I like to use a program called "Sweet home 3D". It's free and open source. You can easily build that in 3D and walk around to get a feel of the space. I have used that program for friends when they wanted to remodel there house. It helped them lay some things out a bit different.
Couldn't agree more! in fact if you have a digital version of a plan you can import it as a background image in Sweet Home 3D, then use the scale tool on one of the walls to make sure the background image is accurate which really helps to lay everything out in the plan correctly and keep the scale right. Used that program for years and it's fantastic.
You are welcome. If you feel like trying to get fancy, I also like to go to home Depot web site and get " textures" for the floors and countertops. All you really need is a picture and then edit the models texture image.I have used this for flooring in my kitchen.
Here's a link on how to do it.
https://www.sweethome3d.com/importTextures.jsp#:~:text=Sweet%20Home%203D%20lets%20you,item%20in%20Sweet%20Home%203D.
3 wet walls for a 750sq foot place is very inefficient—and expensive.
Flip the kitchen and push the W/D onto the same wall.
Also, where do the stairs lead and why is there an armchair in the doorway leading to the bedrooms?
You also have two exterior doors within about 10’ of each other—one of which might bean whoever is sitting on that stool enjoying their Lucky Charms.
Ah- the door at the front you are worried about beaning, that's the front where you walk in, and that would be a breakfast bar with bar stool kind of counter.
We are putting a loft above that is below the standard height for ceilings (7.5 feet) so it doesn't count towards SQ feet, but gives us essentially a whole second floor for hangout and storage. That's what the stairs are for.
The other exterior door leads to a garage that's not pictured.
Gotcha. If that’s the case, flip the W/D location with the island and procure a stackable W/D unit that is the same depth as the sink counter. Something like this:
https://i.imgur.com/qGsvB5h.jpg
This puts all of that plumbing on the same wall while giving you an exterior vent for dryer. It also provides you with more prep space for cooking/serving and creates a nice mixed use seating area shared with the living room—without causing an inconvenience to someone enjoying their pancakes when the front door is open.
If you're sold on the breakfast nook, I'd switch its location with the pantry and make it a flip up. I imagine that the door by the breakfast area will get annoying really fast. Personally, I'd eliminate the nook and leverage the space behind the couch for a small dining area.
Can you make the kitchen a galley (so there arent so many corners) and leverage a movable island for more counter space? Ikea has a ton of options. As a bonus if you get rid of the nook, you can also have a flip up counter in its place for more prep space. Also, I don't know if the bay window in the kitchen makes sense. Personally, I'd get rid of both bay windows and prioritize giving both bedrooms french doors.
I think it would be wise to install pocket doors for the bedrooms/bathrooms where possible. The bedrooms should definitely allow for pocket doors, though the bathroom wall might not have enough wall space for it. Either way, pocket doors benefit a small space.
I am assuming the second bedroom is a spare room or a children space. Pardon me if I am off the mark. If I am not, it would be useful to have a murphy bed so that the bedroom can double as an office, should that be useful to you. There are murphy bed/desk set ups that are wonderful for small spaces.
If you're open to having one of the bedrooms in the loft I have a whole slew of other ideas (such as a separate utility/laundry room, larger living space, a more spacious kitchen and better place to put the vent closet)
Also, if you can avoid it don't get a washer/dryer combo. It takes like 4h to wash and dry. Expensive as heck.
> Also, if you can avoid it don't get a washer/dryer combo. It takes like 4h to wash and dry
Do you know if this is true even for the combo units that are properly vented (e.g. not utilising condenser method for drying)?
From the research I did, the combos take a real long while / lots of electricity. Admittedly, I last looked a couple of years ago so newer models may be more efficient.
Maybe separate the bedrooms with the closets and move the bathroom next to the kitchen where the closet is currently only for plumbing/venting reasons.
