Hi oklouise,

Many thanks. Yes definitely still interested. Thanks for extending the roof past the lounge and dining rooms. We didn't mind that the Master Bedrooms dresser was integrated/visible from the hallway. The kitchen would probably function better to the north (especially a servery into the alfresco area near the pool) however we liked it to the south. In terms of a servery, we would rather loose this (given the island bench is right next to an external door) and gain a little more length on the combined living/dining room. We could probably loose the door on the cinema room and replace it with a deep, relatively narrow window. If this area is to have a secondary function as a bunker then the door may not be a loss.

Now for the garage, the house is starting to fill the pad on site. It may be easier to drive into and out of the garage (T movement) if the door was on the northern side and not to the west. To the west requires a tighter S turn movement. And then there is visitor parking.

Anyway, lots there - hopefully not too much. Happy to hear your thoughts on the above.

the kitchen is better on the north, do you mean that you want the kitchen 7m long without any external windows and do you want the cinema lengthened to match? or do you want the space to be asymmetrical ...this would shorten the north alfrescos to about 5m x 4.5m but with the wide sliding internal doors the cinema would not be as good a bunker as the office or northern hallway ..and where will visitors park? if the garage doors are on the north the western facade of the whole house will need no doors or windows ..quite a strange blank look for the front of the house?? the driveway and parking areas needs very careful site plans that should be made on site

We did like the idea of having kitchen between the family and cinema room - this was the previous plan that had the kitchen in the south and cinema to the north. Easy access to the family room when the children are younger is appealing as well as some separation between noise sources. We were also thinking that all the glass in the living and dining rooms would provide enough light to the kitchen particularly with the high ceiling. Prefer to keep the plan symmetrical still - we're ok with the "side" alfresco area being a little shorter - they're still reasonably large. We would like to make the living and dining areas about 10 m long combined - the purpose of this is to make the lounge room longer so that two lounges can sit facing one another with their ends facing the wall (TV) and the ocean.

That's a good point with the garage - we will just do some more earthworks on site to provide a wider turn.

Sorry forgot to mention oklouise. Is there a ratio (H:L:W) that makes rooms balanced ie I'm thinking the lounge/dining room. With the cinema in the north, we are ok loosing the external door and replacing it with a small, relatively narrow window. Dont mind loosing the servery either when the kitchen is in the south. The walls at these locations will more than likely have a major structural element linking the diaphragm (ceiling) which supports the very front wall of glass.

And we were ok with the dimensions of the kitchen and cinema in the prior plan.

I was going to suggest these changes which does away with passage way which I consider wasted space, It also stops air circulation now being able to come through from the office (which would have double cavity doors) through to the family/living room doors.

Moving the ensuite so as not to allow access for the pool, mum & dad staying in the guest room wouldn't appreciate everyone coming into their bathroom from the pool.

Instead making access to the WC via the new Laundry position , you could even have shower in the laundry to service the pool. Things marked in black are the changes.Apologies to Oklouise for messing with her plan but saves me a lot of time redrawing. cheers

Sorry been away , doing paid work, DB like your Ferrari and looking at its floor plan not practical . I'll bow out as it looks like your mind is set on design . All i will say is try and give it some style or wow as you say because the rest of the housing in that estate is bland and you have the stand out block on the hill .

You can have style and practicality, just need time to think it through. My place is being built with 3 different use's in mind. 1st our home, wife gets b1 & i get b2 with interconnected ensuite. Or 2nd We can rent out lower floor as its own Unit. 3rd We can Air b&b whole place . So what i am trying to say think about future needs as well.

I think with your plan a lot more thought needs to go into airflow thru building, Its the type of home we build in southern states to keep warm .

