House Reno Ideas - Ground Floor

[Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 10:49
Last edited 18/08/2019 - 11:43

Hello good people (people of good taste?) of OZB,

What would you change about the ground floor of this house to make it more livable? Let's say you had a reasonable budget. For instance:

  • where would you have the fireplace in the living room: facing the deck or facing the master bedroom?
  • Would you add a sliding door in the living room too to access the deck?
  • How about the ensuite: would you reconfigure it so that it can also be accessed from the kitchen thereby eliminating the need for a half-bath in the laundry? The extra space in the laundry could be used for storage.

What other modifications would you make? Knockdown rebuild is not an option.

Cheers,
JJB

Home & Garden

Comments

  • 87percent on 18/08/2019 - 10:53
    +1

    Bathroom off a kitchen doesn't sound like a good idea

    • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 11:04

      Would you leave it as is then? Toilet in the laundry isn't the best either :(

      • barbarella on 18/08/2019 - 12:10

        yes…leave it as is

        • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 12:14

          There's a bathroom and separate toilet upstairs so that's 3 toilets for a 4 bedroom house. Isn't that a bit of an overkill?
          -Mrs JJB

          • barbarella on 18/08/2019 - 12:17
            +3

            @[Deactivated]: no…I wouldn't want 'everybody' using my ensuite and it would be a nuisance if they had to go upstairs every time…so, I say leave as is

  • jjjaar on 18/08/2019 - 11:00
    +3

    There’s a architect on Instagram that posts floor plans and then shows how he would improve them. You should have a look at his changes, a lot of his ideas are excellent and you may get some ideas that you could use. His username is @matthew.north

    • jjjaar on 18/08/2019 - 11:08

      Regarding my opinions haha I would probably make the deck completely level with the lounge and dining and add doors all around so it’s an extension of the rooms.

      Perhaps placing the toilet in the store under the stairs and extending the laundry? Though this would be off the entertaining area and wouldn’t be a great outcome.

      • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 11:15

        Level deck is a great idea!

        Toilet under the stairs means no windows and if we were to go that way , wouldn't it be more cost-effective to have a door that leads to the ensuite from the hallway or dining room?

        • jjjaar on 18/08/2019 - 11:23
          +1

          Well it’s just about whether you want to share your master bathroom with all guests? I would probably just keep the toilet where it is now to be honest. I personally would rather my own bathroom 😂

          If you want more space in the laundry I would close up one of the doors. You don’t really need both. I would probably keep the one to outside just so you can easily hang clothes. But you do lose the undercover access between the garage and the house. Though you could just add a cover over the walkway between the laundry and garage outside to keep you dry in rain.

        • toristo on 18/08/2019 - 16:32
          +1

          I'd have massive sliding walls that meet in the corner of the L once level so you can completely open the house up indoor/outdoor seamlessly.

  • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 11:40
    +1

    Where's north? Any design improvement needs to take into consideration direction of light.

    • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 11:44

      The masterbedroom faces south. I've updated the file.

      • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 12:05
        +1

        The living room is probably going to be very dark unless the eaves are under extended and the walls are practically glass from floor to ceiling.

        If there's nothing over parts of the living room, sky lights (whichever type) would make the room much more welcoming. This is particularly high impact since it is also the entry foyer.

        The double fireplace is likely an artefact of the original structure. Close one. It will depend on which one is more attractive. No real functional difference which wall the fire place is on if all else is equal.

        Knock the wall between kitchen and laundry down. Have an integrated kitchen and laundry (common in the US) but you can have a sliding door cover the laundry machines for aesthetics. Have three bench tops for the kitchen - long unobstructed bench where the fridge and pantry are, an overhang cabinets. You may want to extend the bench tops a little into the dining to serve as a buffet also but don't extend the overhead quite as long. Another bench top against the window but allow fridge between the end of bench and the dining.

        This will give the dining room a much more open feel because the bench top dividing the rooms are gone, and the wall that separated the laundry and the kitchen is opened up.

        Have an island benchtop on castors. It will be a great spot for a cutting board and bins. If you make it slight lower, you can make it slide into existing cabinetry when you need the space. Being lower is also useful since when adding a cutting board, your work surface is usually raised beyond optimal.

        Fridge between dining and kitchen is a better workflow when entertaining. You don't have guest having to go into the kitchen.

        Cooktop and oven where the old fridge was. Laundry in the same position but stacked machines and have a sliding door to cover the entire benchtop and stacked machines.

        The big bonus is the removal of corner benchtop spaces. Those are giant useless voids.

        • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 12:48

          Living room:

          • If we got rid of the fireplace facing the bedroom and replaced it with windows , we
            would get some nice morning sun.

          • we're thinking of installing sliding doors to be able to access the deck from the living room. Deck is currently not covered but will have some clear, pitched polycarbonate roof installed at some point.

          • There's a full height , vertical window facing south already.

          That's windows on 3 sides of the living room. It shouldn't be dark in there. At least , I hope it won't be.

          Fridge between dining and kitchen is a better workflow when entertaining. You don't have guest having to go into the kitchen.

          Agree.

          I've taken note of everything else. Tks :)

          p.s: Where would the powder room go?

          • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 13:08
            +1

            @[Deactivated]: I guess my version of sufficient lighting is different. I go for full natural daylight in entry, living and kitchen.

            Powder room remains unchanged.

            Ps. Sliding door isn't as good as french folding doors for your intended purpose - opening up space. Sliding has smaller opening.

            • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 13:27

              @[Deactivated]: What would have been the best orientation for the house?

              • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 13:55
                +1

                @[Deactivated]: I like North facing entry as a preference but that's not possible here.

                I'm also a big fan of a glimpse of the kitchen upon entry.

                Honestly, the house is a small form factor so you'll have to be inventive for use of space. This looks good.

                • [Deactivated] on 20/08/2019 - 22:57

                  @[Deactivated]: Is North-facing entry better than North-facing backyard?

                  • [Deactivated] on 21/08/2019 - 09:26

                    @[Deactivated]: To me, it definitely is.

                    Bright entranced and a shaded backyard.

                    It's personal preference. I always design with entry being as bright as the outside to ease the transition between indoor and outdoor and I'm not a fan of mossy entryways.

  • barbarella on 18/08/2019 - 12:14
    +1

    Leave toilet/s as is…fireplace facing deck is better…a sliding door could be added to living area but IMO is not necessary
    …really, I think the plan is good ATM

  • try2bhelpful on 18/08/2019 - 12:25
    +1

    Too expensive to do now but I would’ve reversed the location of kitchen/dining and master bedroom. That would’ve given a large open kitchen living area, with the deck making it even more so. I would always have a separate toilet for guests, makes both sides more comfortable.

    • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 12:53

      I believe there was originally a pool in the backyard ( or one was going to be built at some point) and they wanted to be able to enjoy the view from the living and dining room.

      Edit: I see what you mean.

  • 87percent on 18/08/2019 - 12:55

    Are you considering this your "forever house"?

    If so, then I would look at re-orientation but if not, then I would just leave it as it is. Maybe get some large renovation companies to come and see what they suggest and then you can take it the next steps of you want

    • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 12:56

      Is it that bad?

      • 87percent on 18/08/2019 - 13:03

        It's hard to get a feel for a house just via a floor plan, I'm not saying it's bad or good

  • elgrande on 18/08/2019 - 14:27

    What program do you use for your maps?

    • [Deactivated] on 18/08/2019 - 14:44

      The REA's :)

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