Side extension layout ideas.

casper_g · 14 October 2016 at 1:44PM

At present the ground floor of our house looks like this:

It's a 1920s semi, attached on the right-hand side. On the left side of the house there's a driveway about 2.9m wide between the house and the boundary wall, then the neighbouring house is the same distance away on the other side of the wall.

There's currently a pair of gates across the driveway (set back about 1.5m from the corner of the house) and the drive leads to a single garage beyond the back corner of the house. We never use the garage for a car, and make little use of the driveway area at the side of the house - there's ample parking at the front.

We would like to build a single-storey side extension to provide:

A big sociable kitchen/dining room with room for some comfy seating;
A downstairs shower room;
A (small) utility area, just big enough for washing machine, dryer and a sink; and
An attached garage, which would really be used mostly for storing bikes and tools.

The last of these is important as it would allow us to demolish the existing garage which would really open up the back garden.

I came up with something like this:

The area that I had the most trouble with was the utility/shower room as the width of the extension is constrained between the existing house and the boundary. Even as it is, the wall of the extension will need to be on the boundary.

Any thoughts/ideas/criticism welcome!

casper_g · 15 October 2016 at 4:00PM

Bumping to add - the boundary wall is in poor condition and would need rebuilding at some point, so we're hoping the neighbours will be agreeable to the idea of having our extension on the boundary in its place. We're on good terms with them at the moment....

Doozergirl · 15 October 2016 at 5:55PM

I hope your planning authority are open to the idea of building on the boundary. Mine will not allow anything under a metre from the boundary for fear of potential 'terracing effect'.

casper_g · 15 October 2016 at 6:41PM

Doozergirl wrote: »

I hope your planning authority are open to the idea of building on the boundary. Mine will not allow anything under a metre from the boundary for fear of potential 'terracing effect'.

It did cross my mind this could be an issue. But as far as I can tell we can do this as permitted development as long as we limit the height. That way, the planners won't have the chance to object - or will they?

In practice, I don't anticipate the neighbours wanting to build a similar extension on their side, as they have already extended at the back and into the roof, and make much more use than we do of the side driveway for their cars (their front garden is smaller).

phil24_7 · 15 October 2016 at 10:49PM

My local authority allowed me to build on the boundary but made me step the front wall back 1m. This alters the roofline to avoid terracing.

getmore4less · 16 October 2016 at 9:52AM

A couple of things.

If the garage/store will never have a car could make it smaller.

Why not stick the bifolds in the new wall and leave the existing window/wall.

that sofa in the new room seems a bit out of place and you have two other comfy rooms.

what about making the understairs bigger(where the sofa is) to accommodate the shower and rearrange the utility to square off the kitchen.

do you still need 2 doors into the family room you would get a long wall run if you got rid of the one in the kitchen

Gut feeling is a utility/shower might be better opening onto the garden.

One other issue is have you blocked off all access from the front to the back?

Kiran · 16 October 2016 at 10:12AM

Can I ask which software you did your drawings on? I use AutoCAD normally but I quite like the colour images with furniture which unfortunately takes quite a bit of time on civil/structural versions.

Sorry to hijack your thread

casper_g · 16 October 2016 at 10:46PM

Lots of food for thought there, thanks!

getmore4less wrote: »

A couple of things.

If the garage/store will never have a car could make it smaller.
Good suggestion, thanks. We'll consider it. I always think it looks wrong when you see places with garage doors opening into little cupboards, but we only really care how it works for us as we aren't planning to sell.

Why not stick the bifolds in the new wall and leave the existing window/wall.
I suppose I liked the idea of the kitchen in the extension as it will give a sense of a big space when you come into the room, and thought maybe more of the preparatory work could be done in the new part before breaking through to the existing kitchen. Apart from the potential to save the cost of a new window, would putting the bifold in the new part be better?

that sofa in the new room seems a bit out of place and you have two other comfy rooms.
True. It's mostly there because we thought we ought to make some use of the space and couldn't think what! Plus the old chimney has a pretty fireplace to look at (it will never be used, as the stack has been removed).

what about making the understairs bigger(where the sofa is) to accommodate the shower and rearrange the utility to square off the kitchen.
Possibly. Response above is related.

do you still need 2 doors into the family room you would get a long wall run if you got rid of the one in the kitchen
One to think about, thanks.

Gut feeling is a utility/shower might be better opening onto the garden.
Hmm. They wouldn't make best use of the view of the garden, though!

One other issue is have you blocked off all access from the front to the back?
Yes indeed, this is a down side to the project.

ic · 16 October 2016 at 11:21PM

I'd agree with moving the sofa in the kitchen, and widening the shower/utility rooms - even if not all the way over so as not to create a narrow hallway running into the kitchen. If you did this, you'd have more wall space to move the doorway into the utility (perhaps even where the sofa is now) and then have a u-shaped kitchen run = more storage.

If you build to the boundary, you probably won't be able to have a window to the side from the kitchen or shower room - you'd have to rely on velux windows overhead instead. I'm sure retaining a 2 foot access pathway would be worth it in the long run (and allow windows). Consider what would happen if you ever want to do work in the back garden (even just mowing the lawn!) - would you want to traipse everything through your new kitchen?

You'll probably need a support column where the original rear corner of the kitchen is - which will eat a little into the worktop run and the width of the patio door opening. Perhaps however you could have goal-post supports instead.

getmore4less · 17 October 2016 at 7:40AM

More ideas,

if you want better access to the garden move the sink away from the exterior wall and have even bigger doors/full height windows for the dining and comfy seating

no need for sinks under window these days more often they are used for food prep and not washing up anyway, you could move the dirty dish sink and dishwasher into the utility space.

you could have 2 runs either side of the current utility door.
the wall side full height masses of storage built appliances.

move the sofa to the window/doors looking onto the garden and that gives the option to move the door to the utility.

You could rethink the utility to be more than a laundry/shower room perhaps a second food prep area.

If you are a wash/tumble type family and don't hang washing could you mover the laundry upstairs?

casper_g · 17 October 2016 at 8:52AM

Kiran wrote: »

Can I ask which software you did your drawings on? I use AutoCAD normally but I quite like the colour images with furniture which unfortunately takes quite a bit of time on civil/structural versions.

Sorry to hijack your thread

No problem. I did these on http://www.floorplanner.com/. Hope this helps!

Side extension layout ideas.

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