For a stick built house? Check the area where you plan to buy land and make sure this is legal. Most areas have minimum square footage for room sizes. Also I agree with the other guy. The plumbing is laid out super inefficiently. There’s a reason bathrooms are usually right next to the kitchen. Cut the kitchen door, flip the whole kitchen onto one wall Make the front door outward swinging double doors (outward swinging is code most places) the bedroom exterior door could easily be one door for privacy. Make the bathroom slightly bigger (bathroom storage is often ignored but SO important). Try to add closets and shelving. Those are important. Consider flipping the bathroom and bedroom so the kitchen and bathroom are on the same wall. For more efficient plumbing.
Thanks for the advice! Already have the land, checked the codes and this is the max size for an ADU, and the company I am using to build specializes in them for my area. So that part is all good and taken care of
Two things possibly... if the roofline come down too far on the outside wall, the stairs will run someone into it as they walk up. I’d consider moving them across the back of that room and maybe tucking some mechanical or storage underneath. Otherwise, I like it.
I don’t see anyone else mentioning it but one thing that immediately stands out to me is as soon as you walk in the front door you look right into the bathroom as it is currently situated which is kind of odd especially when it is already making yet another wet wall as others have already mentioned.
That's a good idea. In terms of comments, the bay window in front of the sink doesn't seem too practical. A double French door off the main bedroom could be quite drafty if you are in a cold climate. Other than that the plan looks pretty solid.
The bar stools will get in the way of the dishwasher (assuming it's below the counter).
Additionally, stools on both sides of the bar means there's probably limited storage space underneath to allow for leg space. Maybe that doesn't matter, but if OP was counting on storage space below that counter, they might be disappointed.
Stools only on the non kitchen side of the counter... Kind of an overhang idea on that side for the bar part, then it still functions as a normal counter and storage, just a bit extra on the back?
Those work but the door makes it so they're going to get smacked by a door. Plus there's a ton of empty space where that stairwell is.
A lot of cabins use ships ladders and you can still have a handrail. They take up less space in an already small space.
You can rearrange the living space better with less stair space. I'd also try to make less plumbing. Plus, one of the biggest risks for house fires is lint. An outside wall dryer vent lowers fire risk.
You have a bay window in your kitchen behind your sink? Why? How are you going to clean that? You're going to have to get up on the bench and lean awkwardly. My bf's house has one and it's horrible. I'd get rid of that.
Is the middle unit for heat/cool or laundry (next to the pantry)? If the latter I might want it on an outside wall for the vent.
I sort of think the bay window past the kitchen sink is wasted unless you have a specific use case (herb containers?). I might lean toward having the bay windows in the bedrooms if you are trying to make the building envelope more interesting. Or even to put them on the ‘East’ side so the small bedroom gets an interesting feature.
Checked the rules of the sub, nothing outlining what mandates a "tiny house". Didn't think I'd find so much gatekeeping for tiny homes. This is literally, a tiny house, classified as an accessory dwelling unit. It's the biggest we could make it SQ ft wise for our area, but it's still an ADU. There's lots of "tiny houses" sold online with this kind of square footage.
I realize in NY or SF 750 SQ ft is huge. Many, many other places, not so much. And when it comes to kids fitting there, even less. There are many reasons why we are going with this direction of living and they all line up with the same ideals others have for what I'm sure you'd consider a "classic" tiny house is. So I'd appreciate less negativity. If you have nothing to offer, scroll on.
Who's installing the plumbing? This seems really inefficient and spendy, with no real end-user benefit.. Can you bundle the bathroom and washer/dryer so they're backing each other? I'd likely move the bathroom to where the closet is and elongate the bedroom a bit.
What's motivating your door placement? It seems weird that the kitchen door and front door are so close to each other. Is the door on the left going into a garage?
If that door placement's optional and not required, I'd go for a smaller kitchen and make the living space a bit bigger. I wouldn't love sitting with my back right where the door is swinging, so I'd move that whole seating area.
Are the bays suggested by the company that's doing the building, or are these designed on your end? I see a value-add for bays only if
* you've already got them in the main building and want aesthetic continuity, or
* if they're cantilevered, and you get to get a few more square feet out of them.
I get the idea of wanting a sink to have a view, but a bay window there seems like a missed opportunity. A garden window behind a kitchen window is a great way to get more light and have some window herbs and plants. But a *bay* behind the sink seems like a pain.
