General Guidelines for Entries in Software

Printer Code 39 Full ASCII in Software General Guidelines for Entries

For safety s sake, install a peephole or window in your front and rear doors so you can see who is ringing or knocking

Again, it s not a good idea to have a front door that opens directly into the living room A main entrance center hall or foyer should both shield you and your visitors from an inrush of wind, snow, or rain, and keep your living room privacy intact Although the main entrance should lead to the living room area, it shouldn t encourage people to pass through the living room on their way to the rest of the house If so, it causes interruptions, wear and tear on the carpet, and other inconveniences A good floor plan will provide access to all main living areas through hallways or foyers rather than directing traffic from one main room to another This also means that you should provide the ability, even in open-style plans, for direct access to the kitchen and bedrooms without intruding on living room activities Thus children can come and go without interrupting a conversation you are having with guests in the living room The access from the front door to the kitchen should be easy and direct, as this path is frequently used There should be a convenient sheltered entrance to the kitchen from the garage, carport, or driveway, so groceries can be brought into the house and put away without a lot of effort and fuss You ll want good guest circulation with the ability to move the guests from the front door to the coat closet, bathroom, and living room A clothes closet is essential near the front and side/rear entrance, not only for guests but for family members as well The remaining components of traffic planning and zoning in a house deal with internal movement and room-to-room relationships

Here are five points to consider when developing your floor plan: 1 The living, sleeping, and work areas should be separate from one another Yet they should be positioned properly in relation to each other and to additional factors such as orientation to the street, the sun, and even to scenic views It s important to weigh your feelings toward bedrooms versus work and play noise, or entertaining guests versus bothering sleeping children In other words, how much of a buffer zone between the bedrooms and the rest of the house do you think you ll need

A two-story house contains natural zoning, with the kitchen and living rooms on the first floor a full story below the bedrooms In a single-story house the living and sleeping areas should generally be located at opposite ends of the house, neatly connected by the kitchen and utility room 2 Try to separate quiet rooms from noisy ones by distance Keep bedrooms as far away as possible from the living, food preparation, and utility areas Isolate study rooms from play areas, hobby rooms, party rooms, and workshops Adequate soundabsorbing features become particularly important in moderatesize houses with open kitchens, combined living and dining room areas, and all-purpose family rooms, and also in children s play areas and adult workshops 3 In the interest of silence, though, don t get carried away Make sure no key area is completely isolated (laundry rooms and bathrooms especially), and also see that there s a safe place for children to play while you re entertaining in the living room 4 In houses where stairs are necessary, the head of the stairs should be centrally located This not only minimizes the need for halls, it also frees exterior walls for windows and adds natural lighting and inexpensive ventilation In two-story houses the stairway to the basement is usually positioned beneath the stairs to the second floor The problem with this setup is one of arranging your plan so the head of the basement stairs is located near the service or rear/side door so items can come and go from the basement in an efficient manner 5 For ease of internal movement, many people favor an open plan Open planning attempts to achieve a feeling of spaciousness; the interior of a house is made to appear larger than it really is through the elimination of solid walls between activity centers and by substituting partial walls, screens, or open room dividers A small dining room will appear larger if no solid wall stands between it and the living room The uninterrupted expanse of ceiling visually increases the appearance of the dining room, and it has the same effect in the living room The two rooms borrow space from each other