# Home Floor Plans



## W4OPS (Oct 5, 2012)

I am having the toughest time. Picking a floor lay out is just as hard as picking my first gun or buying my first track of land...

I am looking at starting a homestead in SW Missouri. My plan is to build several tiny houses, 300-800 square feet. I would also have one fortified common area. The houses would run off of solar power with composting toilets. 

I am looking for a floor plan that has an entry way where one could come in and take off their dirty clothes and go straight to the shower if they needed to, so a bathroom at the front of the house would be nice. I am looking at 1 bedrooms for a single guy like me and a couple of two bedrooms with bunk style sleeping for the 2nd bedroom (think RV style sleeping). This design would be used for families for with kids. 

The bedrooms would be carpeted as well as a portion of the great room. It would be an open floor plan. The kitchen and bathroom would be tile. 

I am looking for any advice at all. It would be built out of 2x6 with tin roofs (maybe?) It would be built on a solid concrete foundation. Maybe partly an earth home? 

I am not trying to make them as secure as possible as I would have a fortified cement common area that all the families could bunker down in and would be used to defend the land. I would also have a couple of underground containers. I was thinking about a tunnel out of each house to the underground containers but I do not think this is going to happen because of added expenses. 

Here are some floor plans that I am considering but like I said, this is a hard decision.


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

Our home is larger than that but cld easily be modified. It's 20x40, 3 bedrooms, 1 bath with living room/kitchen all one large rooms kitchen, hallway and bath are all tiled.


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## CulexPipiens (Nov 17, 2010)

First problem... the 3D mockups... zero storage. No closets. Notice how on CP-507 the closets also create a sound-block between the bedrooms.


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## W4OPS (Oct 5, 2012)

Yes, I noticed I don't have the closets factored in. I do plan on using a lot of shelving and drawers. 

I have been looking at a lot of RVs for inspiration.


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## WWhermit (Mar 1, 2012)

What type of heat would you be using in the winter? It seems a wood fireplace would do nicely. If that's the case, I'd try to keep the fireplace as central to the house as possible, and maybe even have the chimney built so that the heat would radiate into the bedroom as well as the main living space. 

I've had much the same idea as you do. I was thinking of an apartment type setup, with the individual spaces be in more of a square than rectangle, maybe 25x25, giving you 625 sq feet..


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## pandamonium (Feb 6, 2011)

Consider having your concrete common area central and your "apartments" connected to and radiating out from that. All apartments would have access to the common area without having to actually leave the "complex".

Personally I wouldn't bother with someone elses floor plans, sit down with some paper and a pencil and start doodling, refine it as ideas strike you. 

Having your buildings central could help you to collect rain water from all the roofs to one cistern that can be pumped to each apartment. Heating could also be central, one large fireplace in the common area with a heat exchanger (similar to those in an outdoor furnace) built into it to heat hot water for common use and for use in radiant floor heating for the entire complex. A few solar panels to run your pumps and LED lighting. If desired you could make access to your underground containers from the common area.

If you built your common area six sided that would allow you 5 or 6 apartments, 6 if you put 1 apartment on each flat side, 5 if you left one wall to have access from outside without entering from an apartment. I would say build your common area first with maybe one apartment to start, then you can add apartments to the complex as money allows. 

Design your apartments in whatever configuration you like, but as CP mentioned don't forget closet space!!


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

Check out Tumbleweed Houses - Tiny House Company if you haven't already. They have some fantastically functional, tiny houses. I bought their book and have the Zinn plans.


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## Lake Windsong (Nov 27, 2009)

I like pandamonium's central courtyard idea. You could add a common mudroom type enclosure on a side with a smaller apartment to have a shared yet somewhat secure access to the courtyard without having to walk through a housing section. In the mudroom, shared laundry facilities and/or kitchen, solar shower, whatever you deem appropriate in a shared common room.
And I also like the idea of creating the courtyard and adding the housing around it one at a time. Would allow some trial and error to improve plans for the further housing additions. Interesting thread.


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

A way to cut costs, build "green," and have a home that will take a L.A.W. to pierce: Shipping Container Homes

You can stack them, circle them around a common area, park them side by side for more floor space, etc.


