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Farmhouse - your design advice please?

Hello houzz community!


First time posters, long time lurkers :)


We are building a home on our farm. We are limited to bungalow/ranch style, 60 ft wide x 31 ft deep (max dimensions). This will be a modular build (combination of cost and timing, among other factors, leaves modular as our best option).


We have gone back and forth with multiple (paid) designers but have been unable to achieve a functional, comfortable, modest home. We've now taken a stab (...or 20) at designing the floor plan ourselves. We would love your feedback (be kind – using “new to us” software, and we aren't designers, so things are a bit rough!) and suggestions on things we may not have considered.


Some notes:

  • livestock farm, very muddy, lots of "organic" matter on boots coming into the house
  • 2 kids (11 yrs old)
  • two dogs, and many farm cats (need dog/boot wash station in mud room)
  • the “view” is north side, road access/driveway is south side
  • strong winds from west
  • flex room needed as occasional bedroom (snoring partner vs light sleeping partner)
  • we don’t entertain often, but holiday time can bring 20-25 people
  • due to modular build, a “marriage” wall runs down the centre of house – shows in attached picture as a thicker wall. No spans of more than 20 ft possible
  • located in Ontario, Canada

We appreciate you taking time to read!


Many thanks!




Comments (47)

  • chicagoans
    5 years ago

    (caveat: I'm not a pro) When you come inside with your muddy boots etc, will that be into the mudroom? It seems like the mudroom and laundry should be connected or combined, with direct outdoor access. I say that because when I come in after working in the yard, sometimes I want to throw something directly into the sink or washing machine. I'd want the mud/laundry room placed wherever you are most likely to enter / exit from working or playing outside, letting the dogs out, etc.


    Corners are prime real estate because they give you the option of windows on 2 walls. For that reason, I wouldn't want to take one up with a pantry. Also it's taking up space on your view side of the house. And you might want to enjoy the view from your living room; seems like that should be on the view side, too.


    Consider your path from garage to kitchen carrying loads of groceries.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked chicagoans
  • PRO
    Mark Bischak, Architect
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Mary and the Lambs thanked Mark Bischak, Architect
  • shead
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    We are in a similar situation. We bought a ranch house that is 27x64 rectangular on DH’s family’s farm and trying to devise a plan for additions and remodeling/reconfiguring for our family’s needs, which includes all those muddy boots :)

    I think you should put your living room in the back right corner to take advantage of the view. I think the master bedroom should be in the back left corner as well and should have its own entrance to the shared bathroom. Definitely connect your mudroom and laundry room. I’ll try to come up with some layout ideas tomorrow.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked shead
  • laurelcollins
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    I agree with combining the laundry with a mudroom. Also, I can see needing a coat closet, but not a coat room! That seems to be a waste of real estate. Perhaps combine space for the closet in the mudroom/laundry. I think it makes more sense to put the laundry/mud where your flex space is now because of future garage use. Move the front bedroom to where you currently have the mud room and coat room. Use current laundry room as your flex space. Also could double as an office or play room. Good luck!

    Mary and the Lambs thanked laurelcollins
  • Bri Bosh
    5 years ago
    No closets in any bedrooms? I see storage being an issue here. Do combine your huge laundry into a mud room and put it off an entry to maximize space and utility. You won’t be able to host 20/25 in that dining area with the table jammed up against the wall. Your flex space is unusable as a bedroom or anything other than a glorified hallway with a lot of wasted space. I think the whole dining/kitchen area needs to be reworked... right now your laundry room and pantry have the great views. It would be best if those were in interior spaces.
    Mary and the Lambs thanked Bri Bosh
  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    I am also designing/building a modular home. I sometimes wish my marriage walls would elope.

    Only one bathroom? That might be a major big drag.

    I would ask your builder to show you some plans of what other clients have done.

    Some other thoughts...

    -the mud room has a narrow ”neck” at 4.5 ft. It doesn’t seem as though that space would be very useful.

