. And there was no real way for us to get the southerly breezes through the house when a cool change came. Considerations for us included that I work from home and like to be at the front so I can see the door and the street. My husband is a teacher and January is very slow for my work (I often take leave) so all four of us are home over the summer school holidays and keeping cool is a priority. In winter it's either just me at home or we're out and about on weekends. Oh, and we weren't able to move our crossover to the other side of the block so the garage had to stay on the eastern side of the frontage. So we had to make some compromises from the "ideal" north-facing design to accommodate the block itself and our lifestyle, but we're happy with what we've done. We're lucky we have a wide frontage so can have my study and a lounge room as well as the master bedroom and double garage across the front. Having a narrower block definitely increases the degree of difficulty. Also remember that even people with blocks that don't have north at the front often get the design and orientation VERY wrong. Our rear neighbours (so the back of their block is north) have their house about 3 m from the fence with their clotheslines on the northern wall and no windows. Their E wall has their minor bedrooms, laundry, bathroom, etc, getting the lovely morning sun and their living areas all faces west and south (what isn't under a giant patio they built for shade) - it must be a VERY dark and cold house as I know our old one was but at least we had some north-facing windows in the lounge and study. Thanks for that. I think I will put the living areas to the west and bedroom facing the east side. Having a central courtyard plan looks good but it just costs me more so I guess I have to compromise now. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 27Aug 08, 2014 8:26 am Ponzu A custom design is exactly that. You work witb a draftsman or architect to design something from scratch rather than chosing a plan from a builder. Seems you have a lot of reading still to do, grasshopper. got it... Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 28Aug 08, 2014 9:09 am Alishine, Check out Ross North's brockman and angrove plans. Both suit 12m blocks and have north facing living areas. They might be a good start. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 32Aug 08, 2014 5:02 pm Ozlizz Are we talking about building in Perth or Melbourne? I think the requirement/design will be very different for these cities. My block is in the southern suburbs of Perth. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 33Aug 08, 2014 5:31 pm I have sketched the sun path in Melbourne and it's up to you to design what you want really if you want morning sun in the living area during winter, then build the living on the front right with big windows and Alfresco. If you want it in summer, then put it on back right. Mind you, the sun path is funny (ellipsoidal, not straight.) With the advent of modern electrical equipment (RC AC, LEDs, gas heater etc), these days orientation of house hardly matters But if you really want natural light (with UV?), then keep searching plans from different builders keeping the sun path in mind Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 34Aug 08, 2014 5:50 pm Ross North and Dale Alcock have some nice designs for 12.5m frontages too.
We have a north facing block too and are just looking at plans and builders now, so I'm following this thread with interest! Great advice from the forum members. Cheers Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 35Aug 09, 2014 7:03 am asha Alishine, Check out Ross North's brockman and angrove plans. Both suit 12m blocks and have north facing living areas. They might be a good start. Alishine, you should really check out this design. I think its great for your block size and orientation http://www.rossnorthhomes.com.au/our-ho ... he-angrove http://www.rossnorthhomes.com.au/our-ho ... e-brockman My first build journey here https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=71028 Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 36Aug 09, 2014 9:59 am Ozlizz With the advent of modern electrical equipment (RC AC, LEDs, gas heater etc), these days orientation of house hardly matters I beg to differ. Maybe if you're happy to throw good money away. But many people are complaining about large increases in electricity bills, & some people are green minded too RC AC costs a bomb to cool a hot house in a hot climate. A well designed house on the coast of Perth will have very low heating & cooling costs. A house with a tonne of west facing glazing will cost a lot to keep cool in summer. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 37Aug 09, 2014 12:13 pm alishine143 Hi Guys, As my block is narrow only 12.5m wide, i dont think i will be able to fit in like that. Can you please let me know what best can i do in my current floor plan to suit this. Moving the bedrooms to the east and living area to the west ? I'm sorry to say that I don't think the current plan, or a flipped plan with be at all comfortable, particularly during Perth's summers. Would you rather be stifling hot in the living areas, or at night in the bedrooms? Slightly Random & Ponzu are right, you are likely to get better results with a custom builder, particularly as your block is far from an ideal orientation. Usually custom builds will be more expensive (unless you went nuts with upgrades & modifications with a project builder). If you did go the custom route, & decide to have the builder develop your plans, just be aware that often the builder owns the rights to the plans. So be very careful with choosing your custom builder. If you are unhappy with them, & would like to go elsewhere, you'll often have to buy the plans off them, or start from scratch. With a draftsman or architect, you can have them draw up the plans, then tender out the build to multiple builders, as you'll own the rights to the plans. If a custom build will be too expensive, & you'll be going down the project home route I'd still be looking for more appropriate plans. With some living areas to the north, garage on the NW corner, a covered central courtyard alfresco on the western side. If you must use your current plan, I'd be looking to have tinting (or low-e) on all the western windows, & adding vertical awnings to many of these windows. If possible, I'd look at adding more insulation the the western wall, particularly sisalation (foil insulation), which is very effective at cutting down the radiant heat from the sun. I'd also try not to build with double brick (or even brick veneer), as these absorb the suns heat, & take a long time to cool down. Guess you won't have much choice with this though, as double brick is so prevalent in WA. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 38Aug 09, 2014 1:00 pm ddarroch Ozlizz With the advent of modern electrical equipment (RC AC, LEDs, gas heater etc), these days orientation of house hardly matters I beg to differ. Maybe if you're happy to throw good money away. But many people are complaining about large increases in electricity bills, & some people are green minded too RC AC costs a bomb to cool a hot house in a hot climate. A well designed house on the coast of Perth will have very low heating & cooling costs. A house with a tonne of west facing glazing will cost a lot to keep cool in summer. of course if you have access to the blocks that can accommodate the ideal house. Talking about Perth, now blocks are smaller and selling like hot cakes. People are buying based on transport and suburb reputation, not the block orientation (even though they would like to). Heating and cooling costs are not that high if one thinks smart. People spend tens of thousands on custom plans, double glazing window (costs about 20k) etc on a 250k house and think that they have saved money in long run. Is it really worth? Well a 8KW solar Unit (12-15k) will serve the whole house for heating and cooling for years to come and its green. Throw in some good curtains to big windows, good quality ceiling batts (at least 4.1) and anticon, bunch of down lights and carefully chosen windows tint, you'll be OK in the house without spending a bomb Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 39Aug 09, 2014 2:20 pm Ozlizz ddarroch of course if you have access to the blocks that can accommodate the ideal house. Talking about Perth, now blocks are smaller and selling like hot cakes. People are buying based on transport and suburb reputation, not the block orientation (even though they would like to). Heating and cooling costs are not that high if one thinks smart. People spend tens of thousands on custom plans, double glazing window (costs about 20k) etc on a 250k house and think that they have saved money in long run. Is it really worth? Well a 8KW solar Unit (12-15k) will serve the whole house for heating and cooling for years to come and its green. Throw in some good curtains to big windows, good quality ceiling batts (at least 4.1) and anticon, bunch of down lights and carefully chosen windows tint, you'll be OK in the house without spending a bomb I actually think we're on the same page Ozlizz. I'm not saying that people must choose the ideal block orientation to have a comfortable house. I'm saying that by correctly orientating a home on any block, you will increase it's comfort. Also, I'm certainly not saying that a custom builder must be used to reach this outcome either. There are a few project builder's plans listed above that are vast improvements on the OP's & alishine143's original floor plans. With smart choices (particularly relating to orientation, design & material choices), ANY block can result in a comfortable home. Sighting living areas to the north & glazing appropriately will make this easier to acheive for a home with some solar access. But even a house with no solar access can be made quite comfortable. In this case, building with low thermal mass (not brick or concrete), which will react quickly to heating & cooling, is a good idea. As you say, throw in a mini-split RC AC for heating, & some PV's, & some cross-ventilation, & you'll have a home that is quite comforable & quite cheap to maintain. All things being equal, it just won't be as cheap as a home with some solar access, that has been designed correctly. A comfortable house can be designed for any block. You've just got to try to make the best use of it. As Slightly Random said, even great blocks can have extremely poorly designed houses on them, that will be uncomfortable, & expensive to maintain. As for lighting, LED's, yep great. But down lights, I hate those things, nothing green about them. Each one can be considered to be a little chimney in your ceiling, turning your insulation into swiss cheese. Re: Selecting home design for a north facing block 40Aug 10, 2014 10:39 am ddarroch alishine143 Hi Guys, As my block is narrow only 12.5m wide, i dont think i will be able to fit in like that. Can you please let me know what best can i do in my current floor plan to suit this. Moving the bedrooms to the east and living area to the west ? I'm sorry to say that I don't think the current plan, or a flipped plan with be at all comfortable, particularly during Perth's summers. Would you rather be stifling hot in the living areas, or at night in the bedrooms? Slightly Random & Ponzu are right, you are likely to get better results with a custom builder, particularly as your block is far from an ideal orientation. Usually custom builds will be more expensive (unless you went nuts with upgrades & modifications with a project builder). If you did go the custom route, & decide to have the builder develop your plans, just be aware that often the builder owns the rights to the plans. So be very careful with choosing your custom builder. If you are unhappy with them, & would like to go elsewhere, you'll often have to buy the plans off them, or start from scratch. With a draftsman or architect, you can have them draw up the plans, then tender out the build to multiple builders, as you'll own the rights to the plans. If a custom build will be too expensive, & you'll be going down the project home route I'd still be looking for more appropriate plans. With some living areas to the north, garage on the NW corner, a covered central courtyard alfresco on the western side. If you must use your current plan, I'd be looking to have tinting (or low-e) on all the western windows, & adding vertical awnings to many of these windows. If possible, I'd look at adding more insulation the the western wall, particularly sisalation (foil insulation), which is very effective at cutting down the radiant heat from the sun. I'd also try not to build with double brick (or even brick veneer), as these absorb the suns heat, & take a long time to cool down. Guess you won't have much choice with this though, as double brick is so prevalent in WA. Thanks for your post. Unfortunately, it will cost me more to go with a custom build as everyone have been suggesting me that here which I really appreciate. so i will not be going with a custom design. I am trying to stick with the plan that I have but just consolidate wrt solar passive heating. You mentioned to have tinting done all western windows and adding vertical awnings. would you tell me how much will it cost me for doing all this ? i guess i will do insulation on west side as there's where my bedroom 2 will be. (bedroom 3 and bedroom 4 windows are to the south side hopefully that helps a bit )- i will have to go with double brick as thats what we get here. i hope the windows in my plan especially in the bedrooms are good in size and positioning ! I would love to get some feedback as how I can improve the solar aspect on this current design. I never thought orientation of block was so important until now. on one hand, i feel I should not have bought a north facing block at the first place but on another i was just happy to get a small piece considering how difficult it is to get a block here in perth at the right spot. Anyways, all i have now is this block and a plan to make it work. thanks again The warning is on the sticker on the door too. Second the aluminium powdercoat 6 18098 dimensions on your original plan are inconsistent and with accurate dimensions (including site plan, upstairs and down) i could make a proper scale drawing with furniture… 3 7485 It might be a bit darker in the mornings but the light is still light, so you should be getting it. Similar to what you see from your western windows 3 19907 |