Product review time!
ravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years ago
Featured Answer
Sort by:Oldest
Comments (96)
User
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoOlychick
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoRelated Discussions
First post, first time home design review request
Comments (30)Oh, that's wonderful Summerfield! I wish I could just build that almost as you have drawn it! Unfortunately, I've got some restrictions I have to work within due to the lot I have and city setbacks. I've been reading "The Not So Big House" book (loving it, thanks for the recommendation minneapolisite) and was looking at some new ideas from my original layout. **This is pretty rough** and there's a bunch I really don't like on it just yet, but I wanted to give an update. What I like most about my latest update is more windows in the main living area on the south side of the house and all three living areas having direct windows instead of the dining room being sandwiched into the middle of the house. I also like the shared entry so that the 'nice' entry doesn't end up being for guests only. I hate the way I have the pantry laid out, but I do like the idea of a good sized pantry with room for the chest freezer (currently in the basement in our house today). Also, this opens up the living room for a bit more space. My favorite things about the plan you've drawn, Summerfield, are both of the bathrooms, laundry and master closet. Those are the areas I'm struggling the most with. (as well as the whole bedrooms side of the house...) We may have a small television in the kitchen, and temporarily in the living room, but once the basement is finished we would only have the kitchen tv. So no need to build a dedicated spot for it on the first floor. Site Plan:...See MoreTwo Product Reviews: Scrubbing Bubbles and Barilla
Comments (20)Several of the Dawn products rate highly with me. The Dawn with Bleach Alternative seems to do a better job on white plastics and Dawn/Joy are hands-down the best dish soap out there in my book. I like the Dawn Power Dissolver for certain things too and the Direct Foam is just so handy for a couple things or for using to wash hands at the sink. I've converted to Tide Free & Sensitive. Years ago I couldn't use Tide because it made me itch. Over the years I've found a lot of detergents that made me itch. But about a year ago I got some samples of the "new" Tide regular and Gain and tried them. No itching! I was shocked. But I couldn't stand the smell. Hate smelly detergents. So I bought some of the dye & stench free and have never had cleaner clothes. Don't need to use the Borax, Oxyclean, dishwasher detergent and other pretreaters anywhere near as much either. Over the holidays I decided to "splurge" on some whack-a-tube biscuits and bought some Grands and some of the store brand ones (CUB). The CUB brand were excellent. I think the version was "homestyle". Usually I find the Grands to be a little greasy and these were great and were, hard to describe, not really "flaky" but it pulled off in layers. Oh and the Swiffer duster on the extension pole. Reaches the ceiling fan, and I can do floor to ceiling without bending over and with a bad back, that's a pain relief. Had a coupon for a free box of Pringles Stix. The only kind they had were a honey butter flavor. Wow, a new favorite snack! They're about the thickness of the old fashioned pretzel sticks, about 5" long and had a sweet and slightly salty taste. I couldn't stop eating them. Now for one I was unimpressed with: KaBoom foaming toilet cleaner. It's a powder you put in the toilet and yes it foamed up impressively, but looks are deceiving... it didn't clean much. I went back to the bleach tablets. Couple dollars and lasts a month to two months and bleach cleans and sanitizes well. I last bought "The Works" brand since there were cheaper than Clorox, 2000 Flushes and even the Kmart house brand. One thing I notice is the lack of the heavy bleach smell the first few days of use. Not sure if it's from less bleach in them or if they have something that masks the odors. I'm not sure how I rate the performance of it yet....See MoreLong time listener, first time caller...floor plan review
Comments (26)WOW! Thank you everyone for the great feedback. I was thinking I would just get one or two additional set of eyes on my plans, but this has been great. Let me do my best to address some of the call outs. Consensus seems to be that we review the W/D location, the MBA layout, and the stairs. As far as the laundry room, I completely hear each of your concerns. The walk will be pretty far, but at least one good thing is that we only have to do laundry once a week. I will talk it over with the SO to see if a closer placement would fly. In terms of the MBA layout, I too feel it seems a little big, so we will continue to work with the architect on that room. Regarding the stairs, we couldn't agree with each of you more. Regardless if my in-laws live with us or not, I just do not like 1/2 steps in a house period. We are now working with the architect to see how we can get those garages level and eliminate the stairs. cpartist - your comment on the extra door entrance to the master closet is really intriguing. Especially if we move the entrance to the whole Master area to make it all enclosed. We will definitely keep that in mind. bpathome - It is hard to tell from the plans, but the seat in the master shower has a