ARCHITECTURAL WAY OF PLANNING AN APARTMENT UNIT

1. Unit planning

2. Introduction
Defining the term home is not easy to do, but it is necessary. Would it not be
more appropriate to assess the meaning of the noun home as a place
covered by the verb live? Live refers to a refuge for the sensations, a place
that provides mental comfort. Previous government standards described a
minimum requirement for home building (entrance hall, lounge, kitchen,
bathroom and toilet) that did not include certain use types. Connections
or even separations might be observed due to work-related activities,
entertainment, as well as cultural or even social environments. In many
cases, these are purely functional forms which, due to work or leisure
activities, might require nothing more than furnishing solutions, but the
phenomenon of "abundance" design, which might have financial
drawbacks over the lifetime of a given project, allows these spaces to be
adapted for different uses over time.

3. Dimensions of residential spaces

4. Spatial
requirements for
furniture

5. Spatial
arrangement
for sanitary
equipments

6. Domestic
Headroom
Use of
furniture
below
sloping roof

7. Door

8. Placement of
windows
•Lower sills or windows without sills
may be used where intensive visual
contact is desired with the
outdoors. This usually occurs in
rooftop terraces or living room
windows overlooking gardens.
• Vertical surfaces, glass doors and
windows, do not provide the
interior with much lighting below
60-80 cm in height (unless the
interior floor’s finish is reflective,
which could be disturbing).
•Some bands of furniture might be
placed below parapet level (desks,
kitchen units, etc.), but they should
not be deeper than 75 cm, or it
would be hard to reach the window
handle.

9. • If built-in kitchens are placed below windows, sills should not be lower
than 120 cm (100 cm in some cases) as side hung windows will interfere
with activities on the worktop.
• Bathrooms and toilets often have higher sill levels to prevent people from
looking in. Windows might also have opaque glazing (e.g., cathedral glass
and sand blasted glass), but this is often detrimental to the elevational
treatment. It is advisable not to place bathtubs in front of windows,
especially with high sills, as they are hard to open without specialized
handle systems.
• Window sizes and placement often create problems when designing a
building’s elevations. A single window might have a negative impact on
the rhythm or proportion of a building’s elevational treatment. It falls
upon the architect to balance these problems and solve the design, often
leading to the redesign of an entire room, to create a positive elevation.
That is why it is advisable to consider the design of elevations when
beginning the very first sketch plan.

10. • For smaller apartments, a minimum 18
m² is recommended. In homes for 3 or
more people, a lower limit of 20 m² will
suffice. Room width or depth is best kept
to a minimum of 3.60 m.
• In smaller homes of 1-2 persons, it is
possible to use the living room as a
sleeping area. In some cases , it is
inevitable that the living room will be
used as a sleeping area when the number
of bedrooms is not enough for the whole
family. In this case, the living room must
be separable, even from the kitchen and
dining room.
LIVING ROOM
DESIGN

11. Dining requirements
• The dining table rarely functions as a
place for meals. It often serves as a
place for playing cards and board
games, or for smaller children to
draw in close proximity to their
mother.
• Recommend that seating allow for
two extra places (for guests) in
addition to the actual occupancy
number.
• In larger homes (more than 2-
person), it is not possible to have a
dining area in the living room when
the living room is also used as a
sleeping area.
• There should be no steps between
the dining area and kitchen
• The dining area can be used as a
general circulation area.

12. Bedroom
design
• Bedrooms should have max
privacy.
• Beds narrower than 180cm
and double beds can be used
only for a certain period of
life so its better to avoid
such furnishes.
• Do not place beds directly
under windows and, if
possible, not along external
walls. Direct proximity to
radiant surfaces and
radiators also interferes with
sleep patterns, so try to
avoid this, too.
• Each person should be provided with a bed, 90 x 200 cm (plan area). To the side of each bed,
provide at least 45 x 45 cm (plan area) and maximum 75-cm-high storage area (low cabinet,
shelf, table, etc.).
• The master bedroom bed should be min 180 x 200 cm, which should be accessed along both
long sides.

13. • Beds used by other family members or siblings should not be connected along the
longer side. Where a home can provide for only one bedroom, this should be a
double or master bedroom. The beds should be arranged in such a way as to avoid
inconvenience, damage to health, and surfaces that are radiant, hot or cold.
• Any area within the home that is dedicated to the purpose of sleep should have a
minimum volume of 15 m³ per person. (See Section 1.5.2.) Single bedrooms
require a minimum floor area of 8m², double bedrooms 12m², both taking into
account a minimum volume for ventilation purposes.
• In larger homes of more than two occupants, the sleeping area should be
acoustically separate, isolated from the rest of the domestic activities and not used
as general circulation space, since this would disturb the purpose of sleep.
• One- or two-occupant homes do allow for the possibility of providing a living /
sleeping room. In larger than two occupancy homes, it is possible to use the living
room as a sleeping area (although not for children) as long as it is acoustically
separate from other domestic functions (e.g., cooking and dining) and does not
interfere with common pastimes, activities and welcoming guests.
• The kitchen should be located to allow visual contact with children at play.
Children feel comfortable if they are in contact with parents; therefore, try to place
bedrooms within an earshot, and avoid placing them on separate levels or in
opposite corners of the home.

