Basic house designs
- 1. Basic House Design
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- 3. Chapter 2
Basic House
Designs
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- 4. Chapter 2 Overview
• Introduction
• One-Story Ranch Designs
• One-and-One-Half-Story Designs
• Two-Story Designs
• Split-Level Designs
• Variations of the Split-Level Design
• Traffic Circulation
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- 5. Learning Objectives
• List the four basic house designs.
• Explain the chief advantages of each
house design.
• List disadvantages of each house
design.
• Explain traffic circulation in a floor plan.
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- 6. Introduction
• A residential home designer has four
basic designs from which to choose:
– One-story ranch.
– One-and-one-half-story.
– Two-story.
– Split-level.
• Each style has strengths and
weaknesses.
(continued)
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- 7. Introduction
• Several factors should play a role in the
final decision in choosing a basic design:
– Space available for the house.
– Site contour and surroundings.
– Climate.
– Convenience and cost.
– Personal preference and needs.
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- 8. One-Story Ranch Designs
• The one-story ranch style house has all
the regular living space on one level.
• It may have a basement, crawl space,
or slab floor.
• One of the chief advantages is that it
lends itself to indoor-outdoor living.
• Patios, porches, and terraces can be
added off most any room.
(continued)
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- 9. One-Story Ranch Designs
• One of the many style variations for a
typical one-story ranch house.
(continued)
(Ken Hawk) 9
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- 10. One-Story Ranch Designs
• Another advantage of this design is the
absence of stairs where there is no
basement.
• The ranch is popular with older and
handicapped people.
• Usually has a low-pitched roof with wide
overhangs.
• Short walls make outside maintenance
easy. (continued)
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- 11. One-Story Ranch Designs
• The quality of this outdoor space greatly
enhances the living area of the home.
(The Oshkosh, WI private residence of Chancellor Richard (continued)
H. Wells and family—formerly the Alberta Kimball Home)
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- 12. One-Story Ranch Designs
• This modern variation of the basic
ranch design minimizes height
problems in construction. (continued)
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- 13. One-Story Ranch Designs
• This computer-generated rendering shows a
large ranch house that combines simplified
construction and minimal maintenance.
(continued)
(Helmuth A. Geiser, Member AIBD) 13
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- 14. One-Story Ranch Designs
• Low height simplifies construction.
• The low and long appearance of the
ranch is pleasing to most people.
• A great number of variations are possible.
• The ranch easily lends itself to expansion
and modification.
• A ranch house usually costs more to build
than other designs of the same square
footage.
14 (continued)
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- 15. One-Story Ranch Designs
• The long, low design of this ranch home
in Florida is attractive to most people.
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- 16. One-Story Ranch Designs
• Ranch design with a full basement.
(continued)
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- 17. One-Story Ranch Designs
• Ranch design with a crawl space.
(continued)
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- 18. One-Story Ranch Designs
• Ranch design with slab construction.
(continued)
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- 19. One-Story Ranch Designs
• The ranch generally requires a larger lot
than other house designs.
• The large “footprint” can cause heating
problems for certain areas of the house
because of distance from the furnace.
• Sometimes two furnaces or air
conditioners may be required.
(continued)
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- 20. One-Story Ranch Designs
• Maintenance costs may be more on a
ranch because of the large roof and
exterior wall surfaces.
• Considerable hall space may be
required in a large ranch style house.
• Careful planning should be done to
keep hall space to a minimum.
(continued)
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- 21. One-Story Ranch Designs
• This spacious ranch house has
extensive roof and wall areas that may
produce maintenance problems.
(continued)
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- 22. One-Story Ranch Designs
• An excessive amount of hall space is
required to make this ranch design
serviceable.
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- 23. One-and-One-Half-Story
Designs
• The one-and-one-half-story design is
sometimes called a Cape Cod.
• It has one-story with an expanded attic.
• It usually has dormers for additional
light and ventilation.
• Economical to build.
• Built-in expandability in the attic—about
1/2 the floor space of the first floor.
(continued)
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- 24. One-and-One-Half-Story
Designs
• Typical one-and-
one-half-story
house.
(continued)
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- 25. One-and-One-Half-Story
Designs
(Photo Courtesy of James Hardie® Siding Products) 25
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- 26. One-and-One-Half-Story
Designs
• Additional costs to build a one-and-one-
half-story house result from dormers,
stairs, and a slightly steeper roof.
• This design is quite versatile.
• A minimal house will have two bedrooms,
one bath, and an unfinished attic.
(continued)
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- 27. One-and-One-Half-Story
Designs
• Heating costs are minimized due to the
small outside wall area.
• The electrical and plumbing systems
should be planned with expansion in
mind.
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- 28. Two-Story Designs
• The two-story house is more
economical to build than a one-story.
• Requires a smaller lot due to the
smaller roof and foundation area.
• May be built with a basement, crawl
space, or on a slab.