Have to say I agree with 3d, you have the block and position to do something amazing, have you contacted an Architect to help with this project, look at this amazing house in NZ and it's position.

you mentioned that you would like the living areas to be 10m long to allow for the TV wall...on which wall did you plan to have the TV? and then what would be the purpose of the cinema room and there's also the family room for a TV...a very good sized sized dining area would be about 6m x 4m and a living area would be the same and a little less if living and dining are combined in one open plan room and the current living areas is already very generous (especially with the sliding doors open to the cimema room but small outdoor areas look skimpy and i would be reluctant to reduce the two alfrescos and the deck on the eastern side is not suitable for alfresco eating and barbq...you could easily swp the kitchne to the south side but what about supervising the pool?....think about the actual sizes of furniture being used in the room...this plan has 2100 sofas and a 2.5m table and still allows almost 2m of walking space all around...extra space won't help with a tv unless you specify a window or door less wall especially for the tv

This house on the beach in Zilzie where you are building is listed on Air BnB

https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/4672316?location=Zilzie%2C%20Australia&adults=4&children=0&infants=0&guests=4&check_in=2018-03-10&check_out=2018-03-13&s=uiDNNKss

Hi oklouise,

Yes there will be a lot of TVs in the house. We would like to have a TV in the Living Room against the western wall. Our current lounges are 2.9 x 1.1 metres and we like this size. We can see that as the children get older they will likely want a little independence - it could be that one will want to watch a show in the Family Room and other in the Cinema Room. We have extended family visit - three "living areas" provides the opportunity to relax if different areas and or watch different shows for the whole family.

We agree that the Dining Room doesn't need more size but we would prefer a little more width in the Lounge Room. Our current house has a Lounge Room that is 5.9 metres wide and it accommodates our lounges/TV nicely. It is the same layout as the plan you have drafted for us. I dont mind loosing 1 metre or so off the Alfresco Areas - they would seem reasonable in size at 4.5 x 5.8 metres. At the end of the day aren't they just outdoor dining areas?

In terms of supervising the pool from the kitchen, although further away, a southern kitchen seems to have a better line of sight to the pool than one to the north. The angle is little less acute.

I am reluctant to say this but what if we made the living dining rooms not as long (east to west) but wider norther to south. You could then rotate the dining table and achieve the layout for the lounge that we would prefer. My big reservation is that the room we want to be special could become quite normal.

Hi 3D Home Design,

Yes I agree the concept could have more flare and I do admire homes that are unique and balanced. We're trying to get a basic concept together that shows an architect/designer what we like - rather than present with no idea of what we can live with. Here is a little more information that can give some insight into our thoughts;

1. My partner (and her family who visit for extended periods) is English and is quite sensitive to the heat. As a country, the English are not exposed to insects in the way that we (Australians in the north) are either. Unfortunately we have mosquitoes and sandflies in the area as well. You could well say that we need a well ventilated home that makes use of the summer breezes. I agree in principal and we would like that. The reality is that sandflies will move through screens and the ambient air temperature can still be uncomfortable even with fans. We will need to air condition and there will be a focus on insulation - equal to that of passive ventilation/cooling. Making sacrifices for passive cooling may not achieve the best result for us when we reside in the home. On paper it will look good but it wont achieve the desired outcome in reality.

2. We don't want to over invest in the build. As you point out, nearby homes are not particularly grand. The developer of the estate went into liquidation and HomeCorp purchased a large number of the remaining lots. The resulting homes reflect an investor attitude and not one for the owner/occupier. I think it will take about 15 years before we see the standard of home change in the estate, with owner occupiers renovating/rebuilding post sale. We may have moved on by then and or subdivided the lot. I would also say that the expectations of buyers in this area is different to those in the more central areas of Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne. So the balance here is having a nice home that keeps up with the land and its position. Yes we could build something cutting edge and particularity grand but we run the real risk of over capitalization and confining ourselves to a very small number of buyers.

3. Trades are expensive in Central Queensland and have not corrected like other areas on the East Coast eg Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, Gold Coast. More conventional designs and practices will assist in achieving/maintaining budget.

So don't get me wrong, I would like a home that we can be proud of. I am also conscious that a little less grandeur can transfer into less work (to pay for the home) and more family time. Do I build that 5th bedroom that doesn't get used or take my family on holidays that build life skills and memories forever? We haven't set the design yet - I think we are trying to work out what is important for us so that we can provide a solid insight to the designer/architect. The help you and Oklouise have provided has been very helpful and we are appreciative of this.

