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Good orientation: Lots of windows on the south side (assuming Northern Hemisphere); fewer windows on east and west side.
I completely disagree with this as a standard for the ENTIRE northern hemisphere This depends on the region where the house is located. In many areas, weather moves west to east so it's important to have windows on the west and east side of the house for optimum air flow when windows are open. (Areas that have different weather patterns need to adjust accordingly.) South and west facing windows are not ideal in climates that have hot humid summers and sun that shines from the south and the west. There can be many windows but it's important to ensure there is enough yard to the south and west for planting shade trees to shade the south and west facing windows.
Since the OP's new house is in Florida, the sun rises and sets there differently. I found this website that explains the best window orientation for a Florida home and how to best shade the windows that get the most sun.
If I lived in Florida, I'd want the most windows facing north, some windows facing south, and the fewest windows facing east and west. Where I live now, the most windows facing east and north are best. Since window placement is super important, the sun path and weather patterns for each region need to be taken into consideration. There is no rule of thumb for the entire northern hemisphere.
Hate
toilets - I wanted Geberit wall-hung, but it was too late in the build process
refrigerator - I wanted another Sub-Zero, but again, too late
kitchen shelves are not pull out - we are saving money for that improvement
I completely disagree with this as a standard for the ENTIRE northern hemisphere This depends on the region where the house is located. In many areas, weather moves west to east so it's important to have windows on the west and east side of the house for optimum air flow when windows are open. (Areas that have different weather patterns need to adjust accordingly.) South and west facing windows are not ideal in climates that have hot humid summers and sun that shines from the south and the west. There can be many windows but it's important to ensure there is enough yard to the south and west for planting shade trees to shade the south and west facing windows.
Since the OP's new house is in Florida, the sun rises and sets there differently. I found this website that explains the best window orientation for a Florida home and how to best shade the windows that get the most sun.
I viewed that website and it supports what I wrote. In the summer, hardly any sun comes in from the south. The sun rises in the north east and sets in the northwest at the summer solstice. This supports my point of having not a lot of windows (and yes, a lot of trees) on the east and west sides of the house. And, the web page and its graphics support lots of windows on the south side so you get the winter sun.
Windows on the east side and west side to take advantage of "weather moves west to east" is practically irrelevant. There are still going to be windows on the east and west sides of the house - we just don't want to have huge 8 X 10 foot windows letting all that morning and evening sun in in the summer.
I viewed that website and it supports what I wrote. In the summer, hardly any sun comes in from the south. The sun rises in the north east and sets in the northwest at the summer solstice. This supports my point of having not a lot of windows (and yes, a lot of trees) on the east and west sides of the house. And, the web page and its graphics support lots of windows on the south side so you get the winter sun.
No. The diagram pictures show less windows to the south and more windows to the north. Avoiding the summer sun is more important than needing the winter sun in Florida. The house heats up too much in the summer with south facing windows. The north is where you want most of your windows in Florida. I agree that the fewest windows should be the east and west in Florida, but I completely disagree about the southern windows.
Quote:
Originally Posted by plmokn
Windows on the east side and west side to take advantage of "weather moves west to east" is practically irrelevant.
Where I live, that's not true. We want as much air flow as possible to keep the heat down. TREES are important for providing shade to those windows to cool the breeze prior to coming into the house.
Alternately, if someone lives on the coast, they would want the most windows facing the direction of the coast to catch the breeze regardless of which direction that faced.
Quote:
Originally Posted by plmokn
There are still going to be windows on the east and west sides of the house - we just don't want to have huge 8 X 10 foot windows letting all that morning and evening sun in in the summer.
There are many houses that don't have enough windows on the east and west to make that possible. My previous house only has one useless east facing window located in the second floor hallway.
I took most issue with your blanket northern hemisphere comment. There is no standard window orientation for the entire hemisphere. People who live in areas with harsh winters and mild summers need something completely different. They need many windows to the south and west to keep their houses warm in the winter.
Going to echo the sentiments of Ceece. Floorplan x Infinity. I have sunken living rooms and man cave. They were cool the first 6 months and initially was the main reason I purchased. 3 years later I friggin hate them. I knew from the get go I did not like multi-story houses but I never thought in my wildest dreams how irritating those 2 small steps would ever be. I can't imagine what's going to happen as I get older. I will probably be one of those people in the infomercial that has fallen and can't get up.
Love my ginormous pantry. I don't need to store party platters, slow cookers, etc in the basement. LOVE our screened in porch right off the kitchen. Hate that the builder installed cabinets with glass above the stove. The glass gets grease from the stove, etc and it's a huge pain to keep clean. Really hate that my dining room has windows on one end and a wall on the other. The floor plan would have worked much better to switch the formal living room with the dining room so we could extend our dining table for large parties. I swore I wouldn't buy a house with a catwalk/open 2nd story, but that's what builders in my area build. You can hear everything and it makes for very small bedrooms.
wisescorpiogirl -- We are just a little farther down that road than you are. We are building in Orlando. We have chosen the plan and the lot in the development. They should start building beginning of next month.
The main thing is to print out a floor plan you think you'd like, then mentally walk yourself through your average day. How far is it from, say, the garage to the nearest bathroom? Is the laundry room easy to reach with a full basket on your hip? Is your guest bedroom directly above your own...or someplace where you won't hear your guests' bedsprings creak? What are you really going to use that 'bonus' room for?
In my current house, we could use one more bedroom/office space. It would have been nice to have a bigger backyard, but we back to federal land so we couldn't. Steps off the 2nd floor back deck would have made it more useable.
Pros: We've got an elevator! We are two minutes walk to the beach. Our property is very quiet and private. No HOA, but no amenities either. Great neighbors.
Things I dislike about my new built (not custom) home are no bathroom windows. Smallish master bath. No private toilet room. Small garage space. They were not surprises. They were compromises.
The sq footage...I went too small in retirement
The one car garage
and
here is the biggie....
No Closet Space
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