• Heating is simple and comparatively
economical—heat rises naturally to the
second floor.
(continued)
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- 29. Two-Story Designs
• A section view of
a typical two-story
house with a
basement.
(continued)
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- 30. Two-Story Designs
• An attractive traditional two-story house
that fits comfortably on a small lot.
(continued)
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- 31. Two-Story Designs
• Ventilation is easy and effective with an
ample number of windows.
• The popularity of two-story houses
varies from location to location.
• Exterior maintenance is usually more
difficult and costly for a two-story house
because of height.
• Stairs are a problem for some people.
(continued)
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- 32. Two-Story Designs
• Two-story houses like this one were
once very common throughout the
midwestern states. (continued)
(Shouldice) 32
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- 33. Two-Story Designs
• This basic two-story house has a
contemporary appearance.
(continued)
(Photo Courtesy of James Hardie Siding Products)
® 33
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- 34. Two-Story Designs
• The two-story does not lend itself to
variations in style as well as some other
designs.
• Architects have added a contemporary
flair and, therefore, improved the overall
appearance and demand for two-story
houses.
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- 35. Split-Level Designs
• The split-level design was developed for
a sloping or hilly lot to take advantage
of a troublesome difference in elevation.
• As a general rule, a split-level house
should not be built on a flat lot.
• The split-level makes efficient use of
space and has little hall space.
• Sleeping, living, and recreation areas
are separated on different levels.
35 (continued)
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- 36. Split-Level Designs
• This split-level house illustrates the
standard arrangement of living levels.
(continued)
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- 37. Split-Level Designs
• Arrangement of a four-level house.
(continued)
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- 38. Split-Level Designs
• The lowest level of the house is usually
the basement level.
– Contains the heating and cooling
equipment, storage, and shop or laundry.
– This level is generally about 40% to 60% of
the house “footprint.”
• The next level up is the
intermediate level—garage and
recreation area. 38 (continued)
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- 39. Split-Level Designs
• The intermediate level is at ground level.
• Patios and terraces may be attached to
the recreation area.
• The intermediate level may also have a
foyer, utility room, or family room.
• Slightly higher than the intermediate level
is the living level.
• This level is at ground level also; the
sloping grade makes this possible.
39 (continued)
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- 40. Split-Level Designs
• The kitchen, dining room, living room,
and full or 1/2 bath are generally
located on the living level.
• The foyer, utility, and laundry may also
be located on this level, if preferred.
• At the highest level of the house is the
sleeping level—bedrooms and bath.
(continued)
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- 41. Split-Level Designs
• Split-level houses do have some
negative aspects:
– Generally more expensive to build than a
two-story house.
– Heating may be a problem if not handled
properly; zoning will solve the problem.
– Providing access to the different levels for
an older or handicapped person is costly.
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- 42. Variations of the Split-Level
• There are three basic variations of the
split-level design:
– Side-by-side.
– Front-to-back.
– Back-to-front.
• The choice of variation depends on the
grade or slope of the lot.
(continued)
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- 43. Variations of the Split-Level
• Side-by-Side Design
– For lots sloping to the right or left.
• Front-to-Back Design
– For lots high in front and low in back.
• Back-to-Front Design
– For lots low in front and high in back.
• Traditional Split-Level Design
– Split entry between levels.
– Raised basement on flat site.
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- 44. Split-Level Design Variation
• Side-by-side split-level house.
(continued)
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- 45. Split-Level Design Variation
• Front-to-back split-level house.
(continued)
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- 46. Split-Level Design Variation
• Back-to-front split-level house.
(continued)
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- 47. Split-Level Design Variation
• Traditional split-level design with split entry.
(Alside) 47
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- 48. Traffic Circulation
• A primary consideration in designing a
functional plan is traffic circulation.
• Circulation should be planned for
efficiency of movement.
– Travel should be short and not pass
through other rooms.
– Distance from garage to kitchen should be
short and direct.
– Foyer should be centrally located.
– Bedrooms should be close to a bath.
(continued)
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- 49. Traffic Circulation
• This arrangement
provides for good
traffic circulation.
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- 50. Glossary
• Basement.
The lowest level of the house that is mostly below the
grade level.
• Intermediate Level.
The next level up from the basement in a split-level
design.
• Living Level.
The next level up from the intermediate level in a
split-level design.
• One-and-One-Half Story.
A house design that is basically a one-story house
with a steeper roof for expansion of the attic.
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- 51. Glossary
• One-Story Ranch.
A house design that has all regular living space on
one level.
• Sleeping Level.
The highest elevation in a split-level house design.
• Split-Level.
A house design developed to solve the problem of a
sloping site by shifting floor level areas to
accommodate the site.
• Traffic Circulation.
The movement of people from one area or room to
another.
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- 52. Glossary
• Two-Story.
A house design that has living space on two full
levels.
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