Open floor plans are becoming more and more popular these days, but they are definitely not for everyone. We entertain a lot in our home, so this works for us. The big open kitchen that leads right into the living room opens up these rooms to several dozen people. As much as we love this style of design, it does have some drawbacks.
Today, we are going to take a quick look at the pros and cons of having an open floor plan.
The Good
Great for Entertaining
This can be the deciding factor for many people, and it is not just about entertaining friends at parties. There is additional social interaction during a normal day. For instance, it is far easier to have a conversation while cooking dinner with someone in the living room who is watching TV. The open floor plans give you access to every person in that general area.
Natural Light
Because no walls separate the rooms, this offers the advantage of natural light illuminating the home during the day, which can save you significant money on your energy bill over the month.
Flexible
You have far more flexibility in the design of your rooms with an open floor plan, as the rooms, technically, are not restricted to what we could consider a traditional room design. Furthermore, if you are entertaining and need to open up the space, you just need to move the furniture around to create a more open space.
Appearance
Simply put, even small spaces look much bigger when using an open floor plan. Remember, perception is reality, so it will seem like you have far more space than the actual square footage says.
The Bad
Lack of Privacy and Quiet
For some people, not being shut off from a room in the living space can be a problem, especially if you work from home and do so in the living space area. You are going to hear every conversation in the room and there is no privacy, so consider this before committing to this design.
Energy Efficiency
While you will be able to take advantage of more natural light, heating and cooling a larger space can be more expensive than heating smaller, individual rooms. This would especially true for someone who lives by themselves or a couple. You may not need all the rooms as cool or warm as the rooms you occupy the most, but shutting off the vents to keep bills down will not be an option here.
Design Challenges
The idea of an open floor plan really only works if you are able to smoothly transition from one room to the next. In a traditional floor plan, this is not necessarily a concern because you cannot see one room while standing in the other. This is just something to keep in mind as you start to plan the actual aesthetics of the room.