Solid house or prefab house - experiences?

Try searching in this forum for posts by . Keywords are, for example, "switch setting," "dough resting," or "A house building schedule for you as well: the phase model of the HOAI!" (you will then also find posts about that on the web).
Then you can gather a lot of nectar.

Ok. But this attitude also results from a bias against timber frame construction and is not based on facts. Timber framing has several advantages over solid construction.

Well, that is also a bias. We have already had three water pipe bursts – I don’t want to experience that with wood. Just one example.

What does "too small" mean? What is your list of requirements that makes 180 sqm mandatory? Don’t just get fixated on size – it costs money and doesn’t necessarily mean everything.

Ok, it will surely help me if I now have to justify the size... We currently already have a large living room with 36 sqm and corresponding furniture that should also fit into the house. Plus a projector that needs an appropriate distance (about 6 meters) and yes – it will also go into the living room and should not just hang somewhere in the middle of the room. Also, we often have guests, and then quickly there are sometimes 12 people who want to sit together somewhere. We have already designed the dining area so that it can be extended into the living room. And we also really enjoy cooking, have the appropriate appliances, etc., and want a kitchen island. In addition, there should be an office of at least 12 sqm on the ground floor, a guest WC with a large shower for old age, and of course a pantry. With a house of 145 sqm, we would downsize, which is certainly not the goal. If I only orient myself by the MUST, then a 60 sqm rental apartment would be enough for us, because a roof over one’s head, a full fridge, some clothes, and maybe running water are enough to survive. But if I put 1,000,000 euros into it altogether (the plot alone costs 300,000 – not that there’s an incredible choice here...), then maybe one has different ideas than the absolute minimum...

You probably need to rephrase even more: What is a prefabricated house, what is solid construction? Solid: aerated concrete? Poroton lots of air with clay around? KSL with lots of styrofoam for thermal insulation? Prefabricated house: thin walls with plaster and plaster carrier made of styrofoam? Or not plastic-fantasy-foil but a diffusion-open wall structure?

Yes, that may be. I can't tell you all that. Do I have to know all that and research and find out everything by myself? If yes, then we cancel this because I simply don't have the time and everything again has advantages and disadvantages. And if I know all that, I might as well start my own construction company? I expect the experience from an experienced construction company that can advise accordingly. Otherwise: solid for me is classic stone on stone, timber frame is timber frame – regardless of insulation or any other material.

Well, that is also a bias. We’ve already had three water pipe bursts – I don’t want to experience that with wood. Just an example.

Bias...
Water pipe bursts in new builds are almost impossible. Besides, that’s not a big deal with wood either, since there are corresponding supply shafts. Much easier to access than in solid construction. Just an example...

It surely helps me if I now have to justify the size...

No, it’s not about size as a number. It’s about the room layout.

We currently already have a large living room with 36m²

That’s not large, but nicely manageable.

Also a projector that needs a corresponding distance (approx. 6 meters)

off topic: bad technology – also off topic: why not a nice home theater room in the basement?

It will also go into the living room and shouldn’t hang somewhere in the middle of the room. Besides, we often get visitors and then quickly sometimes 12 people want to sit together somewhere. We have already designed the dining area so that it can be extended into the living room. And we also really like cooking, have the corresponding appliances etc., and want a kitchen island.
Also, a ground-floor office with at least 12m² should be set up, as well as a guest toilet with a large shower for old age and, of course, a pantry.

Please put all that aside. It’s not just about square meters. It’s about a room layout. Pure size alone does not make a house beautiful.
145 sqm are enough, for example, for the living room + kitchen with kitchen island that suits you, four bedrooms (or office or whatever) + two bathrooms. That also works with 170 sqm, without the rooms actually becoming larger or more usable. That’s what I’m getting at. You don’t even have a real plan for the house or an idea what is possible. Only an architect can really show you that.

That may be so. I can’t tell you all that. Do I have to know all this and research and find out by myself?

No – again: look for the posts I mentioned and look for someone who has the knowledge and uses it exclusively for you (architect). A salesperson in the show home exhibition cannot provide that. Once you have signed with them, they are no longer a contact person – just like their promises. They have done their job and other people take over.

Otherwise: Solid construction for me means classic stone on stone,

And even there you can choose from dozens of different variants depending on your budget or ecological wishes (insulation yes/no, type of insulation, etc.).

