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Proposed house design - potential building regs drawings for critique


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After i got planning for my potential build, i have been thinking a lot about how to actually build it, and also the costing for it.

 

This got me drafting certain areas in CAD, which grew and grew in to a detailed set of drawings with plans, sections, and elevations, and tbh has taken a heck of a lot of time.

 

However, i now have a clear idea how the building will fit together and hopefully i can used this as the basis of a building regs submission. Also it gives a lot of detail for people to provide cost estimates.

 

If anyone has the time, and/or the inclination (there are 15 drawings!!), would members cast an eye over the plans and provide any comments on;

 

  • The layout / design of the house,
  • The construction and detailing, and potential design issues, better ways of doing things. 
  • The level of detail in the drawings and how things may need to be changes for BR submission

 

The house is to be built into a slope and there are some changes from planning which may mean it needs to go back in for revision, so if there are changes that need planning permission these could be made. The split level house is a function of planning and roof lines.

 

The south is out of the bi-fold doors at ground floor, which goes onto the garden.

 

There are a few amendments that may be made

 

  • Living bi-fold maybe change to a sliding door
  • Ground floor W/C changed from 900mm wide to 1000mm to allow for a sink.

 

Hopefully the drawings make the constructions clear, but am happy to clarify anything.

Rev_0_complete_set.pdf

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1 minute ago, Dreadnaught said:

An impressive piece of draftsmanship!

 

Yes, just taken a look and have to agree - well done - sadly I'm not in a position to assist with your questions but I'm sure these drawings will certainly assist you in obtaining fairly accurate costings etc. ?

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12 minutes ago, Dreadnaught said:

An impressive piece of draftsmanship!

 

Thanks, it grew and grew, and tbh i got a bit too involved. However if there is going to be an element to self build to this project really want to know how its going to work and fit together.

 

Now i need to take a step back from the detail and see the wood for the trees.

Edited by Moonshine
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19 minutes ago, Moonshine said:

 

Thanks, it grew and grew, and tbh i got a bit too involved. 

 

Not at all, I think what you have done is excellent. Start as you intent to go forward!

 

You basically almost have your BC drawings. Depending on your LPA you may just need to add the "text collage" around the drawing to detail it all and a couple of small drawn details for anything that needs it and that is you!

 

Edited by Carrerahill
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Very impressive drawings! A few quick suggestions:

  • I'm not keen on turned staircases - try to make quarter landings if you can
  • Make the showers bigger - you'll appreciate it later
  • Provide built in wardrobes and get the VAT back
  • Work up the ground floor/wall interface and door thresholds in more detail - you need to avoid cold bridging
  • Move the first floor landing staircase to create space for a central plant cupboard, for your router/wifi etc
  • Are you having MVHR? Definately worth it but need to create space preferably in the middle of the house

 

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Does indeed look good!

 

Some thoughts on the layout:

Add a compass direction arrow to the floor plans

Move the doors into Bed 2 and the bathroom further 'up' the page (north?) to incorporate the airing cupboard into the hall, to make space for full-width wardrobes in Bed 2?

Consider whether to make windows smaller to accommodate wardrobes in Bed 3.

Consider a double partition for additional soundproofing between the master bedroom and the bathroom, unless you're planning a full fitted wardrobe there (I guess you may well be)?

Don't narrow-down the width of the en-suite for the shower - you have enough space to be more generous.

Put the shower above the bath (in the location of the shower)?

Is the loft going to be accessible (maybe not, in view of its size); if so, how will it be accessed?

Especially as you don't have much of a roof space, add a plant room to the basement?

Does your LA specify a minimum garage size? Taking into account the stairs, is it big enough to comply?

Provision for an electric car charging point in the garage?

Do you have space for horizontal and vertical for MVHR ducting?

Think about adding solar shading to prevent summer overheating

Large windows facing north aren't great for minimising winter heat loss, though you're limited by the plot orientation

Looks like the roof may be perfectly flat? Some fall (1:40?) is likely to be recommended.