    -is it typical for your area for the front entrance that everyone uses to be near/into the kitchen? If so, I would put the kitchen where the living room is and give the living and dining rooms a lot of window space towards the view and to the east.

    -take the laundry room off your view wall; maybe turn that space into a master bath? With a walk-in closet? Or a master bath accessible from the master bedroom, with the powder room opening into the hallway (across from where it is right now.

    -then, thint of all the area to the left of the foyer as “utility” block and divide it in practical spaces into mud, coat, laundry, etc.

    -if you manage to make space for a master bathroom, make the “kids bathroom” a lot smaller.

    -and now I see another commenter suggests putting the master bedroom in the NW corner. I agree, but include the master bathroom, so you have a suite down at that end. You will also have more privacy and segregation from the rest of the household hubbub.

    -Maybe for auxiliary sleeping you just need a space big enough for a convertible couch and not a whole big room?

    Mary and the Lambs thanked tangerinedoor
  • rockybird
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    I dont see a master bath. I might steal space from the laundry which is awful long for at least a small master bath.


    Is the “flex” room in a private location? It just looks like an entryway from the garage. I’d personally want a room I could sleep in that was more private.


    Is the mud room in the right location? IT seems a see them in the back of the house or at the garage entrance in a lot of homes, but maybe that wont apply to your home.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked rockybird
  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago

    Is the garage going to be your main entrance? Or the foyer? Can you give some idea of what this looks like from the outside? The separation between the front door and the garage seems like it would be really inconvenient. It seems kind of odd to have garage access in a bedroom area.

    And a dog is not going to follow you from the garage and into the house? You’ll have muddy footprints all down the corridor?

    Mary and the Lambs thanked tangerinedoor
  • PRO
    Mark Bischak, Architect
    5 years ago

    Your time (and money) may best be invested in finding an architect better than the designers you have already engaged. Working with a "modular build" may put sufficient constraints on the design that may make it less than ideal.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked Mark Bischak, Architect
  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago

    Just to be easier on yourselves, from my experience with the modular build.... Does your program let you make simple floor rectangles? If so, skip putting the walls in your diagram for now; they can get really fiddly. Worry about the furniture placement later. Just make the footprints, one for the whole house, the other for each room, using the dimensions you’ve established. Use a different color fill for each room. Once you’re done, move the pieces around, so you can try many arrangements. You can even blow up the pieces, print, and cut them out. Play with them on your dining room table. Involve the kids.

    This will give you a rough concept. Refine later.

    I do, recommend, however, using some of the concepts above from other commenters, like paying attention to the relative size of rooms, so your laundry (e.g.) isn’t such a space hog And the mud room isn’t 4.5 feet wide.

    I also got a cheap yardstick and measuring tape. Sometimes I can’t visualize space. I measure stuff now....friends’ bathrooms, hotel bedrooms, random windows, kitchens I like.... Involve the kids in this, too.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked tangerinedoor
  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago

    I have a friend with this one. 3 bedroom/2 bath, modular, smaller footprint than yours (but could be easily adapted). No hallway, thus eliminating unused space. Great room. Back door to deck/yard. Utility space near kitchen (so all grubbiness arrives in area of easily-washed floors). And, she has no electric or heat bill, even in a very cold climate, since it’s 100% solar and has hyper efficient construction.


    https://vermodhomes.com/3-bed2-bath-28x47-contemporary/

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  • chicagoans
    5 years ago

    " I sometimes wish my marriage walls would elope." Who is keeping the list of memorable quotes of the year? I think that's a candidate. :)

    Mary and the Lambs thanked chicagoans
  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Thank you all for your responses. We have some important things to reconsider based on your comments.


    Re MUD/LAUNDRY: we did consider having these 2 rooms joined. We revised that, thinking that the smell coming off the farm/barn clothes stored in the mudroom would affect the non-farm items we plan to store in the laundry (storage of linens, blankets etc in laundry room.) You’ve convinced me that the laundry and mud rooms need to be connected for sure, but maybe separated by a door to limit odors traveling through.