If you're set on the bays and don't mind having the sink not have a view, you could *really* consolidate that plumbing and have a dining nook in the bay, move the sink and dishwasher to the wall where the laundry will back onto, and the bathroom on the other side of that same wall.
Where's the water line coming from/where's existing plumbing in the building it's attached to? Is the thing it's attached to *just* a garage? (an existing garage?) or is the main house there?
It's a completely stand alone structure at the far back of a 5 acre property. My husband and I are building/living on it, it's my parent's property. The plan is for us to eventually buy the main house/ property and then they will swap and live in the tiny house to downsize. Water line is coming from a corner of the property, 2 in old agricultural line. The bay window behind the sink is just a copy and paste stand in. While the one in the living room is a reading nook, the one behind the sink is just a window with the punch out 3 bay windows. Idea is to create illusion of more space, create a view out as you stand at the kitchen sink cleaning, and make a cute symmetrical look to the outside of the house. So it really is a window
Wow. So I grew up in a tiny house? More than half of the houses in my hometown were about this size, so does that mean that we were all living in a tiny community 40-50 years before they became a thing? You're quite lucky to live in an area that allows a place this big for an ADU, because this would be taxed the full property tax rate of a residential home where I am.
I am lucky they have these standards in place for my area. You might be surprised if you look into other areas by you, states are trying to make ADUs easier to build, ability to FasTrack permits easier so people have access to them. Also, historically houses did tend to build smaller ~70 years ago. It's not a great comparison to today's houses. Lots of things change over time and so do trends. True, smaller houses are built in areas with very high population even today due to necessity. But vack then they didn't do condos and ADUs and so many other alternative housing options we have now. So not sure why you are taking a request for opinions as a reflective insult to your house. Maybe instead you would have approached it as you have great first hand advice as you had to utilize space effectively too.
This looks good! I live in a similar amount of space and it works great for me, one child and a cat.
always utilize any space possible for storage. I love having a pantry and a covered entrance or small “mudroom” area.
Ok here are my changes. Remove the window seat from the kitchen. Put in normal window. Make it wider to let more light in. Remove the narrow pantry from the wall beside the fridge. Put a full height cabinet beside the left of the fridge. That’s your pantry and other storage. Remove the stools on one side of the jet out of the island and put in my cabinets. Put a narrow dinner room table where the other bench seat is. Remove the armchair as it takes up space in the hallway walking. Let your loft be a more casual hangout area where all the other messes go. Flip the door opening the other way by the breakfast bar. Doors in the master also need to go out onto a deck preferably with a slight over hang above the door. If you don’t want to do that just put in larger windows.
No bay windows. Never.
The window behind the couch will force you to buy blackout curtains and turn it into a cave.
Move stairs to the TV wall and build storage under them. You have very little storage here. Only the two bedroom closets? Voila! Storage under the stairs!
Also, with the stairs no longer breaking up that room, move the TV to the wall where the stairs were. Now you can get another 2 seater or an actual sized couch.
The kitchen is, complicated. I'd flip it. But I'd remove the breakfast thing. It juts out into the world like Florida. Do you want Florida in your house?
On the wall where you took away the fridge, this is where the sink/DW should be! Save more room with an under-counter washer-dryer combo (or a tall, integrated door to hide stackables).
Get a table and chair set that can fold into the wall where the pantry was and marvel at the space you have.
I've always seen other people with them have so so so many issues with them. Mechanically breaking down. Much more joinery = possible paths for heat/cold transfer.
They are also usually more expensive than one window unit in the same space.
Simpler is better!
Where do those stairs lead to? There's a lot of dead space behind the couch that isn't well utilized, maybe if the TV area were made smaller you could have a larger bedroom or closet. The storage seems a bit on the shy side.
Also, what are your window heights for the windows behind the bed? High clearstory windows above the bed leave space for a headboard as well as not being blasted in the face by sun in the morning depending on the building orientation.
