The User-Friendly Home

Many years ago “user-friendly” was used to describe the interface between a computer and its user. Now we see it used everyplace including the description of household appliances that make homes so much less work and more enjoyable than they were even a few years ago.

But user-friendly has not been used to describe our homes themselves. There are probably two reasons for this: most homes are not high tech and many of them are not user-friendly—there are simply too many things that could be better that are ignored both in design and in construction. 

Note that the things we’re talking about here are not covered by building codes or any standards of good practice. It’s strictly up to the designer and builder, and the buyers, to see that user friendliness is in the homes that are built. 

Our goal here is to start the ball rolling to change this. We look at why it’s happening and at some of the things people can do about it when they’re buying, building or remodeling. 

Home building is a highly competitive business involving a wide range of skills and materials. Most builders simply don’t have the time to consider things that might not help sales and the bottom line, rather they concentrate on making houses that appeal to the buyers in their niche. And, when buyers don’t know or think about user-friendliness, to say nothing of making it a part of their decision processes, then neither designers nor builders have an incentive to improve things.

So it comes back to the individual home buyer and user to learn about those things that can make his home a better, easier place to live and to avoid the things which make it worse. Hopefully, when designers and builders become more aware of this happening they’ll make more of their homes user-friendly. For now you’ve got to look out for yourself.

The list of things which may be important to you is a long one. As with the other things you’re looking for in your new home, it’s a good idea to make a list of what’s most important and that which you’d like to have but can compromise if you need to. Now we add user-friendliness to the list. But, as you’ll see here, user-friendliness isn’t a single item, it can be a very large number of them and which seem more important becomes a very personal thing. 

Here are some things to give you an idea of what you should be thinking of when you’re looking for a better, user-friendly home. There are, of course, many more.

 Doors 

A door can be unfriendly if it’s not hung correctly, if it opens across another door of any type, if it swings where it’ll be in the way when it is open, or if it  swings where someone is apt to be standing or sitting.  And among the other door considerations is the security of the front door. It and its surroundings are usually designed and built for curb appeal, i.e., how it looks, while its safety may be ignored. (Not a user-friendly approach.)

Kitchen

The kitchen is where more work is done than anyplace else in the house. It’s here you’ll find the appliances, counters and cabinets that are used in the daily preparation of meals –as well as in the cleanup. And it’s here where you’ll also find the most common user-unfriendly things in a house.

Among these are:

• sinks---type and mountings, 

• countertops---materials vs. cost

• dishwashers---where they’re placed,

• refrigerators---where they’re located,

• exhaust fans---type and how they’re vented, and

• overall layout---are the work areas convenient?

A Few Others

(all of which are too often not user-friendly)

• placement of electrical switches

• floor registers

• fireplace vents    

• security

• closets

• dining rooms

• hip-banger laundries

• front-of-house lights

These are not all of the items that should be checked out, but they should give you an idea of what user-friendliness is all about.

These and many more aspects of the user-friendly home are discussed in the book Better Houses, Better Living by Myron E. Ferguson which is available at http://www.BetterHousesBetterLiving.com , from the publisher (Home User Press, 1-800-530-5105), or from Amazon.com. The Existing House Checklist and the Building & Remodeling Checklist, either of which comes free when the book is ordered from the publisher, are described on the website. Ferguson can be reached at betterhouses@comcast.net.

Home Buying Is a Changing

That home buying is changing is not news in terms of mortgages and foreclosures, a major consideration for home buyers and new home owners. What is news is the length of time people will be staying in a home and what they’ll want to have there. A national magazine article reports that:

“By 2015, there will be more people working electronically at home full time than taking mass transit.”  (Newsweek October 19, 2009, p42.)

This impact of modern day technology is not surprising when you think about it for a minute. With the Internet making our lives so totally interconnected, it is indeed almost a given fact that we can use a computer in our home more efficiently than in a downtown office.

This has two major impacts on home buying:
♦ Home location in terms of how it impacts on a commute is becoming less important and
♦ What the home has in it is becoming more important.

There is a two-century old maxim in building design and construction that “form follows function”, i.e., that what it looks like (form) should come after how it works (function). As modern day electronic technology becomes increasingly more widespread the function side of a structure becomes even more important than its form. People buying a home to live in will or should be looking at how well it will function for them in today’s environment.

One of the ramifications of this is that you could then buy a home without being tied to a particular location. Thus, for example, a home with a great view becomes a feasible place to live. You no longer have to worry about driving the car up a long curved road to reach it day in and day out. If it snows, so what? You work from your computer in your home office and don’t have to wait for the snow plow, shoveling, etc.

This greater freedom in home location has other benefits. You can get away from the problems of urban sprawl and of being tied to a neighborhood you’d rather not be in, whether because of it’s surroundings, the kind of people who live there or its cost. In other words, you can choose what you believe is the “right” one for you without worrying about having to commute five days a week. And the cost of this home can be significantly less than one within commute distance of an office.

