Downstairs Flow

last year

We have purchased an old house which we will be doing some renovation work to - the floor plans are attached. At a high level we plan to do:

• Single or double storey side extension replacing the existing garage to create a large kitchen / dining / utility area (downstairs) and possibly extend bedroom 3 out to be larger and include an en-suite
• Loft conversion to act as master bedroom and bathroom.
• Internal remodel to link the two reception rooms and provide access to kitchen / diner from hallway
• 5no. bedrooms, two with an ensuite and a separate family bathroom. Kitchen, utility
and pantry. An open-plan family / dining space and a separate study. Ground floor
W.C. and shower room.

As you can see from the downstairs the ‘flow’ of the rooms is a bit odd and we can’t work out how to work the above, we are considering building slightly outwards from where the current hallway is to make larger and then access the kitchen from the left hand side / alternatively move the position of the front door to the other side of the windows to give better room access?

Featured Answer

la_la Girl

last year

I would recommend talking with a few well regarded residential architects who have experience working on older homes - also make sure to drive around and look at their previous projects (even better if former clients want to show you the interiors) - also good to ask if they typically work with certain builders and then dig into whether their clients have been happy.

FWIW We have an older home (100 yrs old this year) - we moved our kitchen and added on a second level master suite - we lived in the house for 7 years before doing the addition/reno so we understood a lot of the issues we needed to solve, we worked hard to make sure the new construction connected to the character of the original home (consistent chunky trim, continuous hardwoods with no thresholds, repeating archways found at the front of the home, $$$$$ windows that look original etc..)

older homes can be tricky to add on to -several high end builders did not want our project even though there was a large budget bc they did not want to deal with what can come along with an older home. Our old girl was super sweet and didn't give us any surprises but LOTS in our neighborhood presented complexities once reno's were underway

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Comments (16)

Steven Osman
Original Author
last year
Posted to soon. Our question is whether anyone has done a similar conversion and what their solutions were?
PRO
Mark Bischak, Architect
last year
You provide too little information for anyone to provide viable advice other than find a local architect to assist you.
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Steven Osman
Original Author
last year
@Mark - what additional information would you need as I can provide more
bpath
last year
last modified: last year
Are you in the UK? Asking only because expectations and popular design choices may vary across the ocean.
Steven Osman
Original Author
last year
I am indeed
PRO
Mark Bischak, Architect
last year
The local architect will collect the information they need.

One obvious one is where the loft is you plan on converting.
chartreuse scorpion
last year
Have you secured planning permission for the loft conversion?

Does your separate WC on the first floor have a sink in it? I'd much rather knock through the wall between the WC and the bathroom if not.
Steven Osman
Original Author
last year
We haven’t yet but have engaged an architect. Yes for the upstairs we plan to knock the toilet bathroom through to make a large family bathroom.
Steven Osman
Original Author
last year
The upstairs is fairly straight forward what we want to do, it’s more the configuration / flow of the downstairs which needs work
PRO
PPF.
last year
Do you know houzz.co.uk
la_la Girl
last year
last modified: last year
I think it can be hard to crowd source original layouts - i’d recommend working with your architect and explaining your needs/constraints and have them come up with an initial plan. Then I’d ask them if it’s okay to post on a public board to feedback/to help you think more about it - if they are comfortable with that, circle back here and post the proposed plan for feedback - good luck!
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
last year
THis is a US site and any help we give would need to conform to UK specs so a good architect and maybe an interior designer to work with them is the answer.
Sigrid
last year
If you moved the door to the room labeled "clks" you could remove parts of the wall between the hall and the sitting room and remove the door between the hall and the living room. You'd have to remove some doors in the hall labeled. "clks".

I have no idea what your house looks like, so moving the door could be a no-brainer or it could produce a very awkward exterior.
L Stokes
last year
last modified: last year
The hall between the garage and kitchen…can you utilize some space for a pantry where clks is? No window in WC is a deal breaker for me…can the hall window be incorp into the WC room? Looks like a n opening, or 2 on each side of the fireplace into the living room, to create a circle flow.

Are you jeeping 5 bedrooms? ayou mentioned 2 ensuites. They looks quite small…are there closets in them?

where are you looking for laundry to go?

Agree that old houses present challenges. If it is wood, easier than brick. but know that you are also going to need electric and hvac modifications, along with plumbing, and possibly structual.
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
last year
It sounds like you are in the UK and if so what are the restrictions you need to deal with. To me this sounds like you should keep looking for a house that better suits your needs since what you are planning is huge $$$$$$$ You need ana rchitect for sure and maybe at the same time a good ID who works well with the architect you choose