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glass1990

Help to review draft plan

glass1990
11 years ago

Can you help me with any comments that you have about this plan. Am still at the drafting stage and I would like to factor in any comments that are made. The house will be build in South Africa.

Comments (9)

  • glass1990
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Can you help me with any comments that you have about this plan. Am still at the drafting stage and I would like to factor in any comments that are made. The house will be build in South Africa.

  • sweet.reverie
    11 years ago

    Are you going to have kids in those bedrooms? If so, I think it will be quite loud for them with the bedroom right off the living area. I also wonder what anyone is going to do in that little grassy patch in the middle of the house...seem very odd. The kitchen would be me feel very boxed in. However, I know what is "normal" here is not "normal " in other countries.

  • live_wire_oak
    11 years ago

    The odd incursions of exterior into the interior will make for a very complicated and expensive foundation and roof line. Which is fine, if you are doing a high dollar build, but if you are on a budget, not so fine.

    The clearances and traffic paths are all very small. VERY small. The dining table appears to be the entire focus of the home, yet it is going to be difficult to walk through or past because of the too small clearances. The garage also appears small. For the amount of external wall space, there doesn't appear to be very many windows to take advantage of all of that wall space.

    Where do you plan to prep in the kitchen? I don't see a water source in the kitchen, only in the scullery. And that is an odd location for a butler's pantry/scullery. It's usual location is between the dining area and kitchen.

    There are a lot of very non functional choices here that appear to have been made for the sake of visual interest or for being different, but that will be awkward to live with in real life. I suggest you take a look at some of the available home plans on the net. Not because most are so great, but most at least do have a bit more logical flow to how the rooms relate to each other. That's missing from this plan, as well as a good sense of how this is all going to be engineered.

  • chibimimi
    11 years ago

    It's always very interesting to see architectural styles from other countries! Like the other poster, I don't have any experience with house plans in your area, but here are a few thoughts.

    The living room has almost no outdoor view. Ditto the dining room. This may be an advantage in your climate, but I find it a little claustrophobic.

    The "hall" bathroom opens off the dining area. Since this is probably the bath guests will use, it could make for awkward dinner parties. Would it be better to do away with that little exterior area between bedroom 3 and the guest room bath and slide everything down to work out more privacy for that hall bath?

    The exterior space between the TV area and the master bath also makes for a very small TV area. It allows for windows in the master bath, but you could add skylights instead.

    Is anything going to be able to grow in the "island" between the kitchen and the garage? Plants there will get almost no light, It's not large enough to sit in. This area might be better used as living space.

    There are no windows toward the back garden ... is there a reason for this?

  • zone4newby
    11 years ago

    I like the idea of the clerestory windows around the living room. I'm wondering if the bedrooms might feel more private if the doors didn't open directly to the main room? I'm thinking of a situation like if you had adult friends staying late in the evening to chat and your kids need to enter the main room to get to the bathroom. I'd be tempted to remove the separate shower from the kids bathroom and make it a jack and jill bath (with doors from each bedroom) and maybe push some of the exterior windows and doors back so the bedroom doors could be off little hallways.

    Please keep us posted, I'd love to know more about building in South Africa!

  • goodgracious
    11 years ago

    I am no expert, but I have a home where doors like your bed & baths, open onto living areas. It is very awkward. I can't offer any suggestions on a solution, but even if it requires adding more space and changing some things around, it will be worth it.

  • chispa
    11 years ago

    The kitchen is closed off because it is very common for households in S. Africa to have a daily housekeeper/cook/maid.

    I'm not sure how much help we can provide. A plan like it would never be built here in the USA. Is this a common design for your area? Or are you trying to be different and trying out some funky stuff?

  • glass1990
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    We made some changes to the previous draft. Your comments are welcome.

  • rosie
    11 years ago

    Are you in a "Mediterranean" climate in your part of South Africa? Dry, seldom very cold, relatively few insects, lovely sitting outside most mornings and evenings in the hottest months?

    Is that the full extent of your lot, with the setbacks shown?

    Your first plan has some nice, distinctive architectural features I really like. What strikes me, though, and might be a problem for me is what an introverted home it is. Is that specifically what you want? Because it would be the defining characteristic of the home.

    The second version is not only far more oriented to the outside but would probably feel significantly more spacious because of the way the eye can just keep traveling without running into a wall. The diagonal view on out the playroom windows is an especially long line.

    If a lovely Mediterranean climate, where outside is often as comfortable as in, then it would seem to make good sense to develop as strong a relationship as possible between the two to allow living to spill right on outside. And, of course, be able to leave windows and doors open to the breezes. ?