 

Edited by Mike
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25 minutes ago, RandAbuild said:
  • I'm not keen on turned staircases - try to make quarter landings if you can
  • Make the showers bigger - you'll appreciate it later
  • Provide built in wardrobes and get the VAT back
  • Work up the ground floor/wall interface and door thresholds in more detail - you need to avoid cold bridging
  • Move the first floor landing staircase to create space for a central plant cupboard, for your router/wifi etc
  • Are you having MVHR? Definately worth it but need to create space preferably in the middle of the house

 

Thanks and some good points

 

Nice idea on the quarter landings and don't think that i will be able to fit it in on the basement floor, but should be able to get it on the ground /first floor as there is some space for the stairs to move into,

 

I don't think that its possible on the basement as there is clearance issues between the two stairs (below right). This is because as i see it being constructed the ground / first floor stairs have to be supported over the atrium by a 'joist bridge' for the full width, which causes the head clearance issue. 

image.png.caa17ed3c492048a2f31ab2a58979147.pngimage.png.56decf6d6cbec1800dff99a781d72f17.png

 

showers are small as it is tight, the one in the en-suite is like that as i am planning a fitted wardrobe in the alcove space below the shower, making the tray wider (its currently 800mm) will mean there is potential issues with the fitted wardrobe and location of window, window could be moved 100-200mm if it goes back into planning.

 

I will see if i can get a larger tray in the main bathroom but its already tight, A/C could be slimmed down with a smaller door, internal width of A/C is now 700mm, could go down to 600mm with the 550mm diameter tank

image.png.7edbd3eeb00088d912e0231115e1bc95.png

 

i couldn't find a good detail for the door thresholds, and i put my hands up that mine suck, and pointers?

 

Dont think that i can move the landing staircase, there is a cpd in the kitchen (behind the door) that has the UFH manifold in it, which could be a general plant cupboard, also there is space under the stairs in the basement area for it.

 

I haven't considered MVHR, but it could potentially go in the loft area with a riser down the corner of the master suite.

 

image.png.feb21d80df3283c15a913a6789135b1a.png

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27 minutes ago, Mike said:

Add a compass direction arrow to the floor plans - will do

Move the doors into Bed 2 and the bathroom further 'up' the page (north?) to incorporate the airing cupboard into the hall, to make space for full-width wardrobes in Bed 2?

Consider whether to make windows smaller to accommodate wardrobes in Bed 3. Yes! this makes sense, and i was struggling wanting to make the sizes of bedroom 2 and 3 more of the same size, by doing that it can even it out and have the A/C accessible from the landing. This makes the wall space in the bathroom smaller as i was hoping to get a towel rail in there, and if i do that there door maybe opening onto it, it may work and i will see if it will.

Consider a double partition for additional soundproofing between the master bedroom and the bathroom, unless you're planning a full fitted wardrobe there (I guess you may well be)? - noted and thicker partitions will likely go in key areas

Don't narrow-down the width of the en-suite for the shower - you have enough space to be more generous. yes, though that area is earmarked for a fitted wardrobe as above

Put the shower above the bath (in the location of the shower)? no :) hate showers in baths

Is the loft going to be accessible (maybe not, in view of its size); if so, how will it be accessed? yes but minor storage, small hatch in ceiling of master bedroom, i will mark up

Especially as you don't have much of a roof space, add a plant room to the basement? - what sort of plant are you thinking of? there is some space in the entrance hall under the stairs

Does your LA specify a minimum garage size? Taking into account the stairs, is it big enough to comply? they do if its a designated space, though IIRC the council were only requiring one space for the house, which is provided on the drive.

Provision for an electric car charging point in the garage? - yes, maybe just the wiring, but not marked up

Do you have space for horizontal and vertical for MVHR ducting? i don't know what are the requirements for this?

Think about adding solar shading to prevent summer overheating - may have to be with southerly facing glass

Large windows facing north aren't great for minimising winter heat loss, though you're limited by the plot orientation - true, i really like this feature, but this and cost implications may mean that the full glazing could be replaced by 'smaller' windows, something like the quick mock up below (a bit ugly!)

image.png.979135d8f0da3857a7eca767c69d8842.png

 

27 minutes ago, Mike said:

Looks like the roof may be perfectly flat? Some fall (1:40?) is likely to be recommended. - good point and will add a fall, also not to sure how many or where to put gutters

 

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Just now, Danny68 said:

Minor point ,will bc allow a w.c without hand basin ?

 

I don't know, but i want one in there, and haven't added it yes as not sure if i need to up the width of the W/C from 900mm to 1000mm.

 

Building regs (part M) states minimum width of front access W/C like this is 900mm, but 1000mm preferred, and basins should not project into a 750mm area in front toilet in such a way to impede access.

 

narrowest basin i can find is 180mm, so i think that this W/C is going to have to go up to 1000mm wide, as its not long enough to get a basin outside of the 750mm zone.

 

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Great drawings and some great points already contributed that I will try not to repeat.

 

First a few structural issues which will need an SE I think.

 

1. I have some questions about the roof, has it been looked at by a SE? The front to back span above bedroom 2 and 3 is almost 8m, can the roof be supported by 200-250mm joists across this size of span? Actually, looking more at the drawings, the joists are shown going in both directions on the sections.

