Floor plan feedback
This floor plan is for a project in planning phase for a couple in their 70s, who might have grown children or guests that will occupy upstairs.
Original house in the living area, ~1200 SF
New addition in back and on 2nd story, ~1300 SF
Single car garage, detached
Would like some feedback.
They are adamant about putting the entrance on the side of the house, but the sidewalk is to the right of the picture on the side with the dining space.
The plumbing is all along one wall (saves money?)
Some issues:
1) I feel like the placement of the stairs and that hallway makes their 1st floor master bathroom and powder room, and laundry room extremely small - there is no way two sinks can fit in the master IMO. The door swinging open into the sink space is weird. The numbers on the caliper are very small but it looks like the powder room is 5'2" wide. The open space is also not well utlilized.
2) I don't know why there is a 2nd story balcony (no good view) and family room (weird but maybe they expect that the upstairs occupants can have their own living room space).
3) The fridge, stove, and sink are so far apart. Maybe the window placement in the kitchen is suboptimal.
Thank you...
Comments (22)
sheloveslayouts
5 years agoRelated Discussions
Floor plan feedback
Comments (13)Thank you! I appreciate you taking the time to expand on your comments. In terms of the allocation of spaces you’ve shown in purple, I think it aligns with how we live and how we will use the space. For us, the kitchen and dining area is really one space and it’s where we will spend the majority of our time when we’re indoors. A lot of open, uncluttered space is actually very important to us in the main living area, and that is what we’ve tried to achieve in that wing of the house. You are correct that that master wing and upstairs do not follow that idea, but that is also intentional and designed for how we live - we don’t spend daylight hours in our bedroom and the upstairs is meant to be a cozy, intimate space for office work and watching films. When our kids and their partners/friends visit, they are very active and would also spend very little time in bedrooms. I guess what we’re trying to achieve is an open loft feel in the main living wing and a more economical use of space and cozier feel in master wing and upstairs. Maybe that’s an odd concept, but it is what we intended. I understand your point about the entrance to the bedroom, but it is the most private area of the home and I sort of like how you don’t have a direct view into the room when the door is open. I’ll give this more thought. Not sure what the issue is with the layout of the master bath, but happy to consider alternate layouts if you see an issue. I’ve been playing around with the layout of the upstairs bath in response to the very good suggestion by others to move toilet off of bedroom wall. I think the revised layout will also resolve the walking into vanity issue you’ve identified. I didn’t include details of the elevations and wall heights in my post, so I understand that your comments are based on missing information, but the headroom issues have been considered and kneewall heights are taller than you’ve indicated. I don’t have the details with me at the moment, but can post more info tomorrow. I don’t think we want a covered deck on the south side. Maximizing sunlight is more important in our location, particularly in winter. But some protection from the elements at the front entrance would make sense, but we would lean towards something fairly simple like a shed roof awning. We’ll definitely consider this point further and look for some examples....See MoreFloor plan feedback requested! Particularly the kitchen layout.
Comments (22)Have you mentally walked through the entire plan to see how well it will work for you and your family and how you will feel from the time you drive onto your property, how you will exit the property and how each member of the family will go through their day inside this home. First thing I notice is the entire front is driveway. Side entrance garages are great when they allow for greater curb appeal and easier turn arounds to exit. I don't really see the point of yours. It would be easier to pull straight into the garage and would look better with some yard in front. Only the first car can back out and turn to drive down the driveway without futzing around. You walk into a 10 x 12 entry - No closet. What do you do with that space? You have a full bath between the office and the entry. Not bad if you are planning on the office someday being a granny suite or guest bedroom, but if you are using it as a work at home office you just need a powder room. An office with a center desk and 2 chairs. Do you meet with clients in this office or is a real working office where you will have a computer Are you getting floor outlets so that the computer can be plugged in and not have cords running across the floor When you walk through the entry into the living room you walk into the side of the sofa or need to walk around the sofa. Have you given any thought on how you will use the living room? You can sit and have great conversations, but watching TV is the most common living room activity and you really only have the space over the fireplace to place the TV and have it viewable from the short side of the sectional sofa. I agree with the others that the kitchen is not well planned. Both working areas have only 4' walkways. You have the space that you could have had a great kitchen without a sink in the island and with at least one wall that wasn't broken by doorways. The room marked office is confusing - is that a dumping ground for mail? You have a sink in the mudroom, but no counter area around it and you have a sink in the powder room, one in the scullery and one in the kitchen. How many sinks do you need? Why all walk in closets that are too small to work well. Reach in closets and reach in pantries are so much more efficient than small walk ins. Oh, and you walk into the house and walk into the side of the island. The same stuff is going on upstairs. Another lounge area? Does every bedroom need a private bath? Why is your closet so massive while the other bedrooms have unusable corner walk ins? Do you realize that if you hung 2 bars (upper and lower) on just the back wall you could hang 454 items of clothing. (16 per linear feet) Your closet will hold enough outfits that you wouldn't need to wear anything twice in a year. a 6' reach in closet in each of the other bedrooms would provide better clothing storage and take less square footage than all those 5x5 or 6x5 walk in closets. Why have a hallway linen closet when their isn't a communal bathroom anywhere?...See MoreFloor Plan feedback
