Agree with everything sprink1es and the others said. For master bath and Master closet, consider some transom windows (make them the same width as patio doors below them). This is sort of what I mean... High, short windows to let in light but still allow for privacy in the bathroom and allow for clothing storage in the WIC.

It seems like a waste of a view to have the stairway cross over in front of the basement. Is there any useful living space there that would benefit from a window or is it subject the flooding (hence the flood vents on garage).

New home-building is both exciting and daunting! You will get some good feedback here.

Please do yourself a favor and post your kitchen in the kitchen forum because as it is right now it's dysfunctional.

Dog leg islands are what people tear out of their homes. Not what they put in new builds. Plus because of it, look at the path you have to take to get from the back door or the bathroom to the living room.

You have a half bath upstairs with bedroom 2. Where will bedroom 2 people shower? Are you saying they have to go downstairs to shower?

I'm sorry but no one wants to do laundry in a powder room. Where do we put the clothes? On the toilet? Where do things get hung? Over the toilet?

When you say the footprint is set, what does that mean? Have you actually started building?

Your living/dining room are going to be quite warm in summer with the sun coming in from that side. You would do well to put the majority of your windows on the south side and to shade as much as possible your west side. I realize that's your view, but trust me, at sundown, you'll need shades. (Ask me how I know)

we put the full bath on the first floor so there was a place to hose off the grandkids when they come in from the beach.

As suggested, put in an outdoor shower to hose off the kids and make the downstairs bath a half bath and turn the upstairs bath into a full bath.

You mention you have grandkids which tells me you're getting up there in years. I see no place in this house for an elevator. What happens if something happens in life? How will you get into and upstairs in the house?

And yes, I'm sure you're quite healthy now. So was my Mom. She went to the gym 5x a week, walked daily on her treadmill or walked around her neighborhood, was strong as an ox and was constantly doing stuff. That is until she was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Even then she managed for quite a few years to continue at the gym etc. However eventually the disease started to get her and if it wasn't for her house being handicapped accessible, she would have had to move.

If this is a place you want to keep long term, I would seriously think about how you might make it compatible for long term use.

I getting down to our final design for our new house and would love input. The footprint is set so we have to work within what's there.

So this is not new construction. You have to work with the space you have. It is what it is.
The wall between the dining room and porch will be double sliding glass doors

Nice. It's a small dining room, and the sliding glass doors will give you some visual size.

The dining room is a long way from the kitchen ... that means lots of steps to set the table /clean up afterward.

The refrigerator is too far from the sink and the range.

Disagree. The whole space is modest, and I'd rather have the refrigerator a few steps away ... given that it means preserving the counter space.

I think the island it way too big.

Totally agree -- nothing about the island is good. You'll come up the steps and enter the house in the center, right? Imagine you're carrying bags of groceries or suitcases. Even if the barstools are tucked away, you have a major pinch-point in the area with the red circle.

we put the full bath on the first floor so there was a place to hose off the grandkids when they come in from the beach.

You want an outside foot wash and/or shower for this. You don't want them bringing sand into the house, even if it's only a few feet into the house. I'd also want a bench near the foot wash where you could sit down /leave wet footwear.

I don't think a bathtub in this area would be very nice anyway: Who wants to take a nice, relaxing bath ... then have to walk through the kitchen and upstairs to get dressed?

Note that this bathroom gives the people on the patio a great view of a person using the toilet: "Oh, look everyone! Grandpa's pooping!" That makes for a nice family barbeque.

Also, I'd like to see this backdoor closet enlarged ... I imagine this is where you'll store beach towels, beach toys, sunscreen and floppy hats. I'd give up the tub for more storage in this spot.

Why isn't there a shower upstairs in the other bathroom? You have 2 other potential bedrooms up there, I think it's a big mistake to make them go downstairs to shower

Definitely.

Other thoughts:

- You mention grandchildren ... so I assume you're -- no offense intended -- not young. Yet you're building a house that requires you be able to manage a set of stairs to enter. Is this okay?