handheld shower head located there for the frequent ritual we call shaving the beast :) So it will definitely be put to good use. mrspete - you read our minds when it comes to the ceiling height of the kitchen. We have noodled putting in faux beams in the great room, but we really aren't sure if it would look good to run them through into the kitchen. We have talked about dropping the kitchen sink at least 18" in order to set it apart from the other rooms as well as not make the cabinets seem like they are floating right in the middle of the wall. More to come on that decision. lakeviewgirl - thank you for the call out on the DW location. We will have that switched with the trash since we will like be using that right side of the oven as our likely main prep area. I actually like the look of the garages on either side and like cpartist says, they are also very common where we are building and do create a neat courtyard look. Here is what the front elevation looks like: Here is a house that I think ours will look similar to (just flipped): In terms of the closet location through the bathroom, we were the ones that asked for the design to be this way. Like nini804 calls out, we have always wanted the closets to be a little more secluded as we both travel for work at least once a month and have to get up @ 4am just to get to the airport. That way as long as the person can "ninja" it out of bed, the other can continue to sleep hopefully. chisue - I also don't understand the "via a toilet" comment. Yes, you do walk by the toilet closet, but not through it. chisue - As far as the MBR, we currently have our headboard flanked by windows, so we have no problem with it whatsoever. Again thank you all again for the great dialogue and constructive feedback. And thank you for validating that for the most part our plans are pretty cool :) We welcome anything else you can think of. You have definitely given us a lot to think about....See MoreFirst time home build - would appreciate review of our floor plan
Comments (22)Does anything stand out as unusual or impractical? It's almost double the size of an average American house. Your main floor has a large family space plus an away space ... why the whole basement as well? It'll be at least a decade -- and probably another house -- 'til the kids want to be separated from you. One thing we're wrestling with with is our kitchen island size I think you're falling victim to "this is what nice houses have" syndrome. Why do you need a breakfast table (not a nook -- nooks are tucked away spaces) PLUS a large island with seating ... located literally within arm's reach of one another? And I'd venture to guess another outdoor table only steps away. How many eating spaces do you actually need? I'd say choose one or the other ... if you go with the island, enlarge it a bit /make it really nice, not stools lined up so no one can talk comfortably ... if you go with the table, shorten the island to allow for circulation (and don't neglect the space you'll need when chairs are pulled out ... this table is in the center of your floorplan, making it a major thoroughfare. Our breakfast table is 3 1/2' round -- definitely go with a round table in this area -- and it's ideal for 4-5 people. We never put food on the table; rather, we serve plates from the stovetop for casual weekday meals. Don't forget that you want to be able to reach the back door. Currently it sits 6' from the stove so we can move it over at least a foot to 5' away 6' between the stove and island seems to be too much. 4' would be better. Another question is whether the master shower at 5' x 6' is just strangely large. Yes. In my opinion (and I spent several years measuring friends' showers and hotel showers to develop this opinion), showers shouldn't be more than 3 1/2' - 4' wide. Why? Because once you pass that width, you're kind of out in the middle of a too-big space, which feels uncomfortably exposed. If you one day need grab bars, the walls'll be too far apart for them to be reachable. However, this is an easy fix. Just reduce the size of the shower and center the tub on the open wall. Overall, I think a lot of your things are over-optimized. This may not be just as bad as under-sized, but it's a problem. You don't want over-sized ... you want right-sized. Have you measured friends' houses, etc. to see what sizes you actually prefer? The laundry room is on the second floor adjacent to the master bedroom. I'd bump the machines to the left /make it easier to vent the dryer. I personally would leave the laundry room door open most of the time, so I think this is a good spot for a pocket door. I'd also double the window in the laundry room so it would allow more light into the hallway. If you're going with modern front-loader machines, which are pretty deep, this laundry room isn't any too wide. Someone commented on the double doors to the mbr, are there issues with double doors? They seem to be common on mid to higher end houses around here. Again "this is what nice houses have" syndrome. Things that are common aren't necessarily desirable. Double doors require two hands to open ... and the light switches must be placed either behind the door or too far from the door for comfort. And what's the gain? Nothing. Well, if you're working with a small space, you might want your doors to "park" in a smaller area, but that doesn't seem to be a problem ere. In fact, I'd consider a 17' long master. What are you going to