 

2. There is an outside wall above the master bedroom and then to the right of the stairs. What supports it?

 

3. The floor joists are also shown going in both directions. It might be a good idea to do a joist plan for the top floor to make sure you have something underneath them for them to be supported. The awkward bit is always around the stairwell where you may also need thicker stud walls to support the wight of the stairs.

 

4. What supports the outside walls above the study, you have a corner between two walls with little apparent support underneath.

 

5. The inside blockwork on the entrance hall may need some kind of foundation support? It seems to just rest on the floor screed.

 

6. Could that continuous full height window in front of the stairs cause problems? Can the frames support the weight of the windows above? 

 

Drawing points

 

1. You have shown the interior stud wall insulation and the roof insulation as the same material, they probably won't be.

 

2. Once you put a fall on the roof you will need some way to carry the rainwater away. I think the normal solution would be a hopper and downpipe down the outside wall.

 

3. You have drawn what looks like pieces of wood around the window edges but they will be cavity closers.

 

4. I don't know if you can combine the bathroom extracts like that, but it would allow sound and smells tp pass between them so they are better separated.

 

Design points

 

1. Could you move the garage door left to the other side so that you drive in to the left of the stairs? Otherwise the length to the front of the stairs is a very tight 4.9m.

 

2. I would have a wider interior door into the garage as that is one of your main entry points to the house.

 

3. Cupboard under the stairs on the entrance level for coats, shoes etc.

 

4. If you are going to amend your planning I would think about rearranging the windows at the front of the Master Bedroom so that you can put a wardrobe in that area and make the en suite larger. 

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Only had a quick look and I'm on my tablet so may have missed something you have already included. Some are things I missed..

 

* I don't think resilient bars would be essential for the plasterboard ceiling on top floor but if you want them why not.

 

* Part M requires a WC on the "entry level". Usually that's the front door but if not you may have to justify an alternative door.  I would mark on the drawings the "Part M compliant entry" and "Part M compliant WC".  In our case (also split level) the BCO wanted to understand the whole route from parking space to WC on entry level and for that to be wheel chair friendly - so show any external paving and/or ramps and the gradient along that route.

 

* You have notes describing the floor and ceiling joists. I would also work out what the max span is for each and add that somewhere. Eg Max span of floor joists is X meters in bedroom Y.  Also add floor and joist spacing is not already done.

 

* Specify all glass below X meters above floor to be toughened glass. Think some glass also has to be laminated these days but I'm out of date. 

 

* Being a three storey house you may need to check fire regs. Things like fire rating of doors and walls of the stair well are different for three storey vs two. Show location of interlinked battery backed smoke alarms?

 

* Outside will the ground be sloped or stepped around the house? If steps are over certain height you may be expected to add railings to prevent falls. Ours were close.

 

* Check height of window sills above floors. There is a minimum to stop people calling out.

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28 minutes ago, AliG said:

First a few structural issues which will need an SE I think.

 

1. I have some questions about the roof, has it been looked at by a SE? The front to back span above bedroom 2 and 3 is almost 8m, can the roof be supported by 200-250mm joists across this size of span? Actually, looking more at the drawings, the joists are shown going in both directions on the sections.

 

2. There is an outside wall above the master bedroom and then to the right of the stairs. What supports it?

 

3. The floor joists are also shown going in both directions. It might be a good idea to do a joist plan for the top floor to make sure you have something underneath them for them to be supported. The awkward bit is always around the stairwell where you may also need thicker stud walls to support the wight of the stairs.

 

4. What supports the outside walls above the study, you have a corner between two walls with little apparent support underneath.

 

5. The inside blockwork on the entrance hall may need some kind of foundation support? It seems to just rest on the floor screed.

 

6. Could that continuous full height window in front of the stairs cause problems? Can the frames support the weight of the windows above?

 

Some really good points as as of yet no SE involvement, and the size of the retaining walls and joists indicative,, and well picked up on the joists going in both directions, i mean't to put a note on the drawings that these were indicative, though i should really put them the right way round (once i figure out which why that is). I have been looking at the span tables for I-Joists and if i arrange them on the smallest spans i think that is should be able to get away with 235mm deep joists.

 

I have now made the internal wall between bedroom 2 & 3 be directly above the kitchen / bedroom 4, so this can become load bearing, and the span to this wall is circa 4m, which is possible with a 235mm joist.

 

2) yep this cut on on the top floor gave me some head scratching and in the end i swapped these sections out for purely timber frame rather than any blockwork to keep the weight down, see sections A-A and F-F. My hope is that this these sections can be supported my multiple timbers joists below rather than having to use steels.