- Is this a year-round residence or a vacation house? Parts of it seem to be sized for vacations ... yet the master closet is large. If it's a vacation spot, I'd steal from that closet to enlarge the bathrooms.

- Again, you mention grandchildren ... yet you have only one secondary bedroom. Won't you need a bedroom for the parents AND the children?

- Bedroom 2 is quite small. You'll probably be limited to a full-sized bed or bunks. Bedroom 2's closet looks deep. I'd make it as shallow as is realistic ... even a few inches would help this room.

- How do you intend to use the office /studio? I'm wondering if the larger room shouldn't be the bedroom. Are those built-ins between the two rooms? That'll help cut down noise between the two bedrooms, given that they share a wall. Or is it a Murphy bed?

- You absolutely need a shower OR tub for the secondary upstairs bathroom. Even if it means knocking the laundry downstairs. The laundry in this bathroom is horrible ... no space even for detergent, much less waiting loads, and the vanity space is minimal. Anyway, with beach towels coming in the back door, I'd rather have the laundry downstairs.

- Is that a six-burner stove? It's too big for this house ... out of proportion. However, I'd upsize the sink. Do you have a dishwasher planned?

- Do you grill? If so, you might want to consider flip-flopping the sink and the range ... which would allow you a sliding pass-through window (over the sink) to the patio.

Consider this very rough sketch for the first floor:

- Downsize to a half bath ... and combine it with a larger laundry, which can include standard machines and cabinets /shelves above the machines. No, combining them isn't ideal, but with limited space, this is a reasonable option.

- Keep mechanicals in a deep closet "behind" the laundry.

- With the bathroom gone, turn the kitchen the other way ... this allows a larger island (though still not as big as the one you'd drawn initially) ... that's the refrigerator and pantry on the end near the living room. Perhaps the refrigerator would've been better on the short end of the "L". I didn't draw in a sink, but you have ample space for one either on the long cabinet run OR in the island. The island also could've been deeper, allowing for a more comfortable seating area.

- You have a nice wide aisle between the bathroom and the kitchen, which is important since you'll be going in/out that way all the time.

- I also took away the end table that was crowding things next to the sofa.

Assuming there's enough headroom on the stairs below the master bathroom? Where is the plumbing stack for that?

Is there enough room when you come down the stairs without bumping into the dining room chairs?

And for the patio doors I might consider something like this that can be opened up completely in the middle or all shoved over to one side to enjoy ocean breezes and really take advantage of the openness. Obviously with the more traditional New England style paned windows. One of these also appears to have a screen component, which can keep bugs out but allow you to enjoy the fresh ocean air. Hopefully the overhang will help cut down on the heat/sun, but budget for 3M or similar window film to protect your floors and furniture.

The refrigerator is too far from the sink and the range.

Disagree. The whole space is modest, and I'd rather have the refrigerator a few steps away ... given that it means preserving the counter space.

Sorry I disagree here. The sink is 19' from the fridge. That's too far. Ideally you don't want any leg of the work triangle to be more than 9' from one another.

Playing off of what MrsPete did, I'm wondering if you could rearrange the laundry/powder/mechanical room like so?

I just tore a dogleg peninsula out of a house last year. I can't say much about the design without seeing a site plan but it seems like an unlikely house for the Cape. I assume it will be shingled. You should ask your designer for a 3D drawing.

Absolutely agree with the comments here, especially about the bathrooms and that kitchen. The island is going to drive you nuts, at which point you will rip it out. Your kitchen plan is locking you into a very expensive cabinet depth fridge, if I'm reading the "R" correctly. Is that a mechanical room next to the fridge?

The toilets all seem to be crammed in too tightly for comfort, if not code. Your upstairs second bath (which needs a tub or shower,) is locking you into a compact laundry. Do you want that?