    Re COAT CLOSET: This should have been marked a “clean” mudroom… so, storage for coats, knapsacks, shoes etc. We do need a large room for this purpose.


    Re THE VIEW: The “view” that I mentioned is a view of the barns (so, not actually spectacular to look at, but better than looking at the road on the south side). We attempted to block the barns by putting the pantry in the NE corner.


    RE KITCHEN/LIVING ROOM ORIENTATION: We put the living room on the south side to capture the sun during the winter months. With the kitchen there, it might be too hot for cooking in the summer months. We agree these rooms should have the “good” view… rather than the laundry room.


    Re BEDROOM CLOSETS: There are built-ins on one of the drawings – I didn’t mark them as such. I should have done that! So, closet space is taken care of.


    Re DINING ROOM: The dining table will move depending on how many people we are seating – there is a lot of room to reposition the table when needed. For day to day, I will have it tucked out of the way as much as possible, as we will eat most meals at the breakfast bar / island.


    Re MASTER BATH: We aren’t planning for one. We don’t want to clean extra bathrooms… Lol! We have never had one in the past, so we don’t think we will miss it in this house.


    RE GARAGE/FLEX ROOM: The path from garage to kitchen is too great. Completely agree with that. Also, agree that people walking through the flex room is not optimal either.

    We wanted to avoid having the garage really prominent when we drive into the property. We thought having it at the west side would help (and block the snow/wind from the west) – but yes, it leaves the whole layout too choppy. Mudroom here, breezeway there, pantry somewhere else. And, absolutely, muddy dog prints everywhere. We don’t want that.


    Re ARCHITECT: We have worked with one. Sadly I think we chose the wrong one, which was a costly mistake.


    Here is a rouch sketch of the property layout, so you have a better visual.



  • PRO
    PPF.
    5 years ago

    I'd ask about offsetting the 2 sections.


    Mary and the Lambs thanked PPF.
  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    TANGERINEDOOR - your friend's house is exactly like what we're wishful for. Esp with the solar heating etc... we will get good sunlight during the day, but only on the south side. How to capitlize on that... is one of our (many) dilemmas. Which side of your friend's floor plan faces the sun? We would be using a floor plan just like this one, however, we need to have the bedrooms grouped. That makes things extra awkward for us.


    We had designed a layout with 2 separate sides of the house, divided by a long (full depth) 8 foot wide hallway. The hallway kept the bedroom side from the "living space" side. We had many who thought it was a massive waste of space (which I understand), however, we envisioned building the hallway with a drain in the centre, and having the ability to "hose down" all the dirt that entered the house before it escaped to the rest of the house.

  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Hi PPF! Thank you! Yes - offset sections are an option. I believe we can go about 5 feet on either side. We tried a few layouts like that as well. Maybe we have to go back to those and review.

  • B Carey
    5 years ago

    I'm not sure if those are closets in the bedrooms? Or is all the closet in the laundry? The 11*10 bedrooms are much smaller if they also have a 2 ft deep closet.

    For the overall sq footage, you have A LOT of room dedicated to the laundry and foyer. The powder room is also tight and redundant. Even though I love a foyer, I would have the front door enter into the living room, so move it more to the Right/expand the living room a bit more. I would then move the laundry/mudroom to the front left corner or middle left, so that the future garage comes into that space. It appears now that your muddy boots are entering the foyer. We will also be on acreage, and I don't want my family coming in the front door as I want it presentable for those visitors that just stop by unannounced. I think the mudroom (lockers?) and coatroom can be combined better into a C or U taking less overall space or giving you more storage with a wider path. I really think you would benefit though from having the mudroom moved to the left! One large 14.5*10 space would give you an awesome room. Maybe even put the laundry at the front left corner, and the mudroom at the back left corner, with the hallway/future garage entrance separating the 2 spaces. Move the bedrooms/flexroom around accordingly.

