Need help with floorplan for new home rebuild

Hi all,

Just wanted to get a rough idea on the ideal directions each room should be facing for optimal sunlight, for a 2 storey house rebuild on my lot (sketch attached).

Rooms to be included are:
Ground Floor:

• Open Kitchen/Living/Dining
• Extra Room (Study or Lounge or Bedroom)
• Bathroom
• Laundry
• Garage
• Alfresco

Upper Floor:

• Master Bedroom w/ Ensuite
• 2 Bedrooms
• Bathroom
• maybe another lounge area

 

Firstly I would put the garage, laundry, cinema room and spare bedroom along the southern wall, rooms that will have solid walls with no windows. Also any bathrooms that have a high window that can be closed against the cold. Otherwise you want to open up facing north and east - living rooms, bedrooms and alfresco.

I am concerned with your location. It seems to have the house too close to a two-storey building next door on the northern side, which will shade your property when you desire Winter sunlight to flood in from the north. I would position your building as close to the southern boundary as possible allowing for access to the GF.

 

Consider placing the bathroom and spare bedroom or ensuite/wir along the upper western wall to insulate the bedrooms from the sun in Summer.

 

You have described a 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom home and a granny flat on a 392sqm block. To be honest I'm not sure you are going to be able to fit it at all

There are going to be many compromises to get it to work. Are you thinking single garage for main house and no parking for the GF?

Ideally you want windows on the North side but with a 2 storey neigbour close to the boundary they are going to prevent a lot of the winter sun benefits. So I wouldn't focus too much on that. You do need to keep windows on the West side to a minimum if possible and keep and eye on not having too many on the East side.

I would keep as close to the southern boundary as possible to try and have more room on the North side. A design like this might suit where you can then have a footpath on the North side to get to the GF. https://www.metricon.com.au/new-home-designs/sydney-region/maza?photo=mazaaspire.jpg&floorplan=25

Note the design is pretty poor - how do they think they could use those sliding doors from the living room with a couch there but it is adaptable and can give you some ideas. For example its probably not too long and so a GF may still fit. The sliding doors could be moved to the dining room. The study could be turned into a bathroom and the front living be that study/lounge/bedroom you wanted. Upstairs you could remove bed 2 and make it a living room

 

Thanks for the input!

I've thought of areas having livingat the north-east corner (house entry), however wouldn't the alfresco still have to be at the back (west)?

Also, could you explain what you mean by "I would position your building as close to the southern boundary as possible allowing for access to the GF."

 

There will several problems you will face..1 --that's a very small block in sqm's if my grade 10 maths are correct..2 The next door house facing North may well block the sunlight at different times per day ..
Just a question--is this a splitter --or there is a dwelling on the footprint already and you will start with a level vacant block as i'm trying to understand the way the plumbing is set on both side's..xxximhoxxx

 

Same as what Westminster said. You will want the house as close to the southern boundary as legally possible. But you also intend building a GF and the GF will require access. If you only have a walkway to the GF (is that even legal to not have vehicle access?), your house can be 900 mm from the boundary or whatever the council allows on your particular block of land. You will not want strangers walking or driving along your northern outdoor area to access their flat. As she said too, I cant imagine a home and a GF on such a small block, but then I have lived my entire life in Brisbane where GFs are an anomaly.

I would not have an alfresco area looking straight into a GF or the neighbour's property. You might want to reduce the Summer sun on the western side by building an outdoor verandah across the entire back of the building like they did in the olden days, but that doesn't fit with contemporary fascias and designs.

 

Theres a dwelling already on the footprint which we plan to demolish

 

I dont think granny flats are required to have vehicle access.
But the main reason for the granny flat is for my parents to live in when they are old, so the privacy aspect isnt too important.

 

Thoughts on having a void above the living areas to allow for some more sunlight in?

 

And when you sell the property?

 

You didn't say that at the start, about privacy. I was thinking a granny flat for strangers. However you will still want a degree of privacy and separateness.

Would it all fit onto the land better if you build a complete home with a self-contained section on the ground floor for your parents, leaving more space in the yard for your outdoor entertainment at the back. If you have a landscaped courtyard (high walls on the three boundaries) like a Mediterranean villa, you wont need as much shading. Then you can concentrate on building the house as close to the boundaries as the council allows on both sides. I have been considering multi-generational living with my adult kids and we could save money and space by not duplicating rooms unnecessarily, such as laundries and "spare" rooms.

 

Can you afford the wasted (non-existent) floor space?

 

Yeah sorry, forgot to mention that.

Hmm Ive never thought of the self-contained section. So you mean pretty much a granny flat but its attached to the main dwelling at the back?

 

I think I could live without the extra space on the upper floor. I cant imagine the upper floor lounge being used all that often. Although ive ive never lived in a 2 storey house so maybe im im wrong.

 

Do you have a drawing/photos of what you want in your home ?

Regarding the list of rooms in the opening post - have you considered dimensions/floor sizes of these rooms. For one's own home, fewer large rooms is often more desirable than lots of tiny pokey rooms. That is an awfully tiny block of land. Can you go three storeys by any chance?

My council stipulates a three car garage/carport for a house with that many bedrooms (where i live)

 

How many kids do you have, what are their ages? The upstairs living room is good for when you have teenagers doing their things, and you watching your TV elsewhere. But it can be pretty small, like an extra wide hall at the top of the stairs with just a sofa and a tv and a computer table.

 

I've drawn up some rough plans but that wasnt considering the granny flat.
Will edit and upload in the coming days.

 

I dont anticipate kids for another 7-10 years haha. Im just doing this now to see what my options are for the future.

But yeah, i guess that would be something to consider.

 

Another consideration for us mind-readers. We dont know you. Is this in a Victorian terrace street in Glebe, a middle-ring war-service suburb being gentrified, Kellyville where Mc Mansions rule, or what? Even though this is my idea of fun, fun, fun, we cant help much more until we get a photo of what you want to achieve. If you have been watching too much Grand Designs, we will need a budget too.

I just saw the previous post. What the ????

Please go to your nearest housing estate in the morning and view some display homes on the same size blocks as your property to see what can be done.