Why so much glass on the south and west? CPA makes an excellent point about heat gain and glare. Also, on the southwest corner, that is a weak corner that would cost a fortune in engineering even in a non-hurricane zone. And is that a fireplace in between the windows? Your plan and elevations don't agree upstairs. It sounds like you might have a hard time understanding plans, which is not a deficiency--it just means you need someone to show you what's going on here, because it's not altogether good.

I'm sorry to say this design is full of impractical and unsafe ideas. I hope you can find an architect who can help you make it work. You'll get good advice and inspiration here, but this plan has problems that need a closer look. There are too many choices left to make, and a lot of money to be spent. Take your time--you'll thank yourself later, I promise.

Good luck.

What's the space circled below?

If the person staying in Bedroom #2 has to fully wash, do they:

1) Use the master bathroom's shower?

2) Use the first floor bathroom's tub/shower?

3) Climb into the clothes washer in the second floor Bathroom?

There is a lot wrong with this design.

Just thought of the "hose off the kids" comment - someone mentioned an outdoor shower and I do like that idea. But if there's space, could also do a low basin in the garage with a handheld? People call them dog showers and all sorts of names. But I guess it depends if you want to rinse off ocean water completely, rinse off sandy legs, or just rise feet... But I'd put that either outside or in the garage for how seldom it will be used

Do you think you will want to cook or eat outside? Doesn’t look like there is much provision for that. You could put daybeds in the living area to expand sleeping areas, or if you could put on a deep screened porch, that could be a sleeping area as well maybe. Does it get cold there? How are you heating it?

"Oh, look everyone! Grandpa's pooping!" That makes for a nice family barbeque.

2019..... unforgettable posts.....

that was truly my inlaws ONLY bathroom.

I would put tubs and hand held showers in both baths upstairs. And move laundry downstairs near an entry.
I would want a full outside shower and a foot rinse hose at every stair to get sand off before even getting to the patio.

Linda, you should delete the posts. Perhaps the one behind the couch is OK but the other one is not necessary and in the way.

You should add a graphic scale to the plans to help those who want to sketch alternative solutions. If a good design is found, you don't want to find it won't fit in the current footprint.

Do you have an architect? Is he/she OK with other architects assisting you?

Here'a the basement.

I’m absolutely blown away by all your comments. After the first few yesterday my husband and I went out looking at open houses in new developments for ideas and perspectives.

Let me share more. We are both in our 50s and hope to be in this house the rest of our lives. The plan would be to add an elevator at some point which would go outside the house lining up with the big pantry in the kitchen and the big closet in the 2nd upstairs bedroom.

We also have a back yard that as we age can be where we park cars so we can come in the back door which will be up a few steps

Mrs Pete thank you for the drawing. I had to laugh because it was my original drawing but we didn’t want the bathroom to open into the kitchen.

The house has not been started but the footprint is set because that’s all the town will let us do because of the shape of the lot and the building coverage restrictions so can’t add anything else. I would have loved a bigger porch

We are in a flood zone so the basement can’t be living space... only storage. That also means the mechanicals have to be on the first floor which is that big closet.

We plan on putting a big outdoor shower just outside the back door with a bench and dressing area.

Thanks to all you we will flip the upstairs bath/laundry and the downstairs full bath. The idea of seeing some of my family trotting through the house in a towel is kind of terrifying.

I agree ... the kitchen is a disaster. We do a lot of entertaining and everyone crowds in the kitchen (cause why would we have the rest of a house?). I think the architect was thinking of the island because this would allow them to be in the kitchen but out of the prep area. I agree the frig needs to move. We cook a lot so 6 burners is important. Agree the sink needs to be bigger. There’s a second small sink and drink area on the left wall

We will get rid of both posts in the living room.

Love the idea of row of windows in the bath and closet.

We will flip the cellar door to open the other way

Love the idea of sliding glass on the front.

