Why not put the laundry where the butlers panty is, and make a bigger more functional kitchen? I am concerned the you will end up with a very small kitchen, and a lot of wasted space and cost in the pantry.

Re downstairs think about routs to access fridge from outside eg as kids get older go straight for fridge tap and pantry do do long as that route not interfering Ruth stove use all good I'd also move garage closers to boundary as shame to lose all that north light to garage - can you have a light well btw garage n house and move pantry etc to other side as if you live Sth like Melb your living areas will be very dark

I would consider putting some glazing on the third wall of the courtyard otherwise your stairwell might be quite dark.
Also, you seem to have a lot of sinks... Kitchen, laundry and pantry.

I agree - swap butlers pantry and laundry. Fridge space also not practical where it is. Upstairs looks great - good sized rooms. I highly recommend double sink in ensuite if you can. We built also - I made a small main bathroom but oversized ensuite as that's generally where there's two of you in the bathroom at once. ( once the babies grow up of course!). Good luck. What an adventure!

Is the upstairs rumpus for you or the kids? They're not little for very long and you don't want their noise leaking into your room. I'd put the spare room Hubby will use where the rumpus is and put the rumpus for the kids in between their rooms. Great for sleepovers when young, movies when tweens and extra study space as they get older. And hubby gets quiet area at your end of upstairs.

Hi Beck. Since your view is to the south, I wonder if you could swing your kitchen 90 degrees to take advantage of this. If not, I too think B's pantry and laundry should be switched-unless you have a particular reason for leaving as is. Also, I notice your downstairs linen closet is much larger than the upstairs one, yet, with all the bedrooms upstairs (save the one for MIL) I believe you may find you need the larger one upstairs. Another idea is to incorporate a laundry chute into the design. I would put one in the main upstairs bathroom. And if you swap laundry and B pantry positions, the chute would be directly over the laundry. Believe me, you will not regret doing so.

I think you have a problem in your design in regard to aspect. A south and west facing lounge room are not great aspects.

I see you have tried to capture some north with an unroofed courtyard. I would increase this if you could and remove all windows to the west in your lounge room. South is a harsh light which can be softened with almost black day blinds. With southern light they become very see through.

Hi lovelies, thank you for your advice. We are building just north of Wollongong in NSW.

A few comments to change the position of the laundry and pantry. I have been back and forth on this many times. The reason I put them where they are is I thought the pantry would get a bit of shade from the garage from the western sun and that space is slightly larger allowing a bench one side and shelving/pantry on the other. Would you still change them and is there a specific reason why you would do that or is it just a preference? The laundry chute is a good idea though AnneB.

The downstairs Linen is massive, I agree, but it either become hall or linen. I thought a bigger linen was a better option. I am also considering making the nook an upstairs linen as well if I don't have enough storage there. Gallifrey no need to worry about the pantry not being used, I love cooking and will certainly make good use of it. Maybe we should call it my sanctuary! : ) The Kitchen has a 3.5m island and backbench and the cabinetry (inc fridge) is 3m on the north wall. I have a really small kitchen now so I thought that was massive in comparison. Do you think it still needs to be bigger?

Twezza, definitely windows in hall/courtyard wall and upstairs hall, these are yet to be drawn in! Oh the sinks, I am planning on a very small one in the pantry, not as is currently drawn. But for how I intend to use that space it will be useful to have a direct supply there.

Where would you guys suggest positioning the fridge? I had it in this position, along the lines of girlguides comments about ease of access without getting in the way of the oven and cooktop which I had intended putting on the back wall.

Bigreader, rumpus, probably used by adults at this stage, but we went back and forth with your suggestion as well and ended up with the rumpus at the end as it allows everyone to admire the view. Also, if in fact there ends up being any additional children, we were given advice that having all the minor bedrooms separated from the master might be a good idea. Would you still swap them?

LesleyH, do you mean the west windows in the dining area? I was considering changing these to a highlight window to allow some light in but give it more protection from the eaves until the sun is a bit lower and less harsh in late afternoon. The living room is on the East wall. With the south light, I was of the understanding that as it get's no direct sun and is more ambient, that the south light is softer?

I agree, if you're considering more children keep the bedrooms together.

I just don't get the fad if Butlers Pantries?? Love a walk in pantry but who wants to Do prep and wash up in a cupboard?

Oh yes, you either love them or hate them. I consider this to be more of a pantry with a small sink and some bench. I have no intention of having an extra oven, dishwasher, fridge and what ever else they put in a full butlers pantry.