Hi Siriuskey,

We are in a slightly different location and much more elevated. The home is a beautiful property and is owned by friends of the family.

feel free to ask whatever you like..it make more sense with the added explanation ...your giant couches do need extra space but i've retained the 6m in the living areas to allow for walking space all around and returned the kitchen to the south side and there's just enough space to squeeze in an optional tall narrow ventilating window for the cinema and kitchen and the cinema opens only to the gallery but you could open the office to the hallway and omit some of the doors and i've only included doorways to show walkways as windows should be placed to suit the structure and views ...there's quite a lot of room for reducing the size if necessary but the plan is as close to symmetrical as possible although i've made no allowances for the block walls but the overall floor area is about 425sqm with 106 sq m of external covered areas and 53 sqm of garages

Sorry Darren my intent was not too offend, i lived & worked @ Innisfail for 6mths and nearly purchased a property similar to yours at Etty Bay. That was till my wife came up. Than a cyclone ( think josephine ) long time ago, and that was the end of my Qld dream.

Oklouise does a fantastic job and that is a good layout with very little wasted floor space. I does tick lots of boxes and given its size and knowing construction costs for up there its in the $600-$880k mark.

It's strange in a way, because of our zone and coastal location we have to have a minimum 7 star energy rating and our wind zone is N5. So while we don't get cyclone our average wind is higher than yours and every month we get at least 3 day of above 110kph gusts. With temp range between -2 winter to 45 summer. An thank god we don't have midges. Whoops went off track, thinking you made great point re-airflow vs a/con. So insulation is key factor now, this includes glazing. While i have to spend a bomb on mine to meet energy requirement (double glazed) i would suggest that you could not go passed some of eco glass options in toughen laminate 12mm thick. This may enable you to have more glazed area at the rear. With that aspect no direct sun light will enter living area.

I too think life time experiences for kids are important, a mistake i sadly made chasing a career. But changed in their teens, so they turned out ok. Yes now being a grey nomad is huge fun, but we can afford to have our Ferrari now. ( p.s i worked for them and Land rover for 12yrs and i don't like them ).

Anyway good luck and look forward to seeing the end result.

Would you consider a floor plan similar to this with swapping the family bathroom into the bedroom area so as to keep the view. would you still keep the pool to the left seeing that you expect a 2 story house to be built on that side and be over looked?. Would you consider placing it center of the house so that when looking out toward the ocean (which you will only really see during the day) you would see the pool and then the islands, this would also be a good position for night time use and ambience. Glass pool fencing would give you a clear view.

Hi 3D Home Concepts,

You haven't offended me - I'm quite appreciate of the time and effort you have provided. I was just outlining a few of our considerations and how it will influence our homes design. I like people (and professionals) challenging our ideas and suggesting more informed and effective solutions.

In terms of glazing, I agree. We spent time with the reps from Capral yesterday looking at options to meet code and wind ratings. We will likely have to use their AGS 900 Series range it seems - and an access in the very front may not be the best idea in terms of weather proofing and managing uplift during a cyclone.

different concept idea , pavilions. Also thought for extra sleeping, consider in a wall fold down bed in cinema room. I have seen this done with huge success .

thinking about overall floor area this plan is 38 sq m smaller without losing the original symmetrical floor plan (enough to pay for fitting out the kitchen and?) the cinema is now an enclosed central cyclone shelter

Hi oklouise,

Many thanks. What is the floor area and maximum overall length/width? Would you mind if we could look at a side view as well? What is the highest point of the vaulted ceiling?

Hi Siruiuskey,

Yes I like the idea of a central pool however we only have a 33m deep house pad and I think we would be pushing it do an infinity pool well. The plan looks good (with the changes you suggested) however I did want to achieve an expansive view (out to sea) to the left and right as you enter the hallway and walk into the living and dining room area. I would like to frame the islands out on the water.