Thank you for the suggestion to treat the windows to protect the floors and paint

Yes that is a fireplace

Excellent question about how the plumbing is going to work in the master... so many sneaky details

This is a year round home but in the summer we get company. My husband and I both work at home so we needed an office to get work out of the main part of the house. We were thinking Murphy bed in the office to add sleeping space.

You use the term "architect"; do you use the term because they are licensed or just because they designed a house?

Yes is that a licensed architect or a designer/draftsman? If the latter, I would seriously consider working with an architect who has good design skills.

As for the elevator, I would seriously consider putting it in now as it will actually be cheaper. A brand new elevator in a new build can be had for around $20k.

Can you add measurements to your drawings?

And if you're in a flood zone, I assume you can have an "enclosed" room but it can't have electrical, etc in it?

Even if you don't actually purchase an elevator right now, you could build the shaft for it. (In a coastal area, I would never assume that what is permissible now will be the same 10-20 years from now.) Of course, it will be safely closed off.

I'd definitely plan the elevator now, and just use it as closets if you don't want to drop the $20k+ now. Even if you never finish it, you'll get extra closets and a good resale point. Would be very convenient if you're parking in the basement too (groceries/shopping/etc)

Elevators have specific shaft requirements the most important of which is the overhead height above the highest floor so you will need to select a supplier in order to design the floor opening and ceiling framing and hope they are still in business in 20 years so you might as well get a price now.

I've had clients who were very happy with a rope operated Silent Servantmanual dumbwaiter but you might need to lock the doors to keep kids from playing with it. The car platforms vary from 20x16 up to 32x28. The top wheel was so beautiful I installed a glass panel so it could be seen.

The top wheel was so beautiful I installed a glass panel so it could be seen.

That is brilliant.

If this is your 'last' house......why are you not building a ranch? Lot size? Elevators are 'very' expensive in the future. ditto what allot of people said. IMO....you need allot of work on this house.

Hire an architect.

I think they are buying for location, which has limited lot size, then also house footprint, not sure if they have restrictions on height as well, I’d guess they might.

I think someone else already mentioned it, but if you could put a big set of floor to ceiling windows or doors in the living room with a rail across, you could open up the front as if it were a deck/porch.

These disappearing doors are expensive, but they'd be ideal for your dining room area.

Sorry I disagree here. The sink is 19' from the fridge. That's too far. Ideally you don't want any leg of the work triangle to be more than 9' from one another.

I don't completely disagree ... but it's a matter of working with what you've got ... a compromise. Yes, a closer refrigerator would be better, but it would be at the cost of 3' of cabinet /counter space, and they don't have much as it is.

Playing off of what MrsPete did, I'm wondering if you could rearrange the laundry/powder/mechanical room like so?

Oh yes! My drawing was one step better ... yours is three steps better!

The toilets all seem to be crammed in too tightly for comfort, if not code.

And since you say this is your "last house", you may one day deal with walkers, etc. in this house. I don't see it working out in your

Why so much glass on the south and west? CPA makes an excellent point about heat gain and glare.

In this case, the ocean is where the ocean is ... and I understand positioning windows towards the nicest of all views; I think the answer is allotting plenty of money for good window treatments.

Also, on the southwest corner, that is a weak corner that would cost a fortune in engineering even in a non-hurricane zone.

Hurricanes are a real concern -- and my thoughts have little to do with building. If this is eventually to be your main residence, be sure you have plans for evacuation /have a place to go. If you're one day elderly in this house, you might need your children to come help you evacuate.

Having a plan is essential, says a person whose in-laws live at the beach.

Just thought of the "hose off the kids" comment - someone mentioned an outdoor shower and I do like that idea. But if there's space, could also do a low basin in the garage with a handheld? People call them dog showers and all sorts of names.

I'd vote for a good foot bath for everyone to use coming in from the beach ... and, given the lack of indoor showers, maybe a nice big enclosed outdoor shower too.

Linda, you should delete the posts.

They're probably necessary support. I mean, I can't believe someone put them in there just for fun.