do with the space at the foot of the bed? Nothing. It's just empty space. Imagine you put a TV on the wall ... it's 17' away ... too far for easy vision, and you have to turn up the volume. Do pocket doors wear over time? We would prefer to keep them closed so the mud room to kitchen area would be closed most of the time. Yes, they do wear out, and they're harder for little fingers to open. I personally would go with a pocket door here anyway ... because I'd keep the door open most of the time. An alternative: A swinging door. Other thoughts: - I understand that you like to cook (and you will again once the kids are a bit older), but a larger kitchen is in no way a better kitchen. This much cabinetry is going to cost a fortune, and much of it is likely to end up as clutter-space. - Is that a pantry in the middle of the house? Again, this would be a good place for a pocket door. Note that your standard hinged door covers up a big portion of your shelves, meaning you'd have to go into the pantry /close the door to access these items. OR, this might be a place for double doors on swing hinges (swing hinged doors don't require hands to open). - The dining room isn't exactly close to the kitchen -- it's not absolutely ridiculously far, but neither is is conveniently placed. Consider the steps that'll be necessary to transport food, plates, drinks to the dining room. The butler's pantry half-way between is a good place for a buffet set-up ... be sure to include a few outlets there so you can run a crock pot in this area. - Is that empty room across from the stairs a half-bath? If not, it should be! You absolutely need a bathroom on your main living level. - Upstairs you're over-bathed (plus another full bath in the basement and what I think is a half bath on the main floor). You'll run yourself ragged keeping these bathrooms clean /keeping toiletries and toilet paper in them each. And only one of the upstairs baths (the one that shares a wall with the laundry room) looks to be adequately sized /comfortable. The others have minimal sink space, meaning no storage for the kids as they grow older. I'd go with ONE nice-sized bathroom open to the hallway. So much less money, so much less work....See MoreUser
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoFun2BHere
6 years agoOlychick
6 years agoJasdip
6 years agoUser
6 years agoMarilyn Sue McClintock
6 years agobossyvossy
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agobossyvossy
6 years agoMarilyn Sue McClintock
6 years agojaviwa
6 years agoOlychick
6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agoSherry8aNorthAL
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agokittymoonbeam
6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agoUser
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoUser
6 years agoUser
6 years agoSherry8aNorthAL
6 years agoUser
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agokittymoonbeam
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoOklaMoni
6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agoUser
6 years agoUser
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoAlisande
6 years agoOklaMoni
6 years agowildchild2x2
6 years agoAlisande
6 years agosocks
6 years agoAlisande
6 years agoDawnInCal
6 years agoUser
6 years agobossyvossy
6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agoAlisande
6 years agodonna_loomis
6 years agoUser
6 years agodonna_loomis
6 years agoUser
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoravencajun Zone 8b TX
6 years agomamapinky0
6 years agoUser
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoAlisande
6 years agoUser
6 years agoAlisande
6 years ago
Related Stories
HOUZZ PRODUCT NEWSVideo: How the Houzz Pro Product Clipper Saves Designers Time
Quickly and easily collect product information from around the web to use in mood boards, proposals and more
Full StoryTRENDING NOW10 Kitchen Design Trends From New Products Coming in 2021
See the appliances, fixtures and features that stood out amid a flurry of introductions timed to the KBIS trade show
Full StoryPRODUCT PICKSGuest Picks: 21 Rave-Review Bookcases
Flip through this roundup of stylish shelves to find just the right book, toy and knickknack storage and display for you
Full StoryTRENDING NOW10 Trends in New Bathroom Design Products and Features
Find out what’s new in bathroom tubs, fixtures, lighting and more from the latest offerings timed to the KBIS trade show
Full StoryPRODUCT PICKSGuest Picks: Sleepy-Time Soothers
Give those sheep the night off — count on these indulgent bed linens and accessories for a good night’s sleep instead
Full StoryPRODUCT PICKSGuest Picks: Time to Get Your 'Doctor Who' Tardis Blue On
The time machine may be fictional, but you can show your fandom for real with Tardis-theme home accessories
Full StoryPRODUCT PICKSGuest Picks: Take Your Kitchen Back to a Simpler Time
Give your kitchen a comfortingly classic feel with appliances, furnishings and accessories styled for the good old days
Full StoryPRODUCT PICKSGuest Picks: Time to Buy a Clock
Cell phone screens just can’t compete with the charm of analog timepieces like these
Full StoryARCHITECTUREThink Like an Architect: How to Pass a Design Review
Up the chances a review board will approve your design with these time-tested strategies from an architect
Full StorySHOP HOUZZThis Month’s Bestselling Outdoor Products With Free Shipping
Essentials for a well-dressed backyard in time for summer
Full Story
socks