Do I have to know all this and research and investigate on my own? If yes, then we cancel it, because I simply don’t have time and everything has pros and cons again.

You don’t have to. I know some people in my circle who relied heavily on their general contractor or the hired craftsmen. For some, it worked out better, for others worse. For me, it was good to look around, read, and compare a lot beforehand to know roughly what we wanted independently of the providers and also to have a certain background knowledge when making decisions (especially regarding the topic of building services engineering). We first just went to the show home park, luckily the lockdown came then. We used the time and planned the house with an architect. With the plan, we then went out again, this time to local (or nearly local) companies. In the end, it was the local carpentry company that built our house as the general contractor. We were and are very satisfied.

Bias...
Water pipe bursts in new buildings are nearly impossible. Apart from that, with wood it is not so bad anyway, since there are corresponding supply shafts. It’s much easier to access than with solid construction. Just an example...

Is that so? After searching for a house for years (getting a plot here is virtually almost impossible), we have come across several with water damage. Whether due to broken insulation or also water pipe bursts. In a risk analysis, I would consider that a black swan.

And that it’s not so bad, I actually consider that a myth. You not only read it everywhere, it also makes logical sense. Wood absorbs much more moisture, and when it warps, good luck dealing with that. Then about 20% already have mold problems anyway.

No, it’s not about size as a number. It’s about the room program.

Well, the existing kitchen is 3.5 by 3.5 m with access to the pantry, so we have at least 4x3.5 m with a cooking island and enough space around it, requiring or desired 16 m² – no matter which room program. I don’t consider that particularly exaggerated.
The living room is calculated at 42 m², which gives you a bit more open space. The dining area depends on the table with 4x1 m. With at least 1.5 m of space around it, you “need” 28 m². An office (as a separate room, so you have peace and quiet) requires 12 m², especially if you possibly want to put a bed in there sometime. A guest bathroom with a correspondingly large shower is at least 6 m² and thus does not meet the DIN standard for wheelchair accessibility.
These are all areas you cannot reduce with a room program either unless you want to double-use rooms (i.e., the dining table protrudes into the living room or kitchen). So we are already at 104 m², and that does not yet include stairs, a cloakroom/entrance area, or storage space. With a basement, there is also no usable space under the stairs.

That’s not big, but nicely manageable.

Of course

off topic: bad technology – also off topic: why not a nice home cinema room in the basement?

I always find it hard to judge without information. But you can surely explain exactly what is supposed to be bad technology now? The projector? The position? That it hangs in the living room and not in the cinema room, although it is used not only for movies but almost every day? Or that we don’t want to lock ourselves in the basement every time we watch a movie together, play Nintendo/PS, look at pictures, or I edit videos and pictures on a large scale? Then we might as well just put the living room in the basement, but then we need the ground floor as storage.

Please set all that aside. It’s not just about square meters. It’s about a room program. Pure size alone doesn’t make a house beautiful.
145 sqm are enough, for example, for the living room + kitchen with cooking island suitable for you, four bedrooms (or office or whatever) + two bathrooms. That also works with 170 sqm without the rooms actually being larger or more usable. That’s what I want to point out. You don’t even have a real plan for the house or an idea of what’s possible. Only an architect can actually show you that.

Sure, you can also fit 10 bedrooms of 20 m² if you put a crib but no closet in each room or define your room program as a room with 9 partition walls as 10 rooms. A bedroom is a separated room and should – with a double bed and closet – already have 16 m². And especially with knee wall height of 90 cm, it’s still quite tight.

No – once again: look for the posts I mentioned and look for someone who has the knowledge and uses it exclusively for you (architect). A salesperson in a model home exhibition cannot provide that. Once you’ve signed with them, they’re gone as a contact person – just like their promises. They have done their job and others take over.

And even there you can choose from dozens of variants depending on your budget or ecological wishes (insulation yes/no, type of insulation, etc.).

Yes, I think that is indeed the right advice. Since we have now – I think – ruled out prefabricated houses (i.e., system manufacturers or whatever you want to call them correctly), nothing speaks against going to an architect in the hope that he will then take us by the hand and guide us through the building project.

One more question: Does it make more sense to look for an architect near the building site or near the current place of residence? So you meet more often on the construction site or more often in the office?

Thanks so far!