You have some great ideas Kate. The second door from the garage to the pantry is a good one. My MIL would have a conniption if we had a separate ensuite installed for her. The downstairs shower serves a couple of purposes, for MIL, and we are building near the ocean, so when we come back all sandy, we don't get it all through the house, can pop the kids in there to clean up. For the amount of times she will come to stay, I don't think we need the extra toilet downstairs.

Flipping the front door and sidelite, I hadn't even thought of that, but it would be much nicer. I'm not sure if the linen where the coat cupboard is would be big enough, I seem to be accumulating a lot of props for for this photography business. I don't really like it there but need to have it somewhere and I liked that it conceals the mud cupboard.

I'm so glad you think a south backyard isn't that bad. Do you think centralising the alfresco doors and space on the back wall would be better than it off to the side and then have windows on either side, or as you suggested along the whole back? We had thought that we could extend some decking out at a later stage if we wanted more, but hadn't considered more doors there.

I'll rethink the nook and fridge situation and the pantry/laundry doors.

Thankyou so much for your comments.

Woops - read east as west.

I agree with the comments re- laundry and pantry. You sound like you do really want to keep both though, could you switch them? That would work better for flow I think.

I really think you'd come to regret putting the linen cupboard where it is. That is a lovely wide, grand entry, that then narrows to a bottleneck. I admit I haven't looked too carefully- but maybe consider moving it to where you use your linen- near bedrooms.

I think there are some lovely elements to your design but I feel a bit sad about the best aspect going to your garage!
Make sure you check out Undercover Architect's blog before your turn the drawings into buildings and to make sure you're really happy with it.

Thanks CP, I completely agree with you. As hard as I try I can't convince my husband that however. He is a complete sceptic on passive solar design. He would prefer to build a project home as long as he get his very specific garage. I have looked at having the garage to the rear, but we are a backyard kind of family and I really don't want cars driving out there and I much prefer living spaces at the rear as well. It's a relatively busy street. Hence why I have incorporated the courtyard. The hubby is trying to convince me that it's unnecessary, but I think it's essential.

I love Undercover Architect!!!! Have even considered getting her to do a review of the concept plan, but have popped it up here first to get some initial advice.

Do you have a budget in mind to construct and does it all conform with the councils regulations?

Have you done a BASIX on it yet? An initial one will give an indication of glazing requirements for example. If BASIX requires double glazing then its an indication that its not performing very well, too much glass, etc..

A sun study/shadow diagrams will also give an indication on the size of courtyard, it may need to be a bit longer to allow some good sunlight coming into the lower living area during winter.

A 3.5 m island is large. It may need to have a join though. 3.0 x 1.2 m is a fairly standard slab size....so may not need a join. The joins are usually quite invisible but they can crack after a while, depends on manufacturer though......

Hi MB Design & Design, we are working to a budget and this concept design is in line with the local Development Control Plan and flood management requirements.

We haven't done a BASIX assessment yet, not that far along, however we are considering a builder who specialises in building sustainable houses. Higher level insulation, low E glass as a standard and double glazing where necessary, thermal mass wall if needed.... My biggest concern is that south wall onto the backyard and how much glass will be in it. My BIL is an air conditioning designer and is doing a bit of a work up for us at the moment to see how it measures up.

We do have a shadow diagram and I was thinking of increasing the size of the courtyard a touch more to get winter light in for a little longer. Now that you have mentioned it, I will probably opt to do it!

Reducing the size of the island is definitely worth considering. The cost of having to use two slabs of stone for the sake of the extra 0.5m might not be worth it.

Thank you for your advice

Your block is quite small in both width and depth and thus:
1. I would not have an internal courtyard at all... it breaks up the internal open space and makes the internal line of sight short and rooms claustrophobic. There also wouldn't be enough light into the internal courtyard which would resulting poor quality plants. Combine most of your outdoor spaces to run along the west fence of your house with about 2m clearance from the southern fence. In other words, the outdoor space is L shaped.
2. Place the clothes line at the SW corner, then N of that, a 4m (N-S) x 2m (E-W) pergoda for S wind protection, and to fend off the low SW sun during the winter months
3. Have a long outdoor room along the W perimeter of the house with the Dining and family room opening out to it. Thus move the kitchen to SE corner with windows opening to S and/or W
4. Remove the linen cupboard at the entry foyer... not much storage is lost if you have a long and low cupboard with a picture frame placed above... this will max the wall to wall depth at the entry and increase line of sight from the front door to the stairs and beyond.
5. Centrally located stairs work better with a block with wider frontage

The flooding aspect should be considered in your design. Do you know why there is the requirement?