Let me share more. We are both in our 50s and hope to be in this house the rest of our lives. The plan would be to add an elevator at some point which would go outside the house lining up with the big pantry in the kitchen and the big closet in the 2nd upstairs bedroom.

Three big issues here:

- An elevator is an expensive thing to add now ... but it'd be even more difficult and expensive to add later. If this is something you want, you really need to do it as a part of your extensive reno.

- If you remove the pantry (big pantry? where?) and the largest closet, you're taking away most of the storage in the house. Doesn't sound realistic to me.

- You're looking at an elevator OUTSIDE the house? I don't think that's realistic.

Mrs Pete thank you for the drawing. I had to laugh because it was my original drawing but we didn’t want the bathroom to open into the kitchen.

I don't disagree, but you do want a half bath on this level ... and everything's open to the kitchen.

I think the architect was thinking of the island because this would allow them to be in the kitchen but out of the prep area. I agree the frig needs to move. We cook a lot so 6 burners is important. Agree the sink needs to be bigger. There’s a second small sink and drink area on the left wall

Two things I find hard to believe: An architect drew up this island, oversized appliances and duplicate items will fit in this kitchen. Seriously, you need to accept the space you have and create a NICE, SMALL kitchen. What's better? A 6-burner stove and no place to store the cookware, or a 4-burner stove and a cabinet for your pots and pans?

As for entertaining, you're not going to fit large crowds in this house anyway ... consider an outdoor kitchen and dining area (I'm sure you have nice weather by the beach) ... or embrace the idea of catering the big stuff for parties.

We will get rid of both posts in the living room.

A structural engineer will okay this, right?

If this is your 'last' house......why are you not building a ranch?

Because the beach.

Outdoor showers for rinsing off are usually legal on the Cape but if you use soap its technically a violation of Title 5 and in any event gray water run-off can't go to the septic tank. Its not a serious environmental problem but check with your builder before showing an outdoor shower on the permit drawings. I have found building and zoning interpretations on the Cape to be unpredictable and even irrational.

If this is your 'last' house......why are you not building a ranch? Lot size? Elevators are 'very' expensive in the future. ditto what allot of people said. IMO....you need allot of work on this house.

Robin once again you continue to spout nonsense about which you have not a clue.

Elevators are less expensive to put in at the beginning of a build, but they still are not "very" expensive to retrofit if the space was allotted to in advance. Once again your lack of knowledge about the subject is showing.

As for your comment about building a ranch? The OP already explained that IF you had read through the thread. The OP is on a waterfront lot that is quite narrow.

And one doesn't need to build a ranch for a "last" house. I didn't and mine works just fine. I have an elevator if I need it for the future. For now it's great for lugging heavy stuff up and downstairs.

These disappearing doors are expensive, but they'd be ideal for your dining room area.

They are only slightly more expensive because of the track running to the outside but the bigger determining factor is the size. I have them in my living room running into a pocket and I love them!

Sorry I disagree here. The sink is 19' from the fridge. That's too far. Ideally you don't want any leg of the work triangle to be more than 9' from one another.

I don't completely disagree ... but it's a matter of working with what you've got ... a compromise. Yes, a closer refrigerator would be better, but it would be at the cost of 3' of cabinet /counter space, and they don't have much as it is.

I agree with you. In this case, I feel the whole house could be better arranged.

However, I thought your arrangement of the kitchen was so superior with the wonderful L shaped arrangement.

Playing off of what MrsPete did, I'm wondering if you could rearrange the laundry/powder/mechanical room like so?

Oh yes! My drawing was one step better ... yours is three steps better!

Imagine what you and I could come up with if we worked on it for another few weeks. LOL.

Mrs Pete thank you for the drawing. I had to laugh because it was my original drawing but we didn’t want the bathroom to open into the kitchen.

I don't disagree, but you do want a half bath on this level ... and everything's open to the kitchen.

