de devil tail

@ETC Thanks for your offer, I would like to take you up on it and see if we can make something special.

A couple more pictures to the south again and west

Hi Gus, Here are some views of the place. 1. Aerial view 2. View to East 3, View to North 4. View to South Light concrete blocks, external expanded polestyrene boards for insulation, a cut roof, Is the what I see on the local builds, typically a raft faoundation also. Important aspects: Costs - getting a good value living space. Making a comfortable living space that is adaptable to life as the family grows up. A cheap to run and easy to maintain house, so we can enjoy other things in life.

A late night mash up of the design from ETC and other thoughts I have. nothing final but a change in my thought direction. I did look at some of the pinterest results for Polish contemporary architecture, I found some stunning designs using regular shapes placed on irregular planes, I really appreciate the design and look, but I don't have the courage to commission that as a first time self build.

Welcome, It sounds like you have a very detailed idea of whats going on , no doubt your professional experience will be useful :). That image has piqued my interests, do you have any more of what you are building/ built so far?

It certainly sounds like a tough call on ways to proceed. Getting a good thermal envelope will be key.

Thanks @ETC, I'll take a look an see what I can find, is there a stand out feature of it?

Thanks @ETC I can read most of those spaces but i am struggling with the centre section and the 3 spaces on the right between bedrooms. Could you elaborate on them? It may well be, but life on 3 floors isn't something I would be willing to try with my money I have banished the flex room to upstairs, and given the north west end to entrance lobby. A stairs to seperate the spaces looks interesting , may need some further development. its small steps. i have looking at the danwood homes and the plans are similar to what ETC has drawn above. I am working through ideas and taking on your suggestions.

I appreciate the input. Here is our brief. Site Description Rural, Eastern Latvia The size of the plot is a little over 5300m2. The site is in the countryside, the soil is mainly clay. There is a gravel road to West, the plot gently slopes away from the road with the highest point being where the old house is located currently. To the East and South of the plot there are farmed crop fields, but to the North right now there is our 4ha pastureland that will be worked in near future. South, West and North borders are surrounded by young thuja plants that will become a shelter from winds, dust and farming chemicals as it grows taller and fuller. The existing buildings on the site are the old house, a two-storey garage, workshop with a basement under it, log shed, garden shed, and an old cow shed (kūts). All existing buildings will eventually be removed in controlled and logical manner, with replacements ready. The potential order of building removal is: 1. Log shed and the garden shed 2. The old house so the new one can be built 3. Garage that is serving as a living space until the new house is ready to move in 4. Cow shed – keep until not needed 5. Workshop with basement – keep until replacement available There also is a drinking water well and a sewage treatment plant. The site has a 3 phase 11kW electricity connection. Main constraint on the site is a electricity line that crosses the site halfway North-South direction. In warm and/or dry days with South, South-West winds there is a lot of dust blown over towards the site. Nearby is a main road that sometimes can be heard if the traffic is busy, and the wind comes from that direction. There are tall trees on the border with the gravel road that work well as a shelter from the wind and dust but might cause an issue regards shading. We would like to keep as many existing trees as practical but could pragmatically cut those that are most obstructive. A new driveway will be made to the North of the plot. The New House A home for family of 4 people. 2 adults & 2 young children The aim is to build a practical, functional and elegant home that will provide a comfortable and healthy environment. The family will be living, relaxing, working and feel entertained in this space. The house should be built to last with ability to change for aging occupants (Lifetime Homes standard). The house should have potential of modern technology addition when resources are available (for example, Smart Home Technology). The aim of the house design is to practically maximise the interior space and minimise the exterior wall area, i.e., by having a square floorplan or close to a square shape rectangle. While there is a desire to include some visually interesting features in the house design, low budget and the house being functional must be kept as priorities. The house should be low maintenance, for example, no need to paint the exterior walls, quick access to any servicing, all pipes are in ducts and cables are in conduit that allows easy repair or replacement. Hot water runs/pipes are kept as short as possible (group the rooms that need water connections together). Water wasting should be kept to a minimum by reusing the water or harvesting and treating the rainwater for use in the house. The priority of the design and construction is to obtain a house whose foundations, floor, walls and roof will provide a well-sealed thermal envelope with controlled ventilation. All utilities are preferred to be run using electrical power, which would be harnessed using solar energy, that would be stored by the building as heat in the construction elements and water as well as a battery near the building. Heating and cooling solutions should be oversized as practically as possible to account for future climate changes. Regards building materials we would prefer the construction of the house to be either stone or low CO2 concrete or blocks. The insulation detailing shall be to Passive House standards. Materials shall be used smartly to minimise the waste. A pitched or double pitched roof is envisaged. A 1, 1.5 or 2 storey house is possible and even the ability to prepare the second floor for later use if needed, but not included into the initial house project if budget does not allow. The interior design should borrow ideas from Tiny House storage solutions to try and achieve 250m2 house fitting into 140 m2 – 160m2 floorplan. It is acceptable to assign multiple purposes to same space, for example, hobbies, games and relaxing area could be assigned to the guest bedroom. Internal acoustics of the house should ensure that background noises and noise through walls is minimised. Depending on the floorplan, there might be an opportunity for internal view connections, for example, an internal window of the office that visually connects the space with the rest of the house but is isolated from the sounds. Preference is given to tall and wide doors for ease of occupant and furniture flow. Windows shall be large to optimise the light and heat from the sun reaching inside the house, especially on the South side. Preferably there would be a space for outside dining like decking with adjustable sunshades and wind screens. There is a planned connection from the house to an outside garage where 2 cars and bicycles will be kept out of the weather. The garage is envisioned to be outside of the Passive House thermal envelope, and its positioning will aid blocking the cold Northen winds from the house itself.