    I would also swap the kitchen/pantry with the dining space. The dining space could have windows on 2 walls, and your island could face to also have a view outdoors.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked B Carey
  • PRO
    Virgil Carter Fine Art
    5 years ago

    Your spaces are very small and some are simply unworkable (powder and mud room); you are duplicating spaces which could easily be combined to free up interior space for other high priority uses (mud and laundry), you're using valuable interior space with such a long hall.


    You need some expert advice to make best use of limited available space.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked Virgil Carter Fine Art
  • B Carey
    5 years ago

    I had an idea of having the snorer's sleeping space in a seating area off the bedroom. When my DH snores, sleeping in the recliner helps a lot! You could still squeeze a couch in the space, but it could be a nice multipurpose with a recliner/Tv/desk. I would put doors (with glass inserts if the snoring isn't too bad!) between the bedroom and the "seating area". It could be left open during the day and closed off at night when needed.

    The mudroom could hold a lot of cabinetry/closet space with the dogwash at the end with a nice window. It could even be made as a secondary shower.

    With the space you have, I would combine the shower/tub. While this is not at all drawn to scale, I think you could have a nice bathroom on the other side of the flex seating area.

    In the laundry, you could have a bedroom closet back up to laundry cabinetry while leaving extra depth for the W/D. Depending on how much view of the kitchen you want from the front entry, you can adjust bedroom widths. I would imagine you would make the living room wider.



    Mary and the Lambs thanked B Carey
  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    B CAREY: thank you for your response. The closet space in the bedrooms will be built in wardrobes (2 ft deep). So, Master built in wardrobe (10 ft) is at the foot of Master bed, and the 2 bedrooms have the built in (6 feet) to the side of the bed. We like your ideas for layout. Going to try and incorporate them as well as some other suggestions made above.


    VIRGIL: I agree that we need expert advice to make it all work. Unfortunately the designers we have employed to this point (we have worked with 3 different companies in total) have been unhelpful in making suggestions like how best to use space etc. Rather, they have listened to our unsophisticated ideas, and drawn them out for us. We needed them to say "No, that won't work, do it this way." We requested feedback as such. We are acutely aware that we don't have the first clue about house layout. All to no avail.


    When we decided to hire an architect, they also provided less than we really need (and, actually, they designed those long hallways for us. They didn't see any other way to travel from one side of the house to the other). So, we're trying. I think we're lining the pockets of the wrong professionals.

  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    B CAREY: Thank you for the sketch! Where do I send the cheque? ;)


    This is very helpful indeed. Much appreciated.


    Great idea about the separate sleeping area.

  • SapphireStitch
    5 years ago

    I saw one thing go by quickly in this discussion and that's the master bathroom. You have two 11yo kids, and from my experience (my kids are now 17 and 29) you are only 2-4 years away from a time when you will very much wish you had two full bathrooms. Teens take time in the bathroom, and they are going to be less likely to want to share that time the older they get. I know my generation grew up with only one bathroom often, but it sure wasn't ideal. You do have the powder room for those "Hey, I need to pee and he's taking forever in the shower!!" moments, so that's good. But I would strongly encourage carving out a bit of space for a second full bath. It doesn't have to be luxurious, but I think you will be very thankful to have it!

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  • shead
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Now that I'm back looking at this, is it possible to put the kitchen and living area on the left (closer to where your garage will be) and put the bedrooms on the right? With over 1800 sf, you should be able to get a better plan/layout.

    Have you looked at 30x60 doublewide floor plans for an idea? They usually have a good usage of space.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked shead
  • Ali Rose
    5 years ago
    I would downsize/remove coatroom, move laundry into expanded mud room and turn huge laundry area into master bath. you could have a pedistol sink, large shower and toilet. a second bathroom is great for resell and with growing kids. plus the privacy from the kids is priceless.
    Mary and the Lambs thanked Ali Rose
  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Thank you Sapphire and Ali!


    RE 2nd bathroom - we neglected to mention that this house will have a full basement (required because of the frost line where we live). So, there will be a 2nd full bathroom in the basement of the house. The basement will be finishes, and will have a guest room, TV room, furnace room. So, hopefully that takes care of it. Good point about teens hogging the bathroom though!


