What do you think of internal rooms?

[NotAnotherNewNappy]

I am mulling over ideas for a rear, single storey extension. I was imagining we would add a sitting/dining room with a utility (providing a separate entrance to the garden) and shower room. Our kitchen would become internal - but would actually still get lots of light due to a 2m opening to the dining area which would have a veluxe window.

However, we had an architect round today who suggested instead we turn our kitchen into the utility and shower room (making these completely internal, with no natural light at all) and putting the lounge/diner/kitchen all in the extension.

I am worried I would feel claustrophobic in the internal rooms and never want to go in them. What are your thoughts?

Well utility and shower rooms are purely little use functional rooms so I'd rather have them without windows than have the kitchen compromised?

You don't need natural light in utility/shower. Makes much more sense to have good light source in a lounge/kitchen/diner.

We have an internal shower room. We installed a sun pipe as part of the build, which is fantastic and we're very glad we did it. But my brother has a flat with no natural light to their bathroom apart from a window above the door frame (another possibility?) and it doesn't feel claustrophobic.

I would much, much, much rather have the shower and utility as internal rooms than the kitchen. A kitchen should be light and bright and airy and welcoming. A shower room is functional, you're only in there for a small amount of time really, same for the utility.

I would really dislike a kitchen without a window. Spend so much time in the kitchen that would go mad without one (even if there was natural light borrowed from adjacent room).

I agree with keeping the kitchen external and shower/utility internal.
You need to think about going outside and where you would come into as well. Although admittedly I know many new builds come inform garden to utility, but usually only downstairs loo not shower room before kitchen.

I think you should ask yourself how much you really want a downstairs shower room. I'd sooner have a kitchen set back from the main light source rather than a shower-room that never got used.

Do what feels right to you, not someone who doesn't live in your home.

I wouldn't have an internal kitchen.

I had an internal kitchen for 10 years. It was horrible. You will never want to spend time in your kitchen and you might have problems selling it. Borrowed light from another room with a single window is not enough.

If you're never going to want to move or sell, do what you like. But if you think there's even a tiny chance you'll sell, put the kitchen with the window. I wouldn't even go and see a family house with an internal kitchen after many years having one in a small flat.

Thanks all for replying. I am v confused and I'm not sure I've explained myself properly.

If I went with my orginal plan, my layout would be very similar to this house:

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-43702967.html

The difference would be that where there house comes in at the top left corner, i would have a shower room & utility leading to the garden.

I would have a roof light above where their dining table is, to feed further light in the kitchen. I also have a quaint little window in this corner of the kitchen, which I will keep. It will face into the shower room (it's small & frosted), so hopefully some light will come in through the roof light in there and diffuse through to the kitchen.

I am a keen gardener and I like the thought of getting all muddy, then coming in through the utility and getting straight in the shower. Also taking washing out of the machine and straight into the garden to hang it up.

If i did it the other way, and had a utility leading to a shower room in the space their kitchen is, they would have no natural light at all. Also, if i was in the shower and there was a fire in the utitliy, i'd be toast.

Does this make it sound any more appealing???!

They've done exactly what we did - knocked through two original doors/windows, plopped a box on front and (I think) kept the kitchen in the original space. Ours works well but I do feel the kitchen is dark.

I wouldn't say their kitchen was internal though, as it's part of the overall kitchen/diner (like ours). So I'm now not sure if your kitchen would be internal or not helpful.

Would you have to go through the utility to get out of the kitchen? I think that would be an equal pita as taking washing through the dining room...

Wilson - no, you could leave the kitchen by a door to the main lounge and by the opening to the big diner. I'm not sure it would be internal either, just at the darker end of a big L shaped lounge/diner/kitchen.

I live round the corner from the hose I linked to. I was amazed when they appeared to have sold it for that price