14. Design of kitchen
• The kitchen should be located such that it receives max lighting during the day when it
is most used.
• The most frequently used part of a kitchen is the space between the stove and sink.
This should not be smaller than 60 x 60 cm.
• Built-in components are coordinated to provide base units that are 60 cm deep and
between 85-90 cm high. Wall mounted units, starting at a height of 135 cm from floor
level, are usually 32-35 cm deep, the upper height not being fixed. The upper cabinets
are used to store less used items.
• A refrigerator should be located in the kitchen – not in the pantry, as this machine
generates heat. Min plan area is 60 x 90 cm.
• Collection of waste also becomes an important subject while designing a kitchen.
• A single- or double-occupancy home requires a fitted kitchen width of at least 230 cm,
and a family kitchen width of at least 270cm. In both cases, additional space is
required for a refrigerator. It is strongly recommended that a family kitchen be 360 cm
wide to allow for full furnishing excluding refrigeration.
• U-shaped kitchen is the most efficient as traffic does not pass through the work area.
the L-shaped unit has equipment along two walls with dining unit located in the
opposite corner. The corridor type is convenient if there is very little traffic. In a family
kitchen serving 4-5 people, it is strongly recommended that the total row of fitted
units be at least 360 cm in length and 420 cm for higher occupancy, excluding
refrigeration.

16. Spatial separation
Spatial separation can occur as
• Physical separation (air-tight walls or glass surfaces, air-tight doors)
• Visual separation (non-transparent surfaces)
• Acoustic separation (sound proof walls and doors)
• Architectural separation (wherein a space located adjacent to another is differently
executed, not physically, visually or acoustically, but by means of architectural
language)

17. Living room
examples

18. Dining room
examples
Dining kitchen
examples

19. Bedroom
examples

20. Proportional room percentage
2-room
home
3-room
home
4-room
home
5-room
home
6-room
home
Living
room
67% 45% 40% 32% 30%
Master
bedroom
33 25 20 21 17
Dining
room
22 20 19 17
Hall 8 6 6 6
Guest
room or
child’s
room
14 14 11
10
Sun porch
or nursery
8 9
Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

21. Approximate sizes of rooms of a fairly small house are given below. They may
be changed freely.
Living room-14 x 22 ft
Dining room-12 x 14 ft
Dining alcove-7 x 9 ft
Kitchen-8 x 12 ft
Bedroom-12 x 14 ft
Study-10 x 12 ft
Closets-2 x 4 ft
Halls-4 ft wide
Stairs-3.5 x 12 ft
Bathroom-6 x 7 ft
Utility-8 x 12 ft
Garage-11 x 20 ft /18 x 20 ft

22. Furniture sizes
Living room
Sofa 3’ x 6’
Love seat 3’ x 4’
Coffee table 3’ x 5’
Bathroom
Bathtub 2’6” x 5’
Toilet 1’6” x 2’
Shower 2’6” x 2’6”
Dining room
Rectangle table 3’6”
Round table 5’ dia
Side chair 1’6” x 1’6”
Serving table 1’6” x 3’
Kitchen
Sink 2’ x 4’
Range 26” x 44”
Refrigerator 2’ x 3’
Bedroom
Twin bed 3’3” x 6’ 6”
Double bed 4’6” x 6’6”
Dresser 1’6” x 3’6”
Bed table 2’ x 2’
Chest 1’6” x 4’
Dressing table 1’6” x 3’
Side chair 1’6” x 1’6”

23. Ventilation
• Effective open able area at least 5% of the total floor area
• Windows should be equally distributed on the windward and leeward side.
• Window on the windward side should be smaller than that on the leeward side
for efficient circulation
• For effective air flow the inlet window should allow the air flow at an angle of 45
degree.
• Opening should be designed adjacent to each other.

24. Lighting

26. Building orientation
• Building facing perpendicular to the wind direction is not so favourable
• Building facing windward side inclined at an angle between 30-40 degree allows
more airflow
• Better air flow will be achieved if the partitions are nearer to outlet compared to
the inlet
• Airflow must be at the body flow level and this depends on the activity performed
in the room.
• Height at which the windows are placed affects the airflow
• Internal partitions can deflect airflow for greater air movement
Professional convention favours generally accepted guidelines that rooms be
orientated as follows:
•living room: south (south-west, west)
•master bedroom: east (north-east)
•additional bedrooms: east (south-east, south)
•kitchen and pantry: north (north-east, north-west)
•other rooms: neutral

27. Examples of
connection
between
entrance, kitchen
and living room

28. Examples of
connection
between
bedrooms,
corridor and
bathroom

29. Examples of
schematic
layout of
spaces

30. Examples of homes
and their respective
types according to
market values

31. Schematic
examples
of core
house
arrangeme
nts