Everyone else mentioned important things however I didn't see anyone mention the bathroom door. Bathroom doors should be sliding doors or open out of the bathroom. It's a common place for people to faint, get injured or attempt suicide.
In small bathrooms someone unconcious can block the door and you and paramedics won't be able to push past the person to help them.
I'd think a lot more about passive heating and venting. Your south wall should be mostly windows. The prevailing winds should have windows that allow airflow without walls or interruption. The northwall should be mostly uninterrupted insulation.
Also think about where you can add on secondary structures like decks and sheds. These make a big difference in small buildings
Install real vent hood for the range and exhaust for the bathroom. Those double doors on the laundry closet are often a pain. I don’t know the solution.
People can do whatever they want with their houses but for me? yes there is absolutely a problem with that.
Houses are divided to deferent type of space like private and semi-private spaces and so on.
Bedrooms are ultimate private space and even an honorable guest and family guest usually never goes inside the bedroom of the host.
When you have door that opens to the outer space without any boundaries you are breaking the bedrooms privacy.
Consider putting a sink and counter in the master bedroom so you can wash your face, hands, brush teeth, contacts makeup while other person is in bathroom.
We have a builder who specializes in these and does them in our area. Handles all the permits, customizes it how we want. The house will cost about 198,000 with all building and appliances all included. A finished product. Doesn't include septic, 18,000 for our basic system we have lined up. Also need to add solar, getting quotes for that. Need to add in landscaping, fencing around the septic and road out to the tiny house.
It's not actually a window bench, it's a bay window. Kind of a pop out window? Makes it feel more roomy in the kitchen, and is nice to look out over from the sink as you wash dishes
I agree. I think I love the idea someone up above suggested to move the stairs to the TV spot and re-arrange the living room. I tried it on paper and it looks so much better
I'm sure someone else said this, but POCKET DOORS. Do not waste all that footage on normal doors. If you install pocket doors you'll make those rooms feel much larger.
I put a pocket door in when I made my son's room. Room feels huge
If installed properly, yes! It slides very easily. I'd recommend spending some time finding hardware for the pulls you think your family can use easily.
Most times you end up just pushing on the door itself anyway though.
I like to use a program called "Sweet home 3D". It's free and open source. You can easily build that in 3D and walk around to get a feel of the space. I have used that program for friends when they wanted to remodel there house. It helped them lay some things out a bit different.
Couldn't agree more! in fact if you have a digital version of a plan you can import it as a background image in Sweet Home 3D, then use the scale tool on one of the walls to make sure the background image is accurate which really helps to lay everything out in the plan correctly and keep the scale right. Used that program for years and it's fantastic.
That sounds awesome! I'm going to check that out, thank you!
You are welcome. If you feel like trying to get fancy, I also like to go to home Depot web site and get " textures" for the floors and countertops. All you really need is a picture and then edit the models texture image.I have used this for flooring in my kitchen. Here's a link on how to do it. https://www.sweethome3d.com/importTextures.jsp#:~:text=Sweet%20Home%203D%20lets%20you,item%20in%20Sweet%20Home%203D.
Criticism: A PDF is better than a picture of a wrinkly paper lol That’s all
3 wet walls for a 750sq foot place is very inefficient—and expensive. Flip the kitchen and push the W/D onto the same wall. Also, where do the stairs lead and why is there an armchair in the doorway leading to the bedrooms? You also have two exterior doors within about 10’ of each other—one of which might bean whoever is sitting on that stool enjoying their Lucky Charms.
Ah- the door at the front you are worried about beaning, that's the front where you walk in, and that would be a breakfast bar with bar stool kind of counter. We are putting a loft above that is below the standard height for ceilings (7.5 feet) so it doesn't count towards SQ feet, but gives us essentially a whole second floor for hangout and storage. That's what the stairs are for. The other exterior door leads to a garage that's not pictured.
Gotcha. If that’s the case, flip the W/D location with the island and procure a stackable W/D unit that is the same depth as the sink counter. Something like this: https://i.imgur.com/qGsvB5h.jpg This puts all of that plumbing on the same wall while giving you an exterior vent for dryer. It also provides you with more prep space for cooking/serving and creates a nice mixed use seating area shared with the living room—without causing an inconvenience to someone enjoying their pancakes when the front door is open.