Comments (26)It is a bit of an inside joke with Architectrunnerguy and those that follow his comments. He at times will post examples of his beautiful work, and in his illustrations of the homes he will normally have smoke coming from the chimney and some stylize clouds that I will sometimes poke fun at. Check out his work, it is inspiring....See MoreFINAL Floor Plan Feedback
Comments (15)Where in SW Florida? What direction does the house face? Have you ever showered in a 14' long shower? Do you tend to get cold when you shower? If someone is in a wheelchair and needs the elevator to get to the top floor, they will not be able to maneuver to get out as they need a 60" turning radius. Here I go again repeating this list. Anything in bold truly needs to be rethought. The best houses orient the public rooms towards the south for the best passive solar heating and cooling The best houses are L, U, T, H, or I shaped. The best houses are only one to two rooms deep. And covered lanai, porches, garages, etc count as rooms in this case. The best houses make sure kitchens have natural light, meaning windows so one doesn't have to have lighting 24/7 to use the kitchen. (And no, dining areas with windows 10' or more from the kitchen will not allow for natural light.) The best houses make sure all public rooms and bedrooms have windows on at least two walls. The best houses do not if possible put mechanical rooms, pantries or closets on outside walls The best houses do not have diagonal interior walls making for odd spaces. The best houses keep public and private spaces separate. (see bedroom 2 up against the dining room. Also bedroom 4 up against the movie room.) The best houses do not have you walk through the work zone of the kitchen to bring laundry to the laundry room. The best houses do not have the mudroom go through any of the work zones of the kitchen. The best houses do not use the kitchen as a hallway to any other rooms. The best houses do not put toilets or toilet rooms up against bedroom walls or public areas. The best houses do not have walk in closets too small to stand inside. The best houses have separation, such as closets, between bedrooms and between bedrooms and public rooms. The best houses do not have roofs that are overly large, and dominate the exterior of the house. The best houses do not have stick on exterior materials only on the front façade. The best houses have an organizing “spine” so it’s easy to determine how to get from room to room in the house and what makes sense. Meaning they don’t have meandering circulation paths. BTW: I'm in SW Florida....See More
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5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoSindy W
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoSindy W
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agosheloveslayouts
5 years agochispa
5 years agoSindy W
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoSindy W
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoEntire lot plan: Very narrow lot. I don't love it.
If the stairs could go somewhere else and the master bedroom could be larger that would be better. But if this is the natural space constraints and cannot be improved, I guess I will accept it. Working on getting the OG house plans now.
chispa
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoSindy W
5 years agoChispa - They used to have plans for a wok kitchen but it got scrapped. They really do not have room for one... I think it is a laundry room now, if you are referring to that small sink area adjacent to the kitchen.
My parents not have the original blueprint for some reason, the draftsperson only drew the original house outlined in green. It is basically going to get completely knocked down except for exterior walls anyway but they will need to reinforce the foundation so that a portion of it can be 2 stories. I thought you need the original blueprint to get city approved... so I will have to inquire further.
In any case I still think their master bathroom is too tiny and this irritates me. I am not sure it is going to be ADA compliant for when they get less mobile.
beckysharp Reinstate SW Unconditionally
5 years agochisue
5 years agoSindy W
5 years agojpp221
5 years ago
cpartist
5 years agosheloveslayouts
5 years agoOh, Sindy. I don't even know where to begin with this one. It just looks like a mess.
The existing house is the green dotted line that I lined with a red line, correct? What determined the new footprint of the house? Maybe maximizing setbacks? Moving exterior walls just a few feet seems like a huge expense for little benefit.
By any chance are some of the design decisions being made according to Feng Shui? Feng Shui is important to my good friends (caucasian couple) and helping them house shop was very challenging because the front door had to face a certain direction and there were several constraints on the floor plan.
If you were able to get ahold of a copy of the home's existing floor plan, that would be very helpful to have.
Sindy W
5 years agoHi all, I got some revisions. Still unable to get the original floor plan (don't know why they do not provide) but I think it is okay because the original is awful and will be completely knocked down.
Feng shui is why they decided to square off the house. Not that smart but whatever... and the front door will remain on the side of the house (bottom of pic). The wind comes from the front (right of pic) so they want windows on the front.
Right now the remaining issues I see are:- Master bedroom downstairs might still be too narrow for ADA (5'6" wide) ? Probably bad to have double sink here, no counter space. I think a single sink should do.
- Fridge doors probably cannot open all the way, have to find some other place for it
- Hallway does not need that extra door, maybe pocket door will help
- TV should be on the same wall as entrance
- Need a closet at the front door area
- Get rid of living room and allow dining area to expand there
- Waste of space in upstairs family room unless get rid of living room. Maybe they can add a bar?
- The large balcony is because they don't want to exceed a certain indoor sq ft for tax reasons
Thanks for your comments as always, it was very helpful! Parents do not like to listen to children so it helps to show them what others are saying.
sheloveslayouts
5 years agoSindy W
5 years agosheloveslayouts
5 years ago
Lori Wagerman_Walker
5 years ago
sheloveslayouts