    SHEAD - We did consider the living space on the left side. However, with the placement on the lot, the neighbours trees would shade nearly all the left/south side all day. Which would be ok in the summer... but we'd never see the sun in the winter (and we need it!). Additionally, at all times of the year, the sun beats down on the west side. Between migraines and a child with vision issues, we want to avoid that.

  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago

    I agree with shead. Flip your design so the common areas (kitchen, utilitarian rooms, DR and LR) are in the region of the garage. Front door and garage entrance would debouch into the common areas. Residential areas at the other end and private.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked tangerinedoor
  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    "We did consider the living space on the left side. However, with the placement on the lot, the neighbours trees would shade nearly all the left/south side all day. Which would be ok in the summer... but we'd never see the sun in the winter (and we need it!). Additionally, at all times of the year, the sun beats down on the west side. Between migraines and a child with vision issues, we want to avoid that."

    Responding to this...

    Put your utilitarian rooms in this area. It sounds like it's the SW corner?

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  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Responding to:

    "TANGERINEDOOR - your friend's house is exactly like what we're wishful for. Esp with the solar heating etc... we will get good sunlight during the day, but only on the south side. How to capitlize on that... is one of our (many) dilemmas. Which side of your friend's floor plan faces the sun? We would be using a floor plan just like this one, however, we need to have the bedrooms grouped. That makes things extra awkward for us.""

    Yep! The sunshine comes from the south, ergo, that's the likely best way for panels to face.

    My friend isn't the only one with a house like this! And I'm getting one. 100% solar, netZero, modular, affordable. There are a lot around here. The State even supports this build with incentives, etc. housing non-profits are building tracts of them. They all look different: this is the great thing about modular boxes: you can stack them, T them, offset them, make a very long one....

    I live in northern New England. The homes have a flattish pitch (although they don't have to), and the panels on many (but not all) of the homes are on a pitch that faces south-ish.

    The homes are shaped and oriented to maximize solar access.

    But, in general, it's whatever works!

    The garage/carport can have panels on it too.

    I will say, though, that these netZero modulars are purpose-built design. It can't be retro-fitted. All interior climate-controlled. These homes are hyper-efficient: the exterior walls are 10", just to give you an idea.

    Almost all the solar is made in the summer. The extra goes on the grid. When I need electricity in the winter when there's no sun, it comes off the grid and uses my credits.

    My best observation about this whole thing for you..... I'm not sure you're working with the right builder. Your builder should have a design team that's done all this before and can put the pieces together for you with your input. They just go like lego blocks,, for gosh sake! It's not rocket science. If the builder isn't doing that, IMO you need a different builder.

    And if you want to do netZero, your builder needs to be a specialist in hyper-efficient and solar design.

    As I mentioned, don't worry about furniture, closets, any of that, while you're trying to figure out where the rooms go. You're jumping the gun. Make cutouts for the rooms. Move them around. Play and consider. Maximize the square footage of usable space.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked tangerinedoor
  • redsilver
    5 years ago

    If you can do without an entry wall, I would. A living space that is rectangular is much nicer than one with nothing in the big center(square). You can put the tv(that is always THE QUESTION "WHERE TO PUT THE TV?" on one of the 2 shorter walls and than 3 sides of the room seating can view it. Also. Just because it's a toilet, doesn't mean it needs a room. There is nothing nicer for a farm home, than a toilet closet(3 ft wide, 4 ft long-if possible?) in the utility room, where the mud, and the boots and the laundry is. A stackable laundry unit is quite awesome if space is limited. That said, there is something great about a washing machine and even a toilet closet, in a garage too, if you don't find room in a house. 2 washing machines on a farm can be really sweet... be sure and use a gray water discharge if you can put it on an exterior wall. It will keep the trees growing and the lawn watered wonderfully, and it is not complicated or technical..

