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kentuckyhills

Layout ideas for a muddy family of five

kentuckyhills
10 years ago

We are building on family land- our working cattle farm, actually. We feel the pressure to get it right the first time, since we will never be selling this home. This is our first time building.

We are a family of five, with three boys five and under who are only going to get bigger and muddier. We can afford 2,000 sf, based on the cost to build around here (very rural western KY). We plan to put a full basement under the house, but will probably only finish out about 400 sf at first due to our budget. We will probably do a guest bedroom or two and bathroom down there- we have lots of family who visit. We can't quite figure out where to put the stairs to the basement.

Our boys currently share a room and we may even use the third bedroom as a playroom at first, until they get big enough to need more space. We would love an "away" room, but if we have to finish out the bonus room over the garage someday to get that, it will be fine. We do want to figure out how add a powder room now, though, so that a bathroom used by three small boys won't have to be company-ready all the time.

The back of the house will face west, and beautiful views of our Kentucky hills :). We could pivot it a bit to the left to catch some southern sun, but not too much. The only thing we would like to change about this specific plan is to add a trellis or roof over the back patio, since that will be a hot place in the afternoons and we would love an outdoor dining table. Also, I am considering incorporating the garage storage on the right into the house as the entry from the garage so you don't have to wind through the laundry room. There needs to be a door to the backyard there as well for the aforementioned muddy boys to have access to the laundry room.

What do you think of this plan? We would love to get feedback!

Here is a link that might be useful: Eplans house

Comments (12)

  • iheartgiantschnauzer
    10 years ago

    How set are you on this plan? Have you priced out a two story versus your current plan? I only ask because we have family and friends that have built in western ky lately (Owensboro, Kentucky lake, and lake Barkley) and they built much more for the money than you are quoting. They all have what I consider nice finishes: quartz, tile and wood floors, great energy efficient windows, integrated lighting, and curbless showers. The difference is they did build up versus out. You have the land so I'm not sure exactly how it would effect your price but you may want to look into it.

    I grew up on my grandparents' horse farm outside of Louisville so I know a little something about farm dirty. I'm not sure I quite get the appeal of this plan. However if you can make a bigger entrance from the outside into a mudroom/laundry room it would be an improvement. Consider having cabinetry or lockers there with some fresh clothes. I'd Want to add a bath with a shower right by that laundry room. Straight into the shower if they were especially filthy from muddin' or football games or farm chores. However that defeats the purpose of the company ready bath.

    If your boys are anything like my brother or I, our dinner table was never just our family. We had friends over after school or sports practice that inevitably stayed for dinner. The dining space seems inadequate as your boys grow (door, necessary walkways etc) not to mention if it's a forever home what happens when all 3 bring back girlfriends or wives ? That space would be very cramped, in my opinion.

    3 boys in a 12x12 room seems tight. 3 boys in a large bunk room is much different. When do you anticipate finishing the FROG or the basement? 5 years out? 10? Will the 400 sq ft finished initially include a bedroom and bath? Is the basement a walkout? Could you just create a huge mudroom and bathroom down there for the muddy boys? Where do you anticipate the three boys doing homework?

    I'm sorry. It's a cute house, but I don't see how it functions for a farm family with 3 growing boys.

    If it's the house you're in love with then I'm sure you will find work arounds. But it may be easiest to just keep looking and maybe at more traditional farmhouses that have the needed outdoor entry into a large mudroom.

    Sorry just wanted to offer a few things to consider. Good luck in your build.

  • rrah
    10 years ago

    I have to agree with the above. There is nothing horrible about this plan, but given your post title it seems to not be a good fit. I would keep looking as there are too many crucial elements missing.

    For most suburban homes, I don't see the point of a bath near the mudroom, but in your case that would be very important to me. You also mentioned your view. I would definitely want my kitchen at the back of the house to enjoy the view while working there.

  • Annie Deighnaugh
    10 years ago

    I really encourage a southern facing home as a western face only serves to capture the worst heat of the day all summer long. A southern face shields the house from the sun during the summer and captures a lot of sun into the home during the winter. We are able to gain 4 degrees in temp on sunny winter days just from the sunshine. We also put our deck on the SE corner which captures the early morning sun and protects us from the hot afternoon sun and harsh NW winds in the cooler seasons so we get a longer season out of our deck than we would otherwise.

  • kentuckyhills
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Yes, access for the muddy boys is a key component for me. Ideally, I would prefer to have stairs to the basement just inside the door from the backyard, with a shower down there.