Hi 3D Home Design,

I can see the Pavillions has inspired you quite a bit. We did toy with the idea of excavating out for the garage (level with the road) and then going up two stories. Going more modern tends to point towards flatter roofs which look great but dont function well in higher rainfall. There is a nice house in the estate that is effectively about to be stripped and rebuilt because it continually floods internally. The claim is about $250k.

side view at 30 degree roof

west view at 30 degrees

total floor area 387 sq m including 23 sq m for each alfresco, 4 sq front porch and 38 sqm for the east deck and 51 sq m for the garage with 219 for everything else and measures about 21 m north south and 22m east west (plus the extra for thicker walls) but the alfrescos and decks can be deeper or shallow without affecting the floor plan and the last elevation has a 30 degree roof angle but the roof and ceiling needs to comply with the structural requirements and could be changed without affecting the floor plan...when you ask about ceiling heights i mean the height of the flat ceiling is 2700mm throughout the house and any vaulting will be higher and sloping up from 2700 to the limits of the structural restraints but, if you look at the lines showing the roof on the last plan and compare that to this next roof at 15 degrees there's an interesting change to the profiles...just by changing the angle of the roof and a few degrees difference on different parts of the roofs can also make a worthwhile difference to appearance and costs but you must first start with the structure and then think about appearance...this is the plan with a 15 degree roof angle all round

btw you mentioned in an earlier post that there could be a concern with access from the "front"..do you mean the east or west front as there needs to be no direct access from the living room to the deck which could be accessed from the north and south ends of the living area and allow easier structural arrangement for the eastern windows and, having just read the story about your neigbours' flooded roof i have to say there's nothing worse than a failing roof and it would be interesting to learn if the insurance company has some right of refusal due to design issues and maybe the conservative hip roof has more to offer

Hi oklouise,

Thanks very much again. Access at the west side is what I'm referring to. You can see an access track on the block at the moment. Because the block is elevated from the road (probably 2.5 m at is lowest which is toward the northern boundary and 10 m+ at the highest) we will probably retain an access (driveway) towards the north. This means an S turn into a west facing garage which will have a minimum turn radius requirement (maybe 6.5 m?). The internal track also provides access down the sheds.

By the way I'd like to send you a bottle of wine for all this help. Can you private message on this site?

consider having the house set at a slight angle which will still enjoy the best of the views but can also help with the driveway and parking areas

you mentioned some sheds and i hope you reliase that there's enough space in the garage for extra storage, workshop and gardening equipment and thankyou for the offer of the wine but i don't drink but would be very pleased to receive a copy of your final plans for my archives, best of luck with your new home

Hi oklouise,

Thanks very much for your help to date. Possibly some chocolates then. These are the sheds that I'm talking about. And you can see the internal access track.

The sheds are on a second bench about 2.5 metres lower down than the house pad.

This the old contour plan - it will give you a feel for how the block falls away.

playing with plans is my pleasure and you should take take a break from house plans and spend some time with your kids instead of the chocolates..but thankyou for the thought it is appreciated

The NE boundary is 47.9 m long and the front (SE) is 74.3m

Yes I think you could be right. Two story would look spectacular as a building but the wind... It is blowing 30+ knots up there today and the loadings on the front windows would be quite high. Pretty noisy I would think pushing up against the glass when the gusts come through.

Hi DB, I have worked out a floor plan introducing Breeze ways and using lots of Louvered windows. Position of bathrooms and layout within them can be rearranged to suit. I'am not a big fan of having so many different rooms, Media, family,rumpus etc, I think it's a step backwards to when we had separate kitchens ,dining.lounges etc. You could consider the media room doubling as a family room/snug/bunker for rough weather situations.. cheers

a couple of ideas for you

Well thought i'd add court yard to your layout Oklouise .

And Fly Around

My roofing technique is auto at the moment and this is what it came up with. The breezeway internal courtyards can be walled at the end with the roof open Balinese style

well done 3D..the fly around makes a floor plan come to life ...i love courtyards and we've always had them, regardless of climate

This for 3D & Oklouise, some years ago a very dear friend built a house like this above the beach over looking Iron Bottom Sound in the British Solomon Islands.

Internal courtyard with plunge pool, with windows and doors opening all around, big glass windows & doors plus louvers.

A floating deck opening out from the open plan living dining and kitchen, amazing house and view

Hi Siriuskey,

Many thanks. I'm working through the plan. Do you have the overall dimensions please?