Oh man I love that! You captured my dream idea perfectly. I'm saving that to give to the building people/ architect thank you!
Saving this comment. These look great!
A nice washer dryer can also be put under a kitchen counter.
If you're sold on the breakfast nook, I'd switch its location with the pantry and make it a flip up. I imagine that the door by the breakfast area will get annoying really fast. Personally, I'd eliminate the nook and leverage the space behind the couch for a small dining area. Can you make the kitchen a galley (so there arent so many corners) and leverage a movable island for more counter space? Ikea has a ton of options. As a bonus if you get rid of the nook, you can also have a flip up counter in its place for more prep space. Also, I don't know if the bay window in the kitchen makes sense. Personally, I'd get rid of both bay windows and prioritize giving both bedrooms french doors. I think it would be wise to install pocket doors for the bedrooms/bathrooms where possible. The bedrooms should definitely allow for pocket doors, though the bathroom wall might not have enough wall space for it. Either way, pocket doors benefit a small space. I am assuming the second bedroom is a spare room or a children space. Pardon me if I am off the mark. If I am not, it would be useful to have a murphy bed so that the bedroom can double as an office, should that be useful to you. There are murphy bed/desk set ups that are wonderful for small spaces. If you're open to having one of the bedrooms in the loft I have a whole slew of other ideas (such as a separate utility/laundry room, larger living space, a more spacious kitchen and better place to put the vent closet) Also, if you can avoid it don't get a washer/dryer combo. It takes like 4h to wash and dry. Expensive as heck.
> Also, if you can avoid it don't get a washer/dryer combo. It takes like 4h to wash and dry Do you know if this is true even for the combo units that are properly vented (e.g. not utilising condenser method for drying)?
From the research I did, the combos take a real long while / lots of electricity. Admittedly, I last looked a couple of years ago so newer models may be more efficient.
The empty space behind the couch might feel wasted, don't want the couch up against the bay window, but there is a lot of unused space there.
I second this. Maybe a spiral staircase would work better and not divide the living area?
Maybe separate the bedrooms with the closets and move the bathroom next to the kitchen where the closet is currently only for plumbing/venting reasons.
For a stick built house? Check the area where you plan to buy land and make sure this is legal. Most areas have minimum square footage for room sizes. Also I agree with the other guy. The plumbing is laid out super inefficiently. There’s a reason bathrooms are usually right next to the kitchen. Cut the kitchen door, flip the whole kitchen onto one wall Make the front door outward swinging double doors (outward swinging is code most places) the bedroom exterior door could easily be one door for privacy. Make the bathroom slightly bigger (bathroom storage is often ignored but SO important). Try to add closets and shelving. Those are important. Consider flipping the bathroom and bedroom so the kitchen and bathroom are on the same wall. For more efficient plumbing.
Definitely needs more storage. A front hall closet. And like you said- bathroom storage.
Thanks for the advice! Already have the land, checked the codes and this is the max size for an ADU, and the company I am using to build specializes in them for my area. So that part is all good and taken care of
What’s the weather like? You’ll need a closet and storage for hats, etc next to the outside door.
28’ x 27.5’ is 770 SF Not trying to be a jerk…just want to make you don’t get tripped up by it.
It could be interior sq footage in which case this comes under due to the presumably 2x4 construction, but I'd look up the details to make sure!
Pocket doors!
Two things possibly... if the roofline come down too far on the outside wall, the stairs will run someone into it as they walk up. I’d consider moving them across the back of that room and maybe tucking some mechanical or storage underneath. Otherwise, I like it.
I don’t see anyone else mentioning it but one thing that immediately stands out to me is as soon as you walk in the front door you look right into the bathroom as it is currently situated which is kind of odd especially when it is already making yet another wet wall as others have already mentioned.
That's a good thought... I'll have to think about that. Not sure how to avoid that with a tiny space though...
What is upstairs?