But the floor plan itself is something else. You’ll need a separate office, perhaps two. And each bedroom will need a place where you can have addtional separate computers...for you and/or your family.

The wiring in the house for connecting these computers to high-speed Internet providers is also critical. Even if you could get along with low-speed equipment today, the ready availability of better machines as time goes on should be a major consideration even initially in your choice of floor plans. So right from the start, figure on having branching electronics (wireless or cable) to distribute the signals to every room in the home.

Another aspect of new homes that is being highly touted is “going green.” Like user friendliness, green houses are the wave of the future. They use less energy and release fewer pollutants into the atmosphere. And they become nicer places to live in the process.

You can stress the functionality of your 21st-century home, you can make it “user friendly”. You can get a house that concentrates on having a design and layout that makes life more comfortable to live in rather than just to look at.

Here are just a few of the user-friendly things you’ll want in your new home:
♦ Arrangements which do not include annoying doors that open across other doors.
♦ Light switches that are located where you naturally expect them to be.
♦ Office spaceboth for a computer desk and for file cabinets, all of which are handy and readily accessible.
♦ A security system that protects you, your home and the offices you have in it.
♦ Floor plans that make less work for the home owner in day to day living. The kitchen is one place that stands out. You’ll want neither a refrigerator nor a dishwashwasher in a corner.
♦ Up to date materials like granite countertop(s) in the kitchen with undermount sink(s).
♦ A heating, ventilaton and air conditioner (HVAC) system that is both efficient and comfortable.

These are but a few of the things found in a user-friendly home. Many more aspects can be found in the book Better Houses, Better Living by Myron E. Ferguson which is available at http://www.BetterHousesBetterLiving.com, from the publisher (Home User Press, 1-800-530-5105), or from Amazon.com. The Existing House Checklist and the Building & Remodeling Checklist, either of which comes free when the book is ordered from the publisher, are described on the website. Ferguson can be reached at betterhouses@comcast.net.

Being Secure Is Part of Being User Friendly

“Home is where the heart is” is an old  saying---it’s been around for centuries. And, for most of us, it’s just as true today as it’s ever been. And, just as it’s always been, it is much to the point to do things around the house that make it a save place to live.

One way around these problems is an alarm system that calls 911 when the house is broken into or catches on fire, whether you’re home or not. That’s an after-we-move-in thing---these systems can be installed at any time.

But there are a number of things which are not electronic which we can and should do before we move in, whether it’s a new house or a pre-owned one. Let’s take a look at a few of these things.

One is to check each outside door and the way it’s locked. There may be a separate dead bolt or the latch may be lockable with a key. In either case take a look at the striker plate, the piece of metal that’s attached to the molding beside the door. It has an opening which the latch or dead bolt fits into when the door is locked. The plate is held in place with screws that are supposed to go into the door frame behind the molding. And this is critical. Those screws must be big enough and long enough that it takes a concerted  (virtually impossible) effort to dislodge the plate when the door is locked. Otherwise a simple push on the door pulls the screws out, dislodging the striker plate and letting the door swing open.

It is not suggested that it be tested so strenuously when you are looking at a house to buy, but do take a look at the plate with the door open. There should be no indication that the plate has become loose with use. If it has it should be repaired either before or after you move in. And be doubly careful of double doors where the latch is in one door and the striker plate in the other. Unless especial care is taken to be sure the locked doors are securely fastened at top and bottom, they are an inviting arrangement for thieves. A simple push and the entrance is open.

Another one. Take a look at the front door of far too many of today’s homes. Buyers are attracted to entrances that have eye appeal, ones that are designed and built to look beautiful. Glass is a usual part of the attraction. When there is glass in or around the front door, it is often easy to break the glass, reach through, unlock the door, and walk in. If there is an operating electronic survelliance system, that should take care of it. The other alternative is to avoid such an arrangement in the first place.

And don’t forget the windows. When you’re away from the house they should be locked. When the weather is hot this isn’t always that easy when they’re kept opened to let the breezes through. One approach is to have small pieces of wood which fit into the window frames and are put in place to prevent the window from opening further. Of course, they are removed when you want to really open the windows.

Like your house key, your garage door opener is something to be careful with. There have been reports about the openers being left where they could be stolen and then used to gain access to the house. For example, cars in long-term parking at an airport that are left unlocked let thieves get the opener and the address from papers in the glove compartment. It is then easy to go to the address, open the garage door and help themselves.  You just can’t be too careful.

When you’re in the garage of a house you’re looking at, check to see if there is a sidedoor with glass in it. It, too, is easy to break, reach through and open the door. If it is made of unbreakable glass, the problem is gone but, unfortunately, that is the kind of foresight you don’t often see.

Home security is one of the many aspects of the user-friendly home discussed in the book Better Houses, Better Living by Myron E. Ferguson which is available at http://www.BetterHousesBetterLiving.com, from the publisher (Home User Press, 1-800-530-5105), or from Amazon.com. The Existing House Checklist and the Building & Remodeling Checklist, either of which comes free when the book is ordered from the publisher, are described on the website. Ferguson can be reached at betterhouses@comcast.net.

