We bought this house a little over six years ago. The layout had been bugging me for various reasons, but I couldn't envisage how it could be improved. Then we visited my sister's house, which was about three-quarters of the way through their renovation. It suddenly occurred to me that we could switch the kitchen and the laundry, removing the wall between the new kitchen and the existing dining area.
This would get the kitchen out of the middle of the house, and give me a chance to re-design it. The current kitchen really only has one work space; if two people are preparing food, then you're shoulder-to-shoulder. The only access from the front of the house to the back is through the kitchen, with the benches on one side of the thoroughfare, and the pantry/crockery storage on the other. And if you have front and back doors open, for example to cool down the house with the cool change, the cupboard doors can get blown back on their hinges and break if caught in a sharp gust of wind. Oh and the rangehood? It vents into a cavity in the middle of the house.
And there's the toilet with three doors. Because that's what you need for an intrinsically private space.
And in the bathroom, the gap between the fully opened door and the pedestal basin is such that all but the skinniest must sidle into the bathroom. The fully opened door which comes from the toilet.
And the boys' bedrooms where if you move more than a metre from the centreline, you're likely to hit your head. And because the previous owners didn't insulate properly, the rooms get stiflingly hot (yes, we've rectified that too). But the ceiling mounted fan-and-light combo requires light bulbs be on their side, which means they burn out. Or they're faulty, because even the compact fluorescent globes fail far too quickly.
And that if you're taller than about 6'2", then as a bloke you can't stand straight at either loo. Downstairs, it's tucked under the stairs, so you'd be leaning back. Upstairs, it's under a lower part of the roof, so you need to tilt right (even my head, at 5'7", skims the ceiling). As if blokes need anything impeding their aim.
And there's various smaller things. Poorly made cupboards where the shelves sag, meaning the doors don't close. Sinks that don't drain properly. We've already replaced the oven, the dishwasher and the rangehood (other than the stove top, these are the only appliances sold with a house; you bring your own fridge, washer, and dryer when you move).
(I'll add more pics once the cleaner's been through - it's a bit of a sty at the moment.)
This would get the kitchen out of the middle of the house, and give me a chance to re-design it. The current kitchen really only has one work space; if two people are preparing food, then you're shoulder-to-shoulder. The only access from the front of the house to the back is through the kitchen, with the benches on one side of the thoroughfare, and the pantry/crockery storage on the other. And if you have front and back doors open, for example to cool down the house with the cool change, the cupboard doors can get blown back on their hinges and break if caught in a sharp gust of wind. Oh and the rangehood? It vents into a cavity in the middle of the house.
And there's the toilet with three doors. Because that's what you need for an intrinsically private space.
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| From our bedroom (door to right), showing door from hall (at left) and door to bathroom (hinges at right). Also showing reduced clearance for the taller bloke. |
And the boys' bedrooms where if you move more than a metre from the centreline, you're likely to hit your head. And because the previous owners didn't insulate properly, the rooms get stiflingly hot (yes, we've rectified that too). But the ceiling mounted fan-and-light combo requires light bulbs be on their side, which means they burn out. Or they're faulty, because even the compact fluorescent globes fail far too quickly.
And that if you're taller than about 6'2", then as a bloke you can't stand straight at either loo. Downstairs, it's tucked under the stairs, so you'd be leaning back. Upstairs, it's under a lower part of the roof, so you need to tilt right (even my head, at 5'7", skims the ceiling). As if blokes need anything impeding their aim.
And there's various smaller things. Poorly made cupboards where the shelves sag, meaning the doors don't close. Sinks that don't drain properly. We've already replaced the oven, the dishwasher and the rangehood (other than the stove top, these are the only appliances sold with a house; you bring your own fridge, washer, and dryer when you move).
(I'll add more pics once the cleaner's been through - it's a bit of a sty at the moment.)
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