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10 Vital Mistakes to Avoid When Designing House Floor Plans
Designing a house floor plan is probably the most exciting experience of constructing a home. When you are designing house floor plans, you have all the liberty to try and brainstorm different floor plan layouts and concepts. You can easily change the position of rooms, layout of the kitchen and even experiment with different concepts and ideas to make sitting arrangements in your living room.
It does not cost anything to experiment with different floor plan concepts and layouts when designing house floor plans. You can move the main entrance to the left or right as per Home Vastu guidelines or adjust the dimension of your kitchen or add a huge side window to allow natural lights and ventilation in your living room.
You can substantially increase the functionality and aesthetics of your dream home by making these small and simple changes when designing house floor plans. Since, these changes are made either on the pen and paper or in the house designing software and therefore it’s inexpensive. You can’t really do much about the plot, because once you have purchased the plot, all that you can do is to make best use of the available space to create impressive floor plan.
However, making these simple changes won’t be easy at the construction stage. Once a wall is placed, it’s going to cost you extra money to demolish and rework. Moreover, some design mistakes are irreversible and it may not be easy to fix, especially if it involves structural change e.g. columns and beams positions.
Most common house floor plan mistakes to avoid
As I said, designing a house floor plan correctly can be the most exciting and rewarding experience. Especially, when you think critically and consider the best architectural principles and home designing guidelines. It takes a lot of money to construct a house, and there is no reason why you would not design your house floor plan correctly, to avoid any issues at the time of constructing your dream home.
We have been designing beautiful homes and spaces for over a decade now. And therefore we know what it takes to avoid common house floor plan mistakes and how to get it right.
If you are planning to construct a house and you are at the design stage, you may like to consider avoiding these house floor plan mistakes.
Inappropriate proportion
The whole idea of designing a house floor plan before starting the construction is to ensure that the overall plot space is divided proportionally into different rooms and spaces. Dividing the available space in the right proportion is seriously important and this can easily be done at the time of designing the house floor plans.
Even though there are no fixed rules to divide the space, the best way to divide the available space correctly and in the right proportion is to think of the space requirements, the way it is intended to us and also the lifestyle of the residents of the house.
Ideally, at the time of designing house floor plans, one should calculate the correct floor area ratio (FAR) based on the local building guidelines for residential homes. And then, divide the space in the right proportion for different rooms and utility spaces.
For example, when allocating space for the bedrooms, kitchen, living and drawing rooms, you should consider the usability and lifestyle of the family. Whether it is a bigger hall or they want a luxurious master bedroom suit, allocate the space logically and thoughtfully.
Inappropriate placements
Whether you plan to design and build a one storey building or a duplex house, there will be different rooms and utility spaces like a storage room, a car parking, a library room, and obviously the bedrooms, bathrooms and a hall.
The idea of designing a house floor plan is to ensure that every room or each of the utility spaces is placed appropriately. Inappropriate placement of rooms and spaces can ruin the efficiency and functionality of the Inhabitants.
If you are designing a house floor plan to build a house in India, and you trust in Vastu Shastra, then you should pay special attention to the placements of different rooms and spaces as per Vastu. From the main entrance of the house, to the position of kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms and temple room etc, Vastu Shastra guidelines are very clear and detailed, and it puts a lot of stress on the position of the plot and different rooms and spaces inside a house.
However, even if you do not follow Vastu principles, you should pay a lot of attention to the placement of different rooms and spaces inside the house. The placement of rooms should allow easy access to common areas without disturbing the privacy of the family living in the house.
Another important aspect people commonly overlook at the time of designing house floor plans is the privacy of the family. It’s always better and important to give a lot of thought to the privacy concerns and lay out the floor plan accordingly.
Ignoring plot surroundings
Plot surrounding and the environment often get ignored at the time of house floor planning. I have seen people make this mistake many times, especially when the architect does not get a chance to visit the plot before designing a house floor plan.
But, this is vital and seriously important and therefore, we collect plot surrounding information in our first interaction with our client. We want to clearly understand the surrounding environment, about any existing structure and possible blockage before starting a house design project for our clients.
When you know about the different aspects of the plot and positions of existing structure, road, facing etc, it becomes much easier to draw floor plan layouts. You should always consider any blockage, open space, restricted space etc and then layout the best possible house floor plan.
For instance, if there is a busy road close to the plot, it would be wise to plant a couple of trees that can help restrict pollution and dust? If there is a pound or a garden or permanent open space towards the back side of the plot, then it would make sense to plan for a balcony at that side.
I mean there could be many possibilities and it’s just about thinking well and creatively.