Of the plan you kindly sketched up yesterday.

Hi 3D Home Design,

Many thanks also. The 3D is much appreciated. The plan that oklouise has developed for us provides for a small garden either side of the entry walkway and under the portico which isnt shown. I do like the idea (and as Siriuskey has included) as it allows for a nice lush feel. Furthering this as an internal courtyard would be great. What is the overall dimension of the house with this inclusion?

Your entrance Foyer is already a roofed Breezeway as it opens on both ends to either inside or outside or both,and you have opening louver panels both sides of the doors cheers

Beach side

Hi DB, I should explain my floor plan, the entrance foyer is the 3rd Breezeway but will be included in the roof, both sets of doors into this space are to have louver windows both sides and the size of these depends on the size of the door, ie; single or double doors

DB.....A LOT of ideas and advice flying around here.......skimming through I see you are endeavouring to establish a basic concept for a designer/architect to consolidate for you, which is great.......whilst you may think this is a logical approach to achieve the best outcome, you are arguably just throwing around random ideas rather than properly resolving/focusing on the critical aspects ........my advice is do this: firstly clearly ascertain two things on paper, not in plan or building format but in writing...that is 1. List all your requirements/needs/goals and 2. Nominate a budget. Next, identify/research a logical local designer/architect option and approach them with this information....A designer's job is to come up with an appropriate concept/solution that best balances your requirements, aligned with a budget and of course make it viable within context/site. Sure, you want a cost effective/modest result, that's fine, and that will influence the solution, but as a general comment it feels like there is massive potential being missed considering the site..it dens;t necessarily have to be that big or fancy, but you have to put the EXPERIENCE of the home front and centre of the process, and not just think of it as a kitchen or whatever laid out this way or that ....This is about an amazing site and the living experience of that and the design should be based on this and bring together your specific requirements elegantly balanced in context......The issue I have scrolling through all this is that you have all these almost disconnected ideas of building form, but you have this incredible site....... the process of resolving the spaces ideally needs to develop from cues of the immediate environment/site in order to make the most of it since you are pursuing a customised solution.....agree with MB, every project has a budget and ultimately from experience this is in general the ultimate/overriding constraint. This project could be anything upwards from $500K and it will come down to the working out how far you want to take it, and what your priorities are over various levels.......this one has seriously significant potential -make sure you make the most of it as you're truly fortunately to have this opportunity to build a home for you and your family to enjoy there.......best of luck :) PD

We all enjoy contributing to the challenges posted on Houzz we also all have different ideas likes and dislikes, there's no one way to do things.

Hopefully these thoughts and ideas can be stored away and pulled out when you might need to re think other possibilities.

No one should go to their chosen Architect or designer with their design/floorplan, simply make and take a list of things, like number and ages of persons going to live in the house, needs, likes dislikes and all of the items listed by Paul above.

You are paying an Architect firstly to offer their ideas and opinion, you will negate all of this by showing and telling them any floor plan, Sit on your hands and see what amazing ideas they can come up with. An onsite meeting is invaluable which unless you live and work in that area can't be given, that would include most of us that have commented on Houzz.

My big concern has been that a Tropical style house has not really been considered, which is so important.

Do check out the work of Architects in your area and pick one that you consider suitable and able to do the best job for your amazing site cheers

Agree with siriuskey......and furthermore it's important to understand that we all work differently and that when you eventually seek an architect or designer that there are different types, not just in their speciality/niche, but in their approach and way of working with people that will not suit everyone.....some designers do a particular "thing" and that's why you go to them, others are more flexible and collaborative.......it appears you are a hands-on guy with ideas so you'll likely need someone who is more open/sensitive to that.....this stuff is never right or wrong, it's about balance.......however I can confidently say it ALWAYS involves consciously and simultaneously negotiating the site/context, specific requirements/goals and money/cost.....point I try and make offering advice here is to ensure that the whole picture and relevant factors have been taken into account with the various suggestions/solutions/options......and whichever way it is approached it makes sense to have full clarity from the start for those fundamental project elements.......you'll get there :) PD