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  • mnmamax3
    5 years ago

    And once you have space laid out, imagine waking up in the morning and walking through your house to grab coffee, let out the dogs, go milk the cows, whatever. Think about where you'll need to go and what makes sense for you. You're smart to figure in for your furniture, but your rooms doo look small. Put the dog wash first thing next to the door - any door! I'm sorry you've sought out help and had so much trouble. That can be very frustrating! Good luck!

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  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    Idea for west end. These are the color blocks I'm talking about. I didn't put together the bedroom end, 'cos I ran out of time.

    Entrance is from garage. You could put a grand front entrance between the melon color and the aqua. You could put a back door to a deck from the plum area.

    Aqua and plum are common areas. Melon is all your utilitarian stuff, including laundry, mudroom, pet shower, coatroom, boot de-mucker... Those spaces all separate but clustered.

    I'm missing a couple of rooms like a master bathroom and a flex room, but there's plenty of space.

    The common areas and front hallway are open and spacious except for marriage walls, as needed.



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  • mainenell
    5 years ago
    So, from one light sleeper with a heavy snoring partner to another. Eventually, you’ll find it is easier to just have your own room and bed. So build it that way. And don’t feel guilty about it.
    Mary and the Lambs thanked mainenell
  • B Carey
    5 years ago

    With your kiddos being nearly 12 by the time the house is done, you only have a few years before one of those bedrooms can be stolen for a snoring room! May as well make something work for the time being that will also work when kids are gone.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked B Carey
  • tangerinedoor
    5 years ago

    Off topic but kinda related. If snoring is a problem, may I suggest a sleep study? It can be a very serious health problem that can be readily addressed. In that case, you might find little use for the flex bed!

    Mary and the Lambs thanked tangerinedoor
  • suezbell
    5 years ago

    Possible changes for your consideration, not necessarily all together:


    Closets may well need to be at least 2.5" deep: measure your hanger w/your heaviest coat on it.


    Rather than make any room inside your home as your muddy boot stomping room, and if you need to do so to build affordably now, count on enclosing your breezeway later and making it your boot stomp space -- even if it means you can initially only enclose it w/plastic sheeting -- and have it enter your mud/laundry room.


    Rather than add an additional bedroom, forcing other rooms to be smaller, add a built in twin sized day bed as a "window seat" in your front entry room covered w/a thick gel mat for a flex sleeping room -- w/sleeping bag for bedding, possibly atop an air mattress.


    You could swap the bath and laundry, make the bath a "bath and a half" -- two powder rooms w/tub/shower in between, w/one powder room accessible from the hall and the other accessible from the master bedroom.


    You could minimize hall space if you put your great room w/entry in the middle of the home, adding two children's bedrooms on one side of it (w/two powder rooms in between at the outside wall w/windows and each w/a closet between powder room and interior great room wall) having the master bedroom, bath and laundry on the other side of it, accessing the breezeway (to be enclosed later as a boot stomp space) through the mud room.

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  • sabrinatx
    5 years ago

    Have you looked at double wide trailer floor plans? These could give you an idea for laying out rooms.

  • thinkdesignlive
    5 years ago
    Very rough but doable if you put public space in middle. You want your laundry/mud room, etc off the breezeway for sure and not at the front of the house. Also noticed you didn’t allocate space for the furnace, etc. I’m showing that off the laundry. Again, this is rough and once drawn to proper scale things are tight but not unreasonable.
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  • thinkdesignlive
    5 years ago
    Whoops looks like there will be a divorce as I’ve not shown the ‘marriage wall’. Sorry.
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  • mainenell
    5 years ago
    @tangarinedoor a sleep study cannot solve all snoring issues.
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  • PRO
    PPF.
    5 years ago



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  • homechef59
    5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    PPF has given you the basis to form a plan.

    The front unspecified space can be configured into whatever mudroom/laundry/pantry/storage arrangement that you desire.

    I would consider sliding the two bedrooms over to the end so that one uses the unspecified space on the corner. This would take advantage of two walls with two windows in two of the three bedrooms. That makes for good light.

