Floor plan 160 sqm single-family house - improvement ideas?

I have already taken your criticism to heart and have thought about the gallery again. The decision is probably made with a heavy heart against a gallery/airspace. I just hope that in a few years I won't regret this decision...

Maybe as a replacement there will be a small annex that is open upwards to the roof and thus brings the desired feeling of airspace. I just really like it extremely when the rooms are open upwards to the roof slope.

Regards

A gallery can be really wow – even with children. I once saw that in a colleague’s parents’ house. The house was a real villa. The gallery was designed above the living rooms as a second living room. A hallway led off from the gallery, and the private rooms were located there. That way, you don’t have noise transmission.

It’s not about locking children out. Our living room also looks more like a playroom. I follow exactly what my 90-year-old neighbor always says: children’s toys are not clutter.

Sometimes you want to withdraw and need your peace and quiet. That becomes harder the more open a floor plan is. The noise level with children is different, as is the need for quiet.

The rooms must be furnishable and usable. Definitely check out model homes. Open cabinets, imagine the room with your furniture. Some bedrooms seem spacious – but only have a 140cm bed in them. In some stylish kitchens, you can only open the oven if you stand to the side. Ask manufacturers to send you catalogs. Engage with the floor plans.

If you mean the extension, yes why not. It also seems cozier than the air space you suggested. Take a look at the floor plan. 8 beds and because of the 2nd air space, not even a toilet on the floor.

The second floor plan (linked above by me) is not up for discussion, as I have already identified its disadvantages. This was only about the idea with the extension.

Various catalogs are available and we have already looked at show homes several times. Without an open space, there is a lot of floor plan selection here, with an open space almost nothing at all.

I also really like the linked floor plan here in the thread from a Hamburg architect. Do you think this one is better regarding noise transmission, etc.? If the children's rooms on the upper floor are moved to the left and right corners (maximum distance from the living room/open space), would that be a solution that can be implemented?

The second floor plan (linked by me above) is not up for discussion, as I have already discovered the disadvantages. The discussion here was solely about the idea of the extension.

Various catalogs are available and we have also looked at model homes several times. Without an open space, there is a lot of floor plan variety here, with an open space practically none at all.

I also like the linked floor plan here in the thread from a Hamburg architect. Do you think this one is better in terms of noise transmission, etc.? If you place the children's rooms here on the upper floor in the left and right corners (maximum distance from the living room/open space), would that be a solution that can be implemented?

The floor plan from is indeed a significant improvement of the whole thing. Just for the sake of the gallery, I would personally never ban my kids to the north side; humorously speaking, that would be "a case for the youth welfare office."

The extension, which only gains about 1.5m ridge height, also does not bring an incredible feel-good factor. Perhaps you could consider raising the ceilings on the ground floor by a whole bunch. Our architect cited €2000 per 12cm of additional height as a guideline (Ytong walls, 10.5m x 10m exterior dimensions), which is not a huge sum. A bit more would then come on top for larger windows, you would just have to get an offer.

Well, and without any changes, the floor plan of does not really show any improvement or is this improvement (noise transmission from below to above) achieved solely by the size of the airspace and the location of the staircase?

As mentioned, the floor plan with the extension was only to show the idea! The ridge height as well as the knee walls on the linked page are not the planned sizes! The plan for construction is a knee wall of 1.3m.