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## pandamonium (Feb 6, 2011)

here is a "doodle" of what I was talking about. You can make the floor plans different for each "apartment" too, if'n ya wanna.


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

I used to live in a 600sq ft house and then I upgraded to a 823sq ft house. 

Neither one of the houses had that "open concept" that you show in your 3D models, mine were very tight, but, with massive amounts of "hidden" storage space with cupboards and closets built-in everywhere. The biggest problem that I had with those two houses was the size of the counter-top in the kitchen, not being big enough to roll out a pie dough or cookie dough (for cut-out cookies) or to have enough cupboard space for my kitchen tools.

The other problem I had was in the placement of the power plugs - I ended up having extension cords and power bars just about everywhere!

You will need to have "tall" closets for tall "tools" like brooms, mops, vacuum cleaners and similar cleaning supplies (Windex, SprayNine, Pledge and the rag-bags to match those cleaning supplies). You will want to have lots of drawers inside closets - my 823sq ft house had a "large" master bedroom, but, I placed high-boy dressers inside the closets to make better use of the floor space.

Make use of the inside space of the hollow walls for shelving as people really like to show off their DVD collections, not everyone has massive space on their computer harddrives for their movie collections, and, gathering around a 15" laptop screen for a family night of popcorn and movies really tests the strength of the family.

Maybe look towards IKEA's tight-spaces homeplans for ideas on how to make things work in very small apartments.


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## Domeguy (Sep 9, 2011)

Hey W4op,

give me a shout, i can build you a dome home that will do everything you need and be cost effective. Tornado proof. bullet proof, earth quake proof, fire proof, termite proof, emp protected, super energy efficient, and unlimited design possibilities. and any size you want from 200ft2 to 20,000 ft2 . .
and i'm close . .


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

That's awesome ... almost looks like a summer-version of our winter-homes here in Canada ... Igloos ..


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

We don't have closets built in; ours are what we've built ourselves for easy take down. Funny part is, we done it before we started prepping! Our bed is homemade, as is our kitchen table. The only thing we wld not be able to take with us if we bug out is living room furniture. 

Our BOL will be small cabins centralized around a common cooking/entertainment area.


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

dixiemama said:


> We don't have closets built in; ours are what we've built ourselves for easy take down. Funny part is, we done it before we started prepping! Our bed is homemade, as is our kitchen table. The only thing we wld not be able to take with us if we bug out is living room furniture.
> 
> Our BOL will be small cabins centralized around a common cooking/entertainment area.


The homemade beds - that is the same thing with me - simple bed frames on tall legs so that I have lots of storage-space under - that's where I keep small totes on rollers like drawers and have stuff that I need in my bedrooms, but, don't need everyday (like extra blankets and sheets and pillow cases).


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## Fn/Form (Nov 6, 2008)

W4OPS said:


> I am having the toughest time. Picking a floor lay out is just as hard as picking my first gun or buying my first track of land...


Does this need to appear like a B&B get away for "hiding in plain sight"? Is your budget wide open?

Are you comfortable with those very sociable floor plans? Windows by beds, dining area, familiar layout, etc.

I believe there are better design cues for a retreat, but maybe you have some other things in mind. Can you give more info to guide our collective thought process?


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

How many people are you wanting to house? We have 3 families that will be house but we will prob make a 4th for storage.


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## W4OPS (Oct 5, 2012)

Thanks for all the comments so far. My goal and the purpose for many housed is because I would like to house 9-15 people. I don't plan on the housed being very fortified that's what the 30 x 30 common area made out of 8in IFC will be for. The houses will have wood burning stoves and lots of custom cabinets. Some even on the walls above love seats etc. 

No dish washer no washer and dryer no furnace 

They will sit on poured cement. And be built out of 2x6 and sprayed insulation.


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## W4OPS (Oct 5, 2012)

Here is a picture with more floor plans. Each one is under 900 square feet. The think I don't like about them is they don't have mud rooms. I would have to add a mud room or entry way to them.


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

Just draw up what you want; it's what we did with our house. Our BOL cabins will be entirely wood and primitive. Granted, everyone can customize as they like, but basically, no running water, electricity or gas. Wood stoves in all.


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