Home extension/renovation ideas for tough layout
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Hi,
I just recently purchased an old 1960's unit. It used to be one big house but was subdivided into two units. One upstairs and one downstairs. Now, the layout is a bit unusual. This is the floor plan for the unit.
Highlighted in orange, is the outline of the unit above mine. The house itself is an old brick house. I am looking to build to the front (highlighted in blue) and possibly double storey? Given the layout, I really would not know where to begin. Not sure if knocking down internal walls is a possibility either, as there is a unit above mine. I would also like to knock down the bath, toilet at the back to make a nice decking area, (That all appears to be an old extension btw), but then I would be down to 1 bath for the whole house. I would love to get some feedback on what my possibilities are, and cost.
Thanks
Marsh
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Comments (8)
8 years agoI suggest changing some rooms around, the kitchen I think would still have garden access? depends on how it's shared. As with removing any walls you need to check with a builder/engineers
Marsh Mac thanked siriuskeyRelated Discussions
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Comments (41)Hi Sarah, hope you enjoyed your travels last night, that's something we have spent our lives doing plus living in different countries. Do look into the attic room/s they are lovely and the Velux skylights very unobtrusive, look great and if positioned correctly take care of venting any hot air, as I mentioned ours were pivoting ones and could be locked open in several positions. I much prefer these to dormer windows, you don't really notice them. The stairs were built off site and lifted into position and installed, built in. At the time we did ours a very good friend a builder did the same but just completely opened the whole ceiling space right out towards the gutters into a large bedroom play study area for his daughters, also using Velux windows. Glass ceilings, like Velux windows have been around for years, believe me I know, we're both getting older. Velux windows can be used as glass ceilings in opening and non opening configurations. I would love to see you keep the outdoor loo as well and updating the old shed into a new connecting space to the house, perhaps a glass breezeway. I will have another look at your plan again over the weekend. I love your front iron gate as well, auto sliding driveway gates work really well and would really fit with your carport. My brother in law put in a tall timber sliding gate at his last home, lovely cheers...See Moreextension & renovation ideas
Comments (9)Hi Renee, We always try to give north aspect to living areas and east (for morning risers) or west (for sleepers-in) to bedrooms, minimising south aspect. Given the backyard is north-facing, and that the existing part of the house already suits smaller rooms, I would keep the existing part of the house as a bedroom wing, with the living/dining side becoming a master suite and 4th bedroom (windows facing west) with central corridor. The existing bedroom facing south could have a skylight added. Alternatively if you are a morning riser, for slightly more cost you could turn the existing 2 bedrooms into your master suite with east windows, and turn existing living side into 3 bedrooms . There could also be enough room for a sitting room/2nd living area too off the central circulation spine, especially if you space the new extension from the existing house with a courtyard on one or both sides of the corridor. Then a simple rectangular extension (assuming budget is critical) for your new open plan living /kitchen /dining facing north, with a full-width deck. Good Luck!...See MoreBest design and layout for extensive renovations
Comments (39)Hi All, apologies for the delay in responding and thanks again for all your suggestions. Siriuskey - the sunroom is currently used by myself as a study/make-up room (a computer, desk and printer at one end the other end a dressing table). I don't think it would be suitable as an ensuite as I believe it was an old verandah that has been enclosed and the front is all window, which face the street. We live in Northern NSW, near Lismore. I had a new split system air conditioner installed mid-winter last year and it seems to be helping with the heating and cooling, but of course it would be great if we didn't have to use it too often (even though we have a fair few solar panels), oklouise - if we were to enclose part of the patio to make extra room I, think I would 'roughly' leave the kitchen were it is but widen doorways and have a bigger island bench. I would then use the 'new' room as a dining room and the old dining room would be like a sitting room with the potential to perhaps move the loft bedroom stairs in there in the future (which would gain full use of bedroom 3 back). These are just rough ideas at the moment though, we are still open to ideas. Kate - we could potentially move the bathroom into bedroom 3 but I don't know if it would gain us anything... unless I'm misunderstanding your suggestion. siriuskey - I have attached 2 photos; one shows part of our patio looking back to the family room door and you can see the pool fence for where it is situated with the house. The second one is an aerial photo of our block showing the house and pool. I hope these are useful. The patio has a room and ceiling and concreted floor, so I don't think it would be too hard to enclose part of it in. I love all the feedback and suggestions so far, so please don't hold back!! Thank you....See MoreFeedback on extension/renovation idea
Comments (16)How ere you proposing to retain the 4th bedroom when you plan to turn it into a separate living area adjoining the kitchen? Your revised plan with the changes only shows the backend of the house, not the full floorplan. From that I assumed that the current 4th bedroom was being repurposed as a dining/living room and you were retaining the original 3 bedrooms. If you look at the original house fllorplan, it's a H shape with what appears to be two equal sized wings. One of them houses 3 bedrooms while the other the current kitchen, 4th bed/study and the dining room. Flipping the house into a mirror image will require moving the walls of the current dining/kitchen and study to create three bedrooms the same size as your existing ones. The kitchen would then be positioned in the [current] centre bedroom space with an open plan dining, living towards the rear. There is no need to install a U shaped kitchen as you currently have. A galley style that runs across the space will be more space efficient and give you a large island to work with. While the front part could be your 4th bedroom or you can relocate your current front living room to that space and put the forth bedroom where the current living area is. It's really not much different to the floorplan you have in mind, it's just a mirror image of it placing all the bedrooms in the south and living area's in the north as is desirable. Unless you are planning to move out during the build it's going to be difficult living in the middle of any renovation. Your builder will have to remove the rear wall of your house to extend and you'll be living in a house with tarps on the backend anyway. Any renovation can be staged to cause least inconvenience. But no matter what, changing the footprint of a house is always going to be a major hassle. Which is why a lot of people choose to move out and rent for the duration of the build....See More
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my suggestions include a loft master suite inside the raised roof space, double garage, expanded kitchen opening out to a deck with beams (shown as dotted lines) replacing the wall between the old kitchen, hallway and bedrooms) and new bathroom inserted into the old living room space
simple gable roofs would retain the style of the original house
PRO8 years ago
oklouise