    The dining room could be bigger. Our current one is 12x12 and fits our large-ish farm table just fine, but I think we could use more length. And I want to move that door in the dining room to the back wall of the great room. Our builder says he can do these changes within the footprint. He has a very good reputation in the area.

    As for the plan, we have looked for a long time and have had a hard time finding one at low square footage that has most of the living spaces opening to the back, where our views are. We are open to 2 story, but I wouldn't want much more than the boys' bedrooms and bath up there, since we will have the basement, too. One level has seemed simpler. We would rather come out below budget than go over, so we are trying to be conservative.

    All thoughts are helpful!

  • kentuckyhills
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Don't give up the plan, quite yet. There are things about this plan are closer to what we want than others we've seen. Here is what I am thinking. Sorry I don't have snazzy software, just a pencil.

    I've added my back entry and laundry room change and enlarged the garage and dining room a bit. I also narrowed the foyer by a foot and a half and added the world's smallest powder. Probably not possible, but I will need to see more specifics of the plan to see.

    Yes, the boy's room is teeny, but eventually one can go upstairs and one in the 'toy room' in a few years. Hopefully we will have a bathroom in the bonus by the time they are in junior high so they can utilize more showers... Also, there WILL be a bathroom and cleanup area in the basement, and the muddiest should go down there. We would love a walkout for just that reason, but I don't think we have quite the change in grade to make that possible.

    Thoughts?

  • Kinsley7
    10 years ago

    Coincidently, we are also a muddy family of 5 from Kentucky. One thing I noticed about your plan is the location of the master bathroom. We once owned a home with the master bath window looking onto the front porch and it always seem awkward to me.

  • bus_driver
    10 years ago

    Hog farmer near here built a splendid house. Walkout basement and one of the doors in that area led to his shower and changing room so that he never went upstairs with the "trappings of his trade'"
    Dairy is lots of hard work, long hours, no 5 or 6 day weeks. And lots of folks while eating that delicious ice cream do not realize that someone had to walk through and smell some manure as part of the process. Everything in life ain't pretty.

  • bpath
    10 years ago

    Do you have room in your budget to just add a room between the garage and the house? It could have doors to front and back, have a utility sink, hooks, bench, drawers and shelves, and an easy-care floor. You could massage the laundry and pantry and this, yes, mudroom, and work in a half-bath. Sorry I don't have a way to draw it out (spilled coffee on the laptop and still learning this handmedown iPad).

  • kirkhall
    10 years ago

    To me, the issue is, you don't have quick and easy access to a shower from the mudroom.
    I grew up on a pigfarm, my brother still is on a farm (with 3 little kids now). And, my SIL found a house plan for them that put the master (bath) with very easy/quick access to the mudroom.
    Sometimes, you just don't want them even walking through the house.

  • kentuckyhills
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Hmmm... My picture didn't post earlier, let me try again.

  • NashvilleBuild42
    10 years ago

    When will you have the basement bathroom finished? Immediately at move in? Or "hopefully by the time boys are in junior high"? Even with your revisions it doesn't seem to work. You need a bathroom with a shower by the mud room. How much space is between the sofa and the desk? The desk seems like an awkward afterthought. If someone or even a few boys are huddled around the desk chairs would be in aisle way. Do you only have seating for 4 in the livingroom? It looks a bit small for a family of 5.

    I do like the door change in the dr.

    I would want the porch to be a bare minimum 10' deep. 8 is rather narrow. 12 by 12 seems small for a 3 boy playroom. Plus it's not an easy room to keep an eye on while you are cooking etc.

    Have you considered putting off the basement finishing instead directing that money to finishing the FROG. You could make it the boys domain. Bunks built along the outside walls with plenty of playroom. Then the two small rooms downstairs could be guest room.

  • kentuckyhills
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Oops. Now I see that it did post earlier. Our Internet connection is awesome.

    Bpathome- I like the idea of a utilitarian room, and even squeezing in a shower. My vision is that there is a hose outside the back door. Boots come off immediately and they can dump the muddy clothes in the laundry room and get their naked muddy bodies to the basement to clean up. We have toured some recently built farmer homes around here that our builder built. To me, it just seemed like they had made the mudroom bigger instead of more efficient. I don't need a big space, just a working one (and I am okay with it being in the basement). And, having looked at ten million plans, I would LoVE to see a brilliant mudroom.