 

3) Good plan and something i will have a look at doing

 

4) Hopes and dreams? yep an area for more consideration

 

5) not too sure how to do that, bit and uses block as was in the basement, the block could go down all the way to the foundation, but not sure how to deal with the cold bridging

 

6) the frames will be attached to the timber frame so will have support there, will see what the window manufacturers make of it.

 

 

28 minutes ago, AliG said:

 

 

 

 

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* Will need a drainage plan at some point. Position of stacks and spec (open vented or AAV). Inspection chambers, route to main sewer.

 

* Ditto for surface water and soakaways.

 

* Cross section through roof/wall junction showing any hidden drainage and tie downs for ceiling joists.

 

* Cross section of garage wall showing any tanking, DPC, french drains if below ground level. Height difference between garage floor and entrance hall or fall on garage floor.

Edited by Temp
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50 minutes ago, AliG said:

Drawing points

 

1. You have shown the interior stud wall insulation and the roof insulation as the same material, they probably won't be.

 

between the roof joists it will be porous insulation, in the warm room it will be PIR above, porous insulation there for acoustics rather than thermal, but will have an positive

 

2. Once you put a fall on the roof you will need some way to carry the rainwater away. I think the normal solution would be a hopper and downpipe down the outside wall.

something that i need to add, and don't really know how to work out how many down pipes i am going to need from each section of roof

 

50 minutes ago, AliG said:

3. You have drawn what looks like pieces of wood around the window edges but they will be cavity closers.

Thanks i will update them to cavity stops of the full width of the cavity.

4. I don't know if you can combine the bathroom extracts like that, but it would allow sound and smells tp pass between them so they are better separated.

the plan is to have each extract fan with a non return valve to stop back flow when the other fan is in operation, by paring them up i am trying to minimise exterior wall penetrations.

 

50 minutes ago, AliG said:

Design points

 

1. Could you move the garage door left to the other side so that you drive in to the left of the stairs? Otherwise the length to the front of the stairs is a very tight 4.9m.

I can't really due to site condtions

 

2. I would have a wider interior door into the garage as that is one of your main entry points to the house.

Ah, its actually not, what i haven't actually shown is the entry door in the glass panel on the north facade

 

3. Cupboard under the stairs on the entrance level for coats, shoes etc.

agree

 

4. If you are going to amend your planning I would think about rearranging the windows at the front of the Master Bedroom so that you can put a wardrobe in that area and make the en suite larger. 

it would work really and from the exterior a window in the middle of the facade looks better.

 

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18 minutes ago, Temp said:

Only had a quick look and I'm on my tablet so may have missed something you have already included. Some are things I missed..

Thanks, anything that you come up with is useful

 

* I don't think resilient bars would be essential for the plasterboard ceiling on top floor but if you want them why not.

low flying planes during the night, to protect bedrooms

 

* Part M requires a WC on the "entry level". Usually that's the front door but if not you may have to justify an alternative door.  I would mark on the drawings the "Part M compliant entry" and "Part M compliant WC".  In our case (also split level) the BCO wanted to understand the whole route from parking space to WC on entry level and for that to be wheel chair friendly - so show any external paving and/or ramps and the gradient along that route.

 

This is where planning helped as there was no condition stating it was a Cat 2 or 3 premises, as such a cat 1 (visitble premises) states where there is no habitable rooms on the entry storey, a W/C is required on the principle storey.

 

* You have notes describing the floor and ceiling joists. I would also work out what the max span is for each and add that somewhere. Eg Max span of floor joists is X meters in bedroom Y.  Also add floor and joist spacing is not already done.

good ideal

 

* Specify all glass below X meters above floor to be toughened glass. Think some glass also has to be laminated these days but I'm out of date. 

I think that is under 800mm, and also if in easy reach it needs to be part Q rated

 

* Being a three storey house you may need to check fire regs. Things like fire rating of doors and walls of the stair well are different for three storey vs two. Show location of interlinked battery backed smoke alarms?

will look into that

 

18 minutes ago, Temp said:

* Outside will the ground be sloped or stepped around the house? If steps are over certain height you may be expected to add railings to prevent falls. Ours were close.

steps at the site, and will check for railings

 

* Check height of window sills above floors. There is a minimum to stop people calling out.

sills are either mainly 1000mm or 1200mm with at least one in each upstairs room at 1000mm for EEA.

 

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6 hours ago, Moonshine said:

what sort of plant are you thinking of?