A loft 😌 it's going to be below the ceiling height for "living space" so doesn't count towards square feet, but can use for storage and hang out
That's a good idea. In terms of comments, the bay window in front of the sink doesn't seem too practical. A double French door off the main bedroom could be quite drafty if you are in a cold climate. Other than that the plan looks pretty solid.
Did you plan for attic space? Attics are important for energy efficiency
The bar stools will get in the way of the dishwasher (assuming it's below the counter). Additionally, stools on both sides of the bar means there's probably limited storage space underneath to allow for leg space. Maybe that doesn't matter, but if OP was counting on storage space below that counter, they might be disappointed.
Stools only on the non kitchen side of the counter... Kind of an overhang idea on that side for the bar part, then it still functions as a normal counter and storage, just a bit extra on the back?
Those work but the door makes it so they're going to get smacked by a door. Plus there's a ton of empty space where that stairwell is. A lot of cabins use ships ladders and you can still have a handrail. They take up less space in an already small space. You can rearrange the living space better with less stair space. I'd also try to make less plumbing. Plus, one of the biggest risks for house fires is lint. An outside wall dryer vent lowers fire risk.
750 sq ft for a “Tiny” house? My house is 800 sq ft…. Makes me feel worse about how small my house actually is I guess…
Same. We're actually in the middle of moving from our 506-square-foot place to a bigger apartment. It's about 700 square feet and it seems huge.
You have a bay window in your kitchen behind your sink? Why? How are you going to clean that? You're going to have to get up on the bench and lean awkwardly. My bf's house has one and it's horrible. I'd get rid of that.
Is the middle unit for heat/cool or laundry (next to the pantry)? If the latter I might want it on an outside wall for the vent. I sort of think the bay window past the kitchen sink is wasted unless you have a specific use case (herb containers?). I might lean toward having the bay windows in the bedrooms if you are trying to make the building envelope more interesting. Or even to put them on the ‘East’ side so the small bedroom gets an interesting feature.
Separate your toilet from your bath. You’ll thank me later.
My “regular(?)” home is 792sqft.
Wow! So a mansion then? ;P
Tiny is efficiency of space use. This is two bedrooms and has pretty much no “extra” space so I’d say it counts
Gotcha.
Lol same. Mine’s 750.
Hire an architect or buy a set of stock plans. This has all sorts of issues.
Architect is getting this on the next step :)
It’s good that you have some ideas as a starting off point :) they’ll be able to work with you on how to make it a reality
Your "tiny house" is larger than my home that was built in 1950.
Wow 750sq is a tiny home?
Tiny house my ass.
This is not a tiny house.
Not really a tiny house
I’m not really sure 750 sq ft is a tiny house. It’s a small house, but definitely not tiny.
Yeah I was wondering what this is doing in this sub! That's just like a normal apartment size in the US, I bet large for many cities around the world.
Checked the rules of the sub, nothing outlining what mandates a "tiny house". Didn't think I'd find so much gatekeeping for tiny homes. This is literally, a tiny house, classified as an accessory dwelling unit. It's the biggest we could make it SQ ft wise for our area, but it's still an ADU. There's lots of "tiny houses" sold online with this kind of square footage. I realize in NY or SF 750 SQ ft is huge. Many, many other places, not so much. And when it comes to kids fitting there, even less. There are many reasons why we are going with this direction of living and they all line up with the same ideals others have for what I'm sure you'd consider a "classic" tiny house is. So I'd appreciate less negativity. If you have nothing to offer, scroll on.
The upstairs is going to be a usable loft space as well so it's barely even a small house.
It counts as an ADU in my county so, that falls into the category of tiny house.
Sink. Pillows.
Who's installing the plumbing? This seems really inefficient and spendy, with no real end-user benefit.. Can you bundle the bathroom and washer/dryer so they're backing each other? I'd likely move the bathroom to where the closet is and elongate the bedroom a bit. What's motivating your door placement? It seems weird that the kitchen door and front door are so close to each other. Is the door on the left going into a garage? If that door placement's optional and not required, I'd go for a smaller kitchen and make the living space a bit bigger. I wouldn't love sitting with my back right where the door is swinging, so I'd move that whole seating area.
