Architectural Design of Hosue

Considerations for Architectural Design of a House

The arrangement of various rooms in a building plan for easy and comfortable living of the occupants is called architectural design of  the building.

Every effort is made to utilize full natural resources such as wind, sun etc. 

Maximum facilities are to be provided within the funds and the space available. However it is almost impossible to provide all the comforts and facilities with in restricted resources. 

Following points are to be kept in mind while designing the house architecturally.

Plot size: 

Plot size is measured in Sft., Sq.Yds., Marlas or kanals with the following conversion.

          1Marla=225 Sft.

   =25 Sq. Yds.

          1 Kanal=20 Marlas

            =4500 Sft.

                 =500 Sq. Yds.

Rectangular plot is preferable with the ratio of longer to shorter side roughly equal to 1.85
Standard size of 10 Marla plot=35 x 65

Standard size of 1 Kanal plot = 50 x 90

How to divide a plot according to desired Construction?

Plot is to be divided into central constructed block and open spaces left  at least on three sides. 

Bye- laws of the controlling authorities for the urban construction must be observed in all respects.
For example, for a 10 Marla house, the most common restriction on the covered area is that it should not be greater than 60% of the total plot area and 10 ft. wide open spaces should be left on front and back side and minimum of 5 ft. open passage is to be provided in at least one side. 

With in a certain constructed area covered area may be increased by increasing the number of storeys. Most important factor to decide about the covered area is the finance. 

The covered area may roughly be found out from the following relation knowing the average cost of construction per unit area.

Total covered area (A) = Available Funds/Construction cost per unit area.

Modern Design of House

Bedroom with Attached Bath:

This room should be located on open side or back periphery of the constructed block to maintain good natural ventilation and light. Bedroom should be made as independent and private as possible but it should have easy access to all the common places in the house.It should be prevented from direct sun and rain. Minimum size of a bedroom for a small house is at least 100 Sft, e.g. 8’-6” x 12’-0”. Reasonable size is 180 Sft. Like a bedroom of size 12’ x 15’. The bathroom to be provided should have minimum size of 30 Sft. And atleast one side of it must be towards the open side for better ventilation. Sometimes a small portion called dressing is also provided close to the bath, passage of the bathroom in this case is through the dressing. Area of the dressing room may be kept smaller even about 25 Sft. One or two cupboards or wardrobes must be provided in each bedroom or in the attached dressing.

Drawing Room:

Preferable size is about 215 Sft with a minimum of 110 Sft. It should be made well-ventilated and lighted and should have direct approach  from the main entrance of the building. A powder room having a minimum size of 12 Sft is to be attached with the drawing directly or through the living room. The powder room is to be fitted with a W.C., a wash hand basin and hangers

Living Room:

It is sometimes referred to as common room or TV Lounge. Living room should be central place of a house and direct access to all other components should be available from here. This place should be the most comfortable and graceful part of the house. This room should give an impression of being open. If greenery is visible from inside the living room, the architectural appearance is improved and for that large glazed windows on suitable sides may be recommended. This room is generally the biggest place in the house having an area ranging from 215 to 325 Sft.

Dining Room:

This room having a minimum size o about 150 Sft. Should be located adjacent to the drawing and the living room. Kitchen should also be connected to the dining room for easy working. Sometimes a pantry (having about 50 Sft area) in-between the kitchen and the living is provided to store the kitchen articles and the cooked food temporarily. This room should have cupboards and shelves.

Kitchen:

Reasonable size for the kitchen is about 80 Sft but it depends upon the plot size, number of members of the family and the way in which the kitchen is used. Ventilation should be very good and space may also be provided for exhaust fan.

Store or Box Room:

It is a small (about 50 Sft) room present in the interior of the building to store articles.

Stair Case:

Position of the stairs is also very important which may be provided in a separate stair hall or directly in the living.  If the stair hall is to be provided, it should preferably have one opening to the outside and one to the living room. Natural light should always be available for the stairs.

Verandah:

It may be 6’-0” to 10’-0” wide and should be located on either the front or the back of the building.

Servant Room:

For one kanal or bigger house, a servant room may be provided having a size about 100 Sft. If it is on the ground floor, it should be independent and on the back side of the house but if it is on the top floor, preferably it should have a separate approach. A bathroom should also be provided with it.

Car Porch:

Car porch is constructed in front of the building to park the car. It is generally a roof provided over pillars, boundary wall or already constructed walls  open from two or three sides.

Lobby:

It is small place or hall at the main entrance which is connected to the living room and the drawing room.