While I also normally agree, in this case you're somewhat limited on your space unless you're willing to rework it with a person of design talent. As it is, MrsPete's kitchen is so superior to what you had that it's worth the one problem if you keep the layout as is.

RES - You've done this before haven't you?

RES could you work up something quickly using the plan that MrsPete and I played with? Please? And then add that full bath upstairs?

FYI: It was because of RES that the outside of my house looks as good as it does. He did a quick sketch for me when I was struggling to show something to my builder that explained what I meant. I made a few small changes to his sketch but it's basically what he drew!

Harwich Port 2017

Kennebunkport Family room from the kitchen

Yes Mark, I'm running out of new experiences.

CP, I'll try later but right now I need to clear my desk for a trip on Wednesday.

A pet peeve of mine is drawings at 3/16" = 1'-0" scale. I used it for a 300 unit apartment building and had to blow up the typical units to 1/4" before CAD was invented so it was a real chore. I did a similar thing for a very long house with attached barn. I've known more than one subcontractor who thought this scale was 1/8" and grossly under bid a project.

Each plan and elevation would fit nicely on an 11" x 17" sheet at 1/4" scale.

Nicely done RES!

I looked at the ideas regarding where the first floor bath (apparently now a half bath), pantry, mech. rm. and laundry should be located and I think the bath belongs where it was originally for reasons of privacy and modesty, the laundry should be near the back door for reason of noise, the mech. rm. should be next to the stair to reduce distribution runs (it would help to know what kind of system it is) and the pantry should be in the remaining space adjacent to the kitchen. I also like an open mud room with a bench and wall hooks.

The back door can stay where it was but I tried moving it so it aligns with the main circulation path. That requires moving the door over 3 ft and pulling the rest of the back wall inward about 9" so the floor area doesn't change. It just seemed worth it to me but it does reduce the width of the pantry or something else.

Upstairs the small bedroom can be made larger by making the closet 2 ft deep. In the small bathroom a tub could take the place of the washer/dryer and the waste stack must offset into the wall below next to the refrigerator to avoid being in the outside wall. I would make it cast iron for noise reduction. The toilet space in the master bath must be at least 30" wide to meet code and that's too tight too.

Nice work RES!!

Where would the elevator go? They really should have one in a 3 story house, especially considering this is a retirement home.

An elevator would be a major design challenge if the house is already at the limit for allowable floor area. Maybe a stacked washer-dryer? Hvac systems can fit in pretty small spaces these days. But I don't know anything about the system.

There is also a complication with the roof structure. Extending the narrow gable roof from the front to the back requires a lot of beams that may need to be exposed in the ceilings.. Is there a height limit? If not, there's a much better way to frame the house and it would look better too. Let me know soon because I'm leaving on a trip tomorrow evening for a week.

Have a great trip.

Res... love your sketch!

The mechanics are electric box, tankless water heater and gas furnace.

Yes we have a height restriction. It is 28.5 average from grade. We already had to squeeze it down 2 feet.

We planned to put in cathedral ceilings in the master and office. Don’t know if that makes a difference.

Thank you for your help!

Extending the narrow front gable roof to the rear of the house with cathedral ceilings under it may require a complicated structure involving transfers beams to avoid posts on the first floor. Do you have framing plans?

There might be a way to include an elevator in place of the mechanical room with the mechanical room in the upper right corner and entered through the half bath. That might allow easier duct runs assuming they can run across the ceiling of the basement. Do you have an HVAC layout plan?

Please design the exterior while planning the interior. Use classic design principles to balance the fenestration. Find someone with knowledge and an aesthetic ability to help you. What you posted initially is an ugly house and we certainly don’t need any more of those in our neighborhoods.

I couldn't find a way to distribute air with transfer beams in the second floor, 8-0 ceilings at the lower level and cathedral ceilings at the upper level. You may need floor trusses with the Mech room in the southeast corner. Get framing and HVAC plans to be sure its all going to work.

I designed a house in Cataumet last year with cathedral ceilings and it got so expensive to frame the owners gave up.