Make Your Remodeled Home User Friendly

When something in your home is old and worn out, if it’s out of date, or you need more space, then it’s time to think about remodeling. But it’s not just a snap your finger thing. There are a number of decisions to be made---exactly what to do, how much to spend, will you have to move out for a while, etc.

In the what-to-do category you’ll be sure to include modifications of the parts of the house that you found out the hard way should have been different from day one. Like a refrigerator door that you can’t open all the way because it hits a wall. Or a light switch that’s behind an open door. And the drop-in kitchen sink that, if changed to an undercounter mount, would make cleaning up so much easier. As long as the workmen are in the house, surely it’s a good time to take care of these things.

You’ll want to  go through your house asking yourself what could be better. Would this be a good time to improve the lighting in the dining room or to update the heating system to a more efficient and effectiveone? Going from old single-pane windows to “green”  newer double or triple-pane can often make the remodeling pay for itself in a short time because there’s less heat loss.

While you’re making your list of possible improvements, don’t overlook the many other things that make a home user friendly. They are found throughout a house from little things to big. These are discussed in detail in Better Houses, Better Living, a book that is dedicated to making living better regardless of the size of the house or its cost. Far too often designers and builders are more concerned with making a house look good---afterall, that’s what people see and buy with little or no concern with its user friendliness.

This is not new. It was almost 400 years ago that philospher Sir Francis Bacon wrote that

“Houses are built to live in, not to look on; therefore, let use be preferred before uniformity, except where both may had.”

In other words, we should be concerned with how a house will be to live in before we worry about how it looks. And this is just as true with a remodelled house as with a new one. And when the remodelling is on-going, be sure you go over everything with the workers so that they know just what you want. Too often, if you don’t, they’ll do things the way they’ve always done them which may or may not be what you want. And this gives you another opportunity to get their inputs which may include somethings you hadn’t thought of.

User-friendly homes are discussed in Myron E. Ferguson’s book Better Houses, Better Living  available at http://www.BetterHousesBetterLiving.com, from the publisher (Home User Press, 1-800-530-5105), or from Amazon.com. The Existing House Checklist or the Building & Remodeling Checklist that come with a book order are also described on the publisher’s website. Ferguson can be reached at betterhouses@comcast.net.

Home Builders Are People

During my 17 years of looking at houses, built and planned, I’ve met and talked to many, many home builders. Generally speaking they belong to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). In fact, the one who wrote the Foreword to my first book was an ex-president of the NAHB.

And believe me, builders are as varied and unalike as in any other industry. There are good ones and bad, successful and not, ones you’d like to work with and ones you should steer clear of. There are builders that build hundreds of homes, others that do one at a time, ones that are out there with a  hammer going at it, and their counterparts who see it only as a business.

From the perspective of the person who’s buying a house, there’s every reason to be super careful. A house is a multi-faceted creation with many places where things must be done right if the end result is to be a home someone will want to live in. There are laws and rules that are supposed to protect the home buyer and to a limited extent they do. But these rules do not consider the functional aspects of a house, how it is to be used by the home owner.

For example, there may be rules about what size wire is to be used in the electrical system but there won’t be any that say where switches have to go. So you’ll find switches that are where you expect to find them, like next to the door you just came in. So when you’re looking at a house to buy to live in it’s very much up to you, the buyer, to look out for such things and decide if it’s something you want to put up with or to something you’ll have to have changed before or after you buy the house...if, in fact, you do.

On the other hand, a major concern of the builder is that he makes a house that people will want to buy---light switch location is but one of many things he needs to be concerned about. He will surround himself with subcontractors who are supposed to be “experts” in their particular field. The builder’s first need is to meet codes and regulations and he’ll be sure that his subcontractors know how to do this. (He’ll find out quickly enough about this when the inspectors come by to check things out.) But there is no inspector to look out for things that may not be good for the home user...unless they are covered by code.

So what we find are builders and the houses they build that range from excellent to awful in terms of “user friendliness”.  And it is totally on the back of the homebuyer to sort out the good builders from the not so good. Don’t expect any help from your real estate agent. If they see something that should have been differently, their options are to ignore it, try to get the builder to change it, or to point it out to the prospective buyer and let them decide if they want to go ahead anyway.  Most agents won’t do anything that might “kill a sale”, so it’s not in their ususal operating mode to say anything at all. This leaves it up to the buyers to watch out for themselves.

User friendliness in a home is the subject of my book “Better Houses, Better Living” as described at http://www.betterhousesbetterliving.com. Looking at the book is almost guaranteed to help you get that better home you deserve.

Welcome to the Better Houses Better Living Blog

The goal of this blog is to help you, the consumer, make smart purchasing decisions when buying your new home or remodeling an existing home.

Please email us with any questions about home remodeling or smart home design.