Corridor:

It is covered passage inside a building to provide approach to a room without disturbing the working of the other rooms.  Corridors should be avoided as far as possible.

Important Points:

Doors and windows should be minimum as they increase the cost and utilize the available space yet they should provide adequate means of ventilation and light. Area covered by windows should not be lesser than 15 to 20 % of the floor area of the room.

Windows and doors on opposite faces provide better cross ventilation

Proper attention should be given to the orientation of the  plot with respect to North. The side of the building towards the south or the south-east is generally very hot in summer.

Ground floor plan and first floor plan should be so adjusted such that most of the walls of first floor comes directly above the walls beneath because providing beams increases the cost.

Further towards the south and southwest,  as  the light is usually excessive, windows are generally made narrow with proper sun shades.

For maintaining good ventilation inside the building, longer side of the building , should be exposed to the wind direction. Wind normally blows from the south-west direction. Hence if the face of the building is towards the south-west or North-East direction, it is advantageous.

Drawing Types

Types of Drawings:

1. Proposal drawing or proposal sketching
2. Perspective
3. Submission drawing
4. Working drawings
5. Completion drawing

Proposal and Perspective:

First architect collects data and requirements for the building such as the funds available, plot size, use of the building, number of stories desired, north direction, plot level especially in comparison with the road level, required room sizes, etc. Then he makes a number of proposals keeping in mind the by-laws of the controlling authorities.

For proposals, plan and elevation are drawn on a very small scale like 1/8 or 1/16 while the section is usually not needed.

Plans and elevations, in these drawings, are made attractive even by coloring and, if needed, perspectives are also drawn to impress the client. 

The proposals are then discussed with the client and changes are made according to his wishes. 

Sometimes, if the client dislikes the proposals altogether, new proposals are to be made. 

Offering of proposals is continued till the client is satisfied with a certain plan. 

Submission Drawing:

Submission drawings are actually legal documents used to approve the plan from the controlling authorities  like CDA, LDA etc.

Plans (Ground floor plan, first floor plan and so on), an elevation and a section is drawn in these drawings. Plans are most commonly drawn on 1/8 scale. Site plan is required in submission drawings for plots greater in size than 10 marlas. Site  plan shows the block of actual building or the constructed portion as compared to the total plot area. It is drawn on a very small scale like 1/16 or 1/32. If site plan is included in the drawing, the main plans are only drawn for the constructed portion without showing the open spaced and the boundary wall. Various services are also shown in the site plan, e.g. if sewerage line is passing, two or three man holes of the main line are shown and then connection for the plot is indicated. 

Submission Drawing (contd.):

Location plan is also drawn to indicate the location of the plot, on a scale like 1/64. It is a part plan of the total scheme; one or two main roads with their names and neighbouring plots are shown.
Doors, windows and ventilators are marked by D1, D2, …, W, W2, … and V1, V2, … in the plans. The sizes of these components and other related details are given in the form of a table called Schedule of Openings.
Statements of Areas or Schedule of Areas is also prepared in tabular form in which total area of the plot, covered area, allowable covered area, ground floor covered area and first floor covered area etc. are given.
Submission drawing should have the name and complete address of the owner and further it should be properly signed by the owner. The drawing should also be signed by a licensed architect. 

Working Drawings:

Working drawings are those drawings which are used for carrying out construction at the site according to the design. Examples of the working drawings are as follows:

Architectural working drawings

Structural working drawings

Foundation plan

Reinforcement details

Plumbing works (plumbing means the water supply and its disposal inside the building)

Details of doors and windows

Bathroom and kitchen details

Electrification plan

Working Drawings (contd.):

After approval of the plan, through the submission drawing, architectural working drawings are made in which all the details are given which are necessary for the at-site construction. 

The section are drawn on enlarged scales and as many number of section are used as needed to clearly explain the structure. 

On blown-up scales, stair details and details of kitchen and bathrooms etc. are also shown. 

Further, position of various types of furniture is also indicated in the plans.

Completion Drawing:

After construction of the building, drawings are made according to the actually constructed features called completion or as-built drawings. 

These drawings are then submitted to the authorities to get the completion certificate and only after the approval the owner can legally occupy the building.

Roof Details

Floor Detail

Perspective of a building with Two Rooms and a Verandah

Isometric View of the Building After Cutting the Plan

Plan of the Building

Cutting Plane for Section AA

Isomeric View of the Building
After Cutting the Section AA

SECTION AA
Section AA of the Building

ELEVATION
Elevation of the Building

Schedule of Opening