Incorrect staircase position
Inappropriate planning for staircase design and placement is yet another mistake I have seen people making at the time of designing house floor plans. The staircase has to be planned well with future use in mind.
For instance, if you are building a one storey house, and you have a future plan to build the second and third floors, then you have to plan the right position for the staircase. If the objective is to rent out the other floors in future, then you would like to keep the stairs outside to allow access and movement without disturbing people residing on the ground floor.
However, if you are planning to build a two storey house for your family, then you may like to keep the staircase inside the house.
Another aspect that you should consider carefully is the size and design of the staircase. As a homeowner, you would always want to make maximum use of plot space. But, that should not be at the cost of a smaller staircase because that would reduce its functionality and you may face problems lifting furniture and other large size objects to the upper floors.
Angular structure and wall
If you have visited a museum or an art exhibition center, you might have noticed angular structure. Obviously, that symbolizes fine art. But, a house is a house, which is supposed to be the best place on earth for the residents of the house. And therefore, it’s always better to avoid designing or building angular structures and walls when designing house floor plans.
Angular structures could easily make you feel like confined and moreover it’s costly to build and may cause difficulty in cleaning and maintenance. Such structures may look good at first, but trust me you are easily going to get bored and you’ll feel like changing it later, which could be a costly affair.
Limited light and ventilation
Did you know that natural lights and fresh air can easily uplift your mood and substantially increase the aesthetic appeal of your house? Yes, you heard that right, and therefore not planning for plenty of natural light and fresh air can be a vital mistake worth avoiding.
Whenever you are designing a house floor plan, or choosing from ready to use house designs, should pay special attention to the position of doors, windows and partitions. Be it your bedroom, living room or even your kitchen and washroom, always look to position your doors and windows in such a way that you get natural sunlight and fresh breeze to breathe well.
Not creating storage space
At the time of designing a house floor plan, we often think of storage space only in the bedrooms and kitchen. And if there is any space left after allocating spaces to all the important rooms, we think of a storage space.
But, this thinking can be terrible. You should always think of storage and create storage space to store essential household goods and stuff.
No matter what, you are going to need more storage space and if you don’t plan to create storage space smartly at the house plan stage, you may end up compromising at the end. And therefore, I always recommend thinking of storage room or storage space as an absolute necessity and it should be planned like any other popular space like rooms, kitchen, hall, bathrooms and parking space.
Ignoring furniture layout
Everyone may not have access to large plots for home construction. We often come across clients with smaller plots like under 1000 square feet in size, and they want us to design a single storey two or three bedroom house on that tiny plot.
And right at the house floor plan design stage, we show them the furniture layout and size so that they can get the clear picture of the room size, furniture size and available space after placing the furniture.
However, house plans with furniture layout should not be done for smaller plots and tiny houses. In fact, irrespective of the size of the house you are designing, you should never ignore the furniture layout and size. Because, you can only get a true picture of the available space, when you draw a house plan with furniture layout.
Not considering functionality
Different families may use the same space differently. For instance, in some families, there will be a culture of eating together, and they need a standard size dining space. And then, there are families who don’t need a separate dining table, but a simple breakfast nook close to the kitchen.
So, it is vital to consider the functionality of the space and lifestyle of the family. What are the features and important space for them, and how they intend to use the space should always be considered when designing a house floor plan.
Ignoring budget and expenses
Last, but the most vital mistake people make when designing a house floor plan. There is a lot of emotion attached to a house construction project, and you want everything to be the best and perfect. But, at times, I have seen people ignore the overall construction budget and future up keeping costs. And this definitely could become a nightmare, especially when you have a limited budget to build the house.
So, no matter how many rooms and floors you are planning and drawing on paper, you should always remember that every small little line you are drawing at the house plan stage is going to cost you real money at the time of constructing your house.
Moreover, it’s not about the one time build cost, you should also think of the recurring future maintenance expenses and taxes.
Conclusion
Designing and constructing your dream home is an amazing experience. And if you are planning to build your home, you will be equally excited about it. But, it all starts with house plan designing which is the starting point.
There should be a lot of brainstorming sessions with your architect to try and experiment with different floor plan layouts and house design ideas. Because by spending more time planning the layout and putting things together, you can get rid of many of the common mistakes people make when designing and constructing a house.
I have already discussed the most vital but common house floor plan mistakes people make which can easily be avoided at the time of designing the house plan. Hope you can learn from these house plan design mistakes and you’ll avoid them for your upcoming house design project.
If you have any questions or need help designing your house floor plan (Naksha and exterior views) then feel free to call Houseyog on: 7596058808 and talk to our experts.
What other mistakes do you think people make at the time of designing a house floor plan?