    I would expand the single bath into two bathrooms back to back. One to be used by the master only consisting of shower/toilet/sink/storage. The second bath would service the two bedrooms and guests. It would need a tub. Back to back baths are cost effective from a construction standpoint.

    All closets should be reach in closets. They will be the most efficient. They need to be a minimum of 25" deep. You may have enough room to make remaining space from the rear flex room into a small bedroom/office/flex/storage closet.

    I would put an interior doorway into the hall from the mudroom/laundry/pantry/storage/currently unspecified space. I would put another interior doorway at the other end of the hall into the living area.

    Code will require that you have two exterior doors. I would put one in the living area and the other at the other end of the house in the mudroom/unspecified area.

    You will also have room in the hallway to put a window at the end for light.

    You have the option to put the front entrance on the side or front with a little entry porch.

    Another optional item would be a fireplace in the living area. You have two exterior walls that this could go on. How about a solar tube in the hallway for passive light?

    You could end up with a four bedroom/two bath house with fireplace in the same square footage that meets your family's needs.

    Mary and the Lambs thanked homechef59
  • suezbell
    5 years ago

    Have you considered putting your washer and dryer in the basement or is that not practical at your location?


    For privacy alone, I prefer the plan from Pill-Maharam Architects that someone else suggested better than your original; however if having three bedrooms and one bath all on one end of your home is essential because of a limit of one bath on that main upper level, at least reconsider your floor plan with regard to your entrances.


    If you will be accessing the basement from the main upstairs level via an interior stairwell anyway, consider putting that stairwell in a pair of enclosed entrance rooms, both on the breezeway side of the home but with one both upstairs and the other downstairs. Have the downstairs entry as your basement mud boot stomp room and use your breezeway as your mud stomp room upstairs. You could have your washer and dryer within in a closet beside another closet for dirty clothes hampers with shelving above for laundry and cleaning supplies either in the basement entry or the upstairs entry.


    From the downstairs entrance -- in addition to the closets beneath the stairwell for the washer and dryer and dirty clothes and cleaning supplies -- you could have two doors: one door leading to the upstairs entrance and the other door leading to a downstairs efficiency apartment to make your home a true multi -generational home.


    If you add a door in the dining area adjacent to the kitchen in the upper/main level to serve as your main level your "back" door, you could create a single entrance in the coldest front corner with two exterior doors: one to serve as both your front entrance and another to access the breezeway.


    You might consider placing the door to the master bedroom in a wall separating it from the dining room rather than entering the master bedroom from the hallway leading to the other two bedrooms and the one main/upstairs floor bath. If that one main upstairs floor bath is at the end of the hall with the two children's bedrooms on the other side of the house, you might could have two doors entering the bath -- one from the hall and one directly from the master bedroom.


    Make the front of the roof of your breezeway even with the front of your home and make it wide enough to enable you to have the option of enclosing it later to become a screened porch or even a "sun porch" -- a room that could double as an upper story main boot stomp room.


    If you tile your entry rooms and have each of them one step below the floor of the rest of that level of your home and include a covered drain in the floor and you could, literally, hose out any mud brought in.


    Remember that in the northern hemisphere, you'll usually want to put the rooms you want to have the most sun facing the south.


    Good luck on your new home. Let us know how it turns out.



    Mary and the Lambs thanked suezbell
  • Mary and the Lambs
    Original Author
    5 years ago

    Wow!Overwhelmed by all the great ideas. Thank you all so, so much. We have been offline for a few days, but will now comb through all your responses and see what we can make work. Thank you for the drawings as well - super helpful. You all are such a lovely bunch - we appreciate your help!


  • summersrhythm_z6a
    5 years ago

    What about a wrap around porch? It would be lovely to have a couple swing benches or a swing bed. :-)

    I am not too far from you on the other side of the Great Lakes, in the same ice hole. I think a large coat closet is a must for our 6 months of winter. Do you have a basement in the plan?

  • katinparadise
    5 years ago

    following