Of course I don't really need the hobby room, however if I would like it to be incorporated as a multi function space including guest bedroom. I can look at utilising the upstairs space. ahh yes the classic Irishman giving directions "well, I wouldn't start here..." 3 corridors, fair cop. I consider the one by the entrance door to be a windbreak/ coats and boots space. the other 2 I would be delighted to get rid of, any suggestions? No, only 2 external doors, the opening windows show as doors in the model i used. the entrance door and a sliding door on the north end of the west wall in the dining area. I think you have nailed how we ended up here, everything else was worked on and then we found the kitchen doesn't work. It is a decent sized space in isolation, our design above suffers from the number entrances to the space and the need for a throughfare. Yes, v.29 is the 29th iteration, although many iteration have only been minor changes. In truth the guts of this design I had before going to the architect, who has reviewed the layout , but without putting forward a suggestion that made us go wow. the design is practical, but i have had a nagging for a few weeks now that it is not as good as it should be for a new build/ blank canvas. I have been looking harder at using the potential for 1.5 today. I have been self constraining to square-ish to get a decent area to perimeter ratio, I may be misguided on my use though. Our plot is big, views are of crop fields/pasture, distant neighbours, budget is of course the key. It looks like the days of €1,000m2 are over so I am braced for €1,600 - €2,000m2 all in. Highlighted in bold is exactly the reason i have shared the plan today. I appreciate the time everyone has taken to reply

@ETC I would appreciate your input on our house plans, if you have time available.

It's a long term ambition that's becoming reality, a self build house in the countryside. The new build house is a single storey approx 150m2 gross area, the option of using the loft as a 1.5 storey is available. The layout has been in progress for a while and in general between us and the architect it has evolved into an efficent shape, with some compromises, such as bathrooms with no windows. Presently the room has a vaulted ceiling, which should help make it feel spacious. The issue I am facing however is the open plan living/diner/kitchen. I am really struggling to make a decent kitchen in the space. What do you think buildhubbers, what could be done with the space/ floorplan to make a decent family kitchen?

How time flies. Consider this a reintroduction. I am on the journey of a self build. Its a knock down and build new type of build. The site is in rural Latvia. The aim at the moment is a single storey, passive house inspired, family home in the 140m² to 180m². Lots of design work has been going on for the past 3 months with a view to breaking ground when the winter finishes in May. Attached is a floor plan of the proposed design, it is a work in progress.

Hey @markocosic, Did you buy this from DEPO? Did you find it suitable?

Eternal happiness? Looking to move back to the countryside and get out of town.