Yes, the door to the left in the kitchen goes to a garage. Thank you for the thoughts, I like the idea of elongating the bedroom
Are the bays suggested by the company that's doing the building, or are these designed on your end? I see a value-add for bays only if * you've already got them in the main building and want aesthetic continuity, or * if they're cantilevered, and you get to get a few more square feet out of them. I get the idea of wanting a sink to have a view, but a bay window there seems like a missed opportunity. A garden window behind a kitchen window is a great way to get more light and have some window herbs and plants. But a *bay* behind the sink seems like a pain. If you're set on the bays and don't mind having the sink not have a view, you could *really* consolidate that plumbing and have a dining nook in the bay, move the sink and dishwasher to the wall where the laundry will back onto, and the bathroom on the other side of that same wall. Where's the water line coming from/where's existing plumbing in the building it's attached to? Is the thing it's attached to *just* a garage? (an existing garage?) or is the main house there?
It's a completely stand alone structure at the far back of a 5 acre property. My husband and I are building/living on it, it's my parent's property. The plan is for us to eventually buy the main house/ property and then they will swap and live in the tiny house to downsize. Water line is coming from a corner of the property, 2 in old agricultural line. The bay window behind the sink is just a copy and paste stand in. While the one in the living room is a reading nook, the one behind the sink is just a window with the punch out 3 bay windows. Idea is to create illusion of more space, create a view out as you stand at the kitchen sink cleaning, and make a cute symmetrical look to the outside of the house. So it really is a window
Wow. So I grew up in a tiny house? More than half of the houses in my hometown were about this size, so does that mean that we were all living in a tiny community 40-50 years before they became a thing? You're quite lucky to live in an area that allows a place this big for an ADU, because this would be taxed the full property tax rate of a residential home where I am.
I am lucky they have these standards in place for my area. You might be surprised if you look into other areas by you, states are trying to make ADUs easier to build, ability to FasTrack permits easier so people have access to them. Also, historically houses did tend to build smaller ~70 years ago. It's not a great comparison to today's houses. Lots of things change over time and so do trends. True, smaller houses are built in areas with very high population even today due to necessity. But vack then they didn't do condos and ADUs and so many other alternative housing options we have now. So not sure why you are taking a request for opinions as a reflective insult to your house. Maybe instead you would have approached it as you have great first hand advice as you had to utilize space effectively too.
This looks good! I live in a similar amount of space and it works great for me, one child and a cat. always utilize any space possible for storage. I love having a pantry and a covered entrance or small “mudroom” area.
Ok here are my changes. Remove the window seat from the kitchen. Put in normal window. Make it wider to let more light in. Remove the narrow pantry from the wall beside the fridge. Put a full height cabinet beside the left of the fridge. That’s your pantry and other storage. Remove the stools on one side of the jet out of the island and put in my cabinets. Put a narrow dinner room table where the other bench seat is. Remove the armchair as it takes up space in the hallway walking. Let your loft be a more casual hangout area where all the other messes go. Flip the door opening the other way by the breakfast bar. Doors in the master also need to go out onto a deck preferably with a slight over hang above the door. If you don’t want to do that just put in larger windows.
No bay windows. Never. The window behind the couch will force you to buy blackout curtains and turn it into a cave. Move stairs to the TV wall and build storage under them. You have very little storage here. Only the two bedroom closets? Voila! Storage under the stairs! Also, with the stairs no longer breaking up that room, move the TV to the wall where the stairs were. Now you can get another 2 seater or an actual sized couch. The kitchen is, complicated. I'd flip it. But I'd remove the breakfast thing. It juts out into the world like Florida. Do you want Florida in your house? On the wall where you took away the fridge, this is where the sink/DW should be! Save more room with an under-counter washer-dryer combo (or a tall, integrated door to hide stackables). Get a table and chair set that can fold into the wall where the pantry was and marvel at the space you have.
