Floor Plan Optimization | Semi-Detached House on a Slope with 192m² Living Area

I see a daylight spotlight in a conversion, a renovation, but not in new planning

I don't see it that (str)ictly, however I see one located at the ridge here, it should be moved.

Thank you very much for your comments on the planning. Every input really helps. I could still implement smaller issues, but for bigger changes the general contractor would twist my neck.

Then the topic is done. But…
- Pantry more than inconveniently placed (I would have integrated it into the kitchen corner)

We would have loved that too, but unfortunately, due to the stairs, we could not find a solution. If the pantry were placed behind the kitchen, we would have to move the stairs to the north. But that is not possible on the upper floor because then I would have to move the dressing room as well and due to the sloping ceiling, no cupboards would fit underneath anymore. Reducing the size of the kitchen is also not possible.

Would you have seen another solution?

- Kitchen door opening outwards :rolleyes:

Unfortunately, the island is in the way on the inside or I would block a walking path. If the door opens to the left, I block the walking path to the fridge, etc. If the door opens to the right, I block the walking path to the living room.

We had thought about a sliding door or still have that option. But I don’t know...

- Hallway/stairs etc. total >40 sqm, but child’s room a measly 12 sqm /14 sqm

I agree with you; downstairs in the basement, the hallway did become extremely large. On the upper floor, we tried to minimize the hallway. But you can't look at the total sum either; what good is it if I reduce the hallway to 5 sqm downstairs when I still won't get larger children’s rooms upstairs.

As soon as one of the children is older, they can move, as far as I’m concerned, into the granny flat with a bathroom in the basement and then have an almost 22 sqm domain.

- I see daylight spotlights for a remodel, a renovation, but not for new planning

The architect advised us against a skylight in the hallway because it often results in a narrow long shaft and is also difficult to clean. He had installed spotlights in another client’s house. Is it the optimal solution? Certainly not.

- Sleeping/dressing 21 sqm, but poorly usable. Too little closet space (no additional closet fits in front of the bed in the sleeping area)

Better suggestions?

We currently have a total of 3 meters of closet space and I find it okay. In the future, we could place dressers near the knee wall or, in the long term, opt for a built-in closet to obtain additional storage space.

- 1 x approx. 3.5 m is far too little, because there is no space in the children’s rooms either

What do you mean by 1 x 3.5 m?

- I don’t really see 190 sqm. The basement is pure utility space since the granny flat is not initially used...

Numbers are smoke and mirrors. Whether it ends up being 190, 180 or 210 sqm is actually quite irrelevant to me. The granny flat can very well be used. As a guest room. As my office once both children’s rooms are occupied. Or as a children’s room when the children are older.

- Technology and bathroom are nicely large…

Thank you.

(We have living/eating/cooking with pantry also 50 sqm, guest WC, office 6 sqm, children’s rooms each nearly 18 sqm and sleeping/(mini)-dressing room (with total 6 m closet length)+ bathroom totalling 130 sqm) in a semi-detached house.
Basement/technology/garage in the basement with 70 sqm)

Did you publish your floor plan here and could you please link it? I would really be interested in how you solved it. Thanks.

So, after a long time I'm checking in again.

After almost 2 months, here’s an update: The workshop planning is now basically finished.

We still had an appointment with the plumbing company regarding the routing of the ventilation pipes for the controlled residential ventilation system. At first, they wanted to run about 14 pipes through the living room (next to the fireplace and laundry chute), which would have significantly limited the living room space. After various considerations (on the outer wall, on the inner wall by the kitchen, etc.), they have now found a solution to go through the floor with only 2 pipes and then distribute them in the ceiling. There are apparently special solutions for this.

At the same time, there was another appointment with the electrician (second appointment) to clarify remaining questions and make a few changes. We will mostly install KNX in the house and have planned different lighting options (spots in the hallway, LED strips in the shower, etc.). If there is an opportunity, I can gladly share the plans and products here.

Last week we also had the bathroom selection in a showroom. The appointment itself went very well and we had already prepared a bit (which direction it should go, etc.). However, the 3 hours for a total of 3 bathrooms was a bit short. On the one hand, I think we should have prepared better and already picked out specific products. On the other hand, I would have liked a little more preparation from the showroom side, to already align with our direction and also clarify basic questions in advance and then show the possibilities based on that. For this reason, we will now revise the selection list afterwards.

On the plot itself, the rough staking has meanwhile taken place and excavation is supposed to start this week. Unfortunately, there were repeated delays here because our construction company currently has many simultaneous construction projects and the structural engineer only just had time. We now hope that it will start soon. Our semi-detached neighbor already began excavation last week, so we will probably build roughly simultaneously.

If you have any questions, feel free to get in touch.

PS: : where can I find your floor plan now? Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any thread in the house building forum.

I also like your floor plan. However, you have a huge hallway on the ground floor and still not really enough space for a large wardrobe. How did you plan the wardrobe for 4 people?

I also like your floor plan. However, you have a huge hallway on the ground floor and still not really space for a large wardrobe. How did you plan the wardrobe for 4 people?

I did not attach the basement floor plan in the last post because there were no major changes there. Please check the first post of this thread.

The entrance is located in the basement, and there we have planned a large wardrobe in the hallway. The exact design is still open, but we have 3.80m of space there, and I think that should be enough.

Sure, that's enough. :p I didn't have that on my radar, thought the entrance was at the end of the hallway.