From your description, I understand that the ground floor is at 0.5 m, and the next floor needs to be 4.5 m higher. Is this correct?

On a completely different note, I would swap the pantry and laundry around, and change the doors to pocket sliding doors to maximise space, and reduce the bruising from bumping into door handles.

I would also see if I could get a laundry Shute in from upstairs. With the swap around, you could get one in the ensuite maybe?

Hi Beck

Hope you realise your perfect plan. Join https://www.floorplanner.com/ for free and upload a copy of your plan that u can modify to test your different options, then do a 3D view and sèe if it "works".

bit late but here's my thoughts... i suggest direct access to bring the groceries in from the car and to take out your photography equipment , i've added some shelter at the front door and made small changes to allow for more storage with corresponding modification upstairs..i think potential overheating in the pantry could be overcome with careful insulation, small windows and external screening and the side entry door needs to open inwards with wider steps on the outside for more comfortable entry for little people.. Best of luck, whatever you decide it will be a gorgeous home for your family

Beck B have you seen some of the floorplans from Green Homes Australia? They are often quite creative solutions
http://www.greenhomesaustralia.com.au/home-designs/

Funny you should mention them CP, this design is actually a custom Green Homes concept plan : )

Thankyou oklouise, definitely better late than never! Some very good points, so awesome that you were even able to draw it up for me. I did try brixnmorta's suggestion but couldn't get the floor planner to work on my computer.

i forgot to highlight that others' suggestion of a laundry shute can be in the ensuite and/or upstairs wc vanity cupboards, the island in my plan is 3m x 75cm with a 120cm walkway from sink to stove and i think south facing backyards are cooler in summer when we're looking for some outdoor shade and keeping the garage to the front creates the long sunny afternoon side yard and the courtyard makes a lovely private lightwell that can be made even better with a garden wall to the east and is an ideal space for gorgeous shade loving ferns.

Hi again everyone,

I finally have some updated plans that I am relatively happy with based on a review of the previous version from all your awesome ideas.

What do you think?

For reference our block is 15.8m wide x 51m long with a creek and bushland to the rear of our south facing backyard. North is to the front of the house as per the compass orientation below.

Looks good at first glance.

Looks good but I would make a solid or sliding wall to the west on the deck and add a roof to the whole deck. You won't regret it.

Hi Lesley,

Do you mean the alfresco? It does have a roof over it, just the steps out beyond the end of the house to the backyard that are uncovered. The sliding wall is a good idea. Particularly as we intend to put the BBQ on the wall backing onto the pantry. Good protection for that space. If you are thinking there is a deck on the second level, it is just roof to the alfresco below not a deck. We had considered that but didn't think we would use it to justify the expense.

Thanks so much for your feedback.

Rebecca

So much better, well worth the extra thought, good luck with your lovely new home

Thanks Bec, please post pictures - you will have a great house.

Thanks oklouise and Lesley. I certainly will keep you updated! More than likely I'll need advice on colours, tiles, kitchen....and everything else in between!

I'm also late back to this plan party.. :-) looks so much better Beck B, I'm so glad you went with the idea of having a direct entrance into the working parts of the home.. laundry butlers pantry etc.. it makes for a much easier life! And I see you have utilized that whole living spaces area much better now, better thoroughfare, flow and more pantry space! Its a much better design

I would still consider a concealed sliding doors at the end of your kitchen.

Also having another look at your kitchen, and your sink seems in an awkward spot, not sure it that is just temporary, but have you considered moving the cleaning section of your kitchen (sink/dishwasher) along the wall? to the right if you clean left to right or vice versa. If it eating outdoors is something you do often, this will be much more convenient and also keep the dishes away from the 'lounge/dining' part of the room.

All the best with the build, make sure you post some pics when its done!!

Thanks Kate. I am feeling pretty comfortable with this design now.

I had forgotten about that extra door. I'll discuss with the builder.

The kitchen as drawn is not the actual kitchen design, still yet to do this, and I am pretty sure I'll put the sink on the back wall. At the moment I think I'll have it set up so we have wall oven, bench, cooktop, bench, sink/dishwasher and more bench up to the window. Leaving the servery and island free of any appliances.

Thanks so much for your feedback, it has been without doubt very valuable! I will certainly put up some photos as we progress and maybe a kitchen/pantry/laundry design for feedback! Colour choices, tiles ..... omg, the list of choices is endless!!!!