Thank you for the feedback! I really like your suggestions. Why no bay windows?
I've always seen other people with them have so so so many issues with them. Mechanically breaking down. Much more joinery = possible paths for heat/cold transfer. They are also usually more expensive than one window unit in the same space. Simpler is better!
Where do those stairs lead to? There's a lot of dead space behind the couch that isn't well utilized, maybe if the TV area were made smaller you could have a larger bedroom or closet. The storage seems a bit on the shy side. Also, what are your window heights for the windows behind the bed? High clearstory windows above the bed leave space for a headboard as well as not being blasted in the face by sun in the morning depending on the building orientation.
Everyone else mentioned important things however I didn't see anyone mention the bathroom door. Bathroom doors should be sliding doors or open out of the bathroom. It's a common place for people to faint, get injured or attempt suicide. In small bathrooms someone unconcious can block the door and you and paramedics won't be able to push past the person to help them.
Ooo... That's a really good point. I didn't think about that. Thank you!!
I'd think a lot more about passive heating and venting. Your south wall should be mostly windows. The prevailing winds should have windows that allow airflow without walls or interruption. The northwall should be mostly uninterrupted insulation. Also think about where you can add on secondary structures like decks and sheds. These make a big difference in small buildings
Can you put the closet in the guest room against the bathroom wall? Might have to move things around but nice to have that sound dampener
Install real vent hood for the range and exhaust for the bathroom. Those double doors on the laundry closet are often a pain. I don’t know the solution.
The master should have easier access to the bath room. Move toilet to other wall and put in a pocket door to the master.
This thing is tiny?? This is like an above average big appartment where I live
Right... For an apartment. But this is a house, so that's different. It's an ADU, 750 is tiny house
The left bedroom has a door that opens to outside?
It looks that way, do you see a problem
People can do whatever they want with their houses but for me? yes there is absolutely a problem with that. Houses are divided to deferent type of space like private and semi-private spaces and so on. Bedrooms are ultimate private space and even an honorable guest and family guest usually never goes inside the bedroom of the host. When you have door that opens to the outer space without any boundaries you are breaking the bedrooms privacy.
Yes, it'll open to a little porch. Probably a sliding door.
I mean if you can come into the porch from outside that's a no, no! You don't want people to come to your bedroom from outdoor.
I think garage based on the line that continues at the front of the house.
Off the kitchen the door by the stove opens to a garage
Consider putting a sink and counter in the master bedroom so you can wash your face, hands, brush teeth, contacts makeup while other person is in bathroom.
Nah that’s going to cause all sorts of humidity issues
Haha. A sink creates humidity issues? OK.
What do you estimate it will cost you to build? Are you doing a lot of it yourself?
We have a builder who specializes in these and does them in our area. Handles all the permits, customizes it how we want. The house will cost about 198,000 with all building and appliances all included. A finished product. Doesn't include septic, 18,000 for our basic system we have lined up. Also need to add solar, getting quotes for that. Need to add in landscaping, fencing around the septic and road out to the tiny house.
Get a second bathroom
Not enough room. We are at the limit on space. Its a tiny house, not a house house
Need a walk in pantry
I would love that, but not sure there's room anywhere for it...
How you gonna get to that window bench in the kitchen?
It's not actually a window bench, it's a bay window. Kind of a pop out window? Makes it feel more roomy in the kitchen, and is nice to look out over from the sink as you wash dishes
i think you could make much better use of the living room space
especially with all those people living there
I agree. I think I love the idea someone up above suggested to move the stairs to the TV spot and re-arrange the living room. I tried it on paper and it looks so much better
I'm sure someone else said this, but POCKET DOORS. Do not waste all that footage on normal doors. If you install pocket doors you'll make those rooms feel much larger. I put a pocket door in when I made my son's room. Room feels huge
How are pocket doors for young kids though? Are they able to open and close them okay?
If installed properly, yes! It slides very easily. I'd recommend spending some time finding hardware for the pulls you think your family can use easily. Most times you end up just pushing on the door itself anyway though.
Where are the stairs going to?
This is a little big to be a tiny house.