 

Mainly central heating, hot water & MVHR system. But it could also be a place for an ethernet hub and other things too, and double up as a space for washing machines etc.

 

If you're near a flight path you certainly won't want trickle vents in your windows, so I'd look very seriously at an MVHR system.

 

I'd also look at the specification for the glazing - you'll probably want at least 1 pane of Pilkington Optiphon to cut noise transmission.

Edited by Mike
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10 minutes ago, Mike said:

if you're near a flight path you certainly won't want trickle vents in your windows, so I'd look very seriously at an MVHR system.

 

I'd also look at the specification for the glazing - you'll probably want at least 1 pane of Pilkington Optiphon to cut noise transmission.

 

Got that covered with a noise assessment for the site, guy who did the assessment was a dick though ?

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Thanks for replying to people's comments.

 

I wasn't specific on the master bedroom as I knew the windows would be an issue from outside. I have had a good look at it as I feel that you could get more storage and a nicer en suite in the overall available space. Assuming that you want the bed to go with its back against the bathroom wall the options are limited without changing the window at the front and it does indeed look right where it is on the elevation.

 

I would move the window to get a 900mm wide shower, tbh I wouldn't bother putting it to planning, no one will care if a window is moved 100mm.

 

Your comment on the interior garage door is interesting. We have an integral garage and 95/100 times we drive into the garage and then enter the house, the front door is really just for visitors. I am a massive fan of being able to get into the house straight from the car without going outside. I am guessing that a slope to the left of the garage would stop you moving the door. As you have it at the moment the garage will be quite difficult to use if you drive in forwards as the driver's door will be forced close to the wall. However, it would work a lot better if you reverse in as the driver's door will be on the wider side of the garage and the boot will be next to the door into the house. So if you are happy reversing in then it is fine, assuming that your car is less than 4.8m long. Maybe you just don't plan to put the car in the garage. If you do though then you will usually use that interior door, hence the suggestion to make it wider. I would rather not design on the assumption that you have a specific size of car but there may not be anything else you can do. If you could move the door back 250mm towards the stairs then you could maybe out the first step down in the width of the wall so the steps only encroach 500mm into the garage. Then you could drive past them. I also think you would be asked to put a handrail on a three step staircase.

 

The garage door frame is either going to have to be mounted behind the wall or inside the reveal. If you mount it behind the wall you are going to lose another 100-150mm of length and if you mount it in the reveal you will lose maybe 100-150mm in width. I am a bit OCD about being able to get the car in and out of the garage as most people seem to not use their garage, which is a large expensive part of their house, as they find it too awkward to get in and out. As things are already tight this will not help. If you could even find space to move the door 250mm to the left it would help clear the steps. You should try and decide on a door and how it will be mounted as you finalise the plans. I would be looking to have around 2.5m in clear width.

 

 

 

Edited by AliG
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14 hours ago, Moonshine said:

This is where planning helped as there was no condition stating it was a Cat 2 or 3 premises, as such a cat 1 (visitble premises) states where there is no habitable rooms on the entry storey, a W/C is required on the principle storey.

 

Looks like the regs changed since I built my place. 

 

Notthat we would change anything as we love our level access now. We basically ramped the driveway so you can drive up to the front door level. Handy when any appliances or similar need delivering on a sack trolley.

 

 

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Haven't looked at your garage dimensions but we ran into problems. Architect just drew what he considered to be a standard garage. When we got around to thinking about it I realised we could get the car in but wouldn't be able to get out of the car (even a Ford Focus which was smaller back then). After doing some experiments involving parking near walls and pushing a tape under the car we decided we had to add 1m to the width! Fortunately the planners accepted it as a minor amendment.

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21 hours ago, Moonshine said:

Especially as you don't have much of a roof space, add a plant room to the basement? - what sort of plant are you thinking of? there is some space in the entrance hall under the stairs

 

+1 

 

Perhaps put meter box on right of main entrance (eg around corner) with CU in the entrance hall or study upstairs?

 

We had space for a built in cupboard in my study/office and put in it..

 

Consumer unit

BT master socket

Broadband Modem 

Router

Network patch panel (not needed?)

DECT phone base station (not needed?)

Burglar alarm panel (wireless fobs used to arm it so no need to access the key pad on it)

TV distribution amplifier

Several mains sockets to power that lot.

 

With this set up the phone line is only inches long (master socket to Modem and DECT base) so maximising the chances of getting good broadband speeds.

 

It also makes it easy to add an extra network connections via powerline adaptors. These work best if the transmitter is near the CU. 

 

Any plans for a CCTV system? Might want a server for that in there as well?

 

Edited by Temp
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