Working with your designer
Briefing your designer
See the 'Brief for Architect/Designer' template.
Use your wish list, home assessment and the information you've gathered so far to fill out the briefing template for your designer. This provides a starting point for discussion and ensures your designer is clear on your priorities.
Sometimes it's helpful to show your designer magazine photos of homes you like (and don't like!) to give them an idea of the style and feel you want.
Your designer will be able to help you through the planning and building approvals process and prepare all the documents required, including drawings and a specification.
After approval is granted many people engage their designer to develop more detailed drawings for the builder - covering, for example, design of built-in furniture or fittings, joinery and other interior details.
This is particularly common for large or luxury renovations. You can also engage your designer to manage the builder and the construction process.
'All we did was re-plan our living space, but it feels like a new house!'
What goes where?
If you have the chance to re-plan space, particularly if you're extending, it's worth trying to face rooms in the optimal direction. This can improve comfort and natural light and help save energy. If this isn't possible, you can still get good outcomes by focusing on other aspects of design.
- The north side of your home is warmer in winter and the best place for rooms you use a lot during the day, like living areas.
- The west side gets hot in the afternoon and is best for rooms you don't use often, like bathrooms, laundries and garages.
- The south side is the coolest and good for bedrooms in warmer climates, as well as rooms you use less often.
- The east side gets morning sun and can be good for kitchens and bedrooms.
In tropical climates, above the Tropic of Capricorn, the approach is quite different. If you can, face living areas and bedrooms to capture cooling breezes and shade the whole house.
Group together the rooms you heat or cool most often, and ensure they can be closed off from other rooms. This way you just heat or cool the rooms you need. Keep wet areas like bathrooms, kitchens and laundries close together if you can, to save on plumbing costs and avoid wasting energy and water.
Now is also the time to think
about the best place for hot water systems, rainwater
tanks and solar panels - see the tips below.
[See Your Home: Orientation; Passive solar heating;
Passive cooling; Heating and cooling.]
