The Orchard - Barndominium House Plan
French doors into a vaulted living room, and a home office with a door that closes.
Front elevation (South): the 36 foot front porch.
Exterior renders show the steel version of this plan; the wood-framed set's windows and doors are as drawn on its own elevations.
Monday morning, one of you behind the office door, the other cooking. The Orchard is a single-story 3-bedroom, 2-bath barndominium, about 1,850 square feet on a 40×50 footprint: a vaulted living and dining room, a kitchen open to it, a master suite, and porches front and back. No garage to build; a home office behind its own door instead. Both of you carry the first supper out the French doors to the front porch.
The Floor Plan
Key Features
- Three bedrooms and a home office in one 40′ × 50′ rectangle, one gable roof, no garage to build
- A 20′ × 24′ living and dining room under a vaulted ceiling, the largest room in the house, with French doors from the front porch
- An L-shaped 20′ × 16′ kitchen open to the living room, vaulted, with a counter window, a barn door to the walk-in pantry and a sliding door onto the rear porch
- A master suite on the east side: a vaulted 14′ × 15′ bedroom with a twin window on the end wall, its own bath and a 6′ × 16′ walk-in closet
- Two bedrooms across the house, 16′ × 9′ and 16′ × 11′, each with windows on two walls and its own closet, the hall bath off the same hallway
- A 14′ × 9′ office off the living room, behind its own door, with its own closet and windows on two walls
- A mud room with its own side door, a door to the laundry, the mechanical room beside it
- Tubular skylights pulling daylight into the hallway and the mud room
- Porches front and back, 36 feet each, 576 square feet in all, each 8 feet deep, room for a table
- One simple rectangle under a 3:12 gable roof with a 12 foot eave
Is This Plan Right for You?
A great fit if you want
- three bedrooms and a home office on one 40′ × 50′ rectangle, with no garage to build
- a 20′ × 24′ living and dining room under a vaulted ceiling, French doors from the front porch and the kitchen open to it
- a master suite with its own bath and a 6′ × 16′ walk-in closet, 20 feet of house from the other bedrooms
- an office off the living room with its own door, a closet and windows on two walls
- porches front and back, 36 feet each, on a home under 1,900 square feet of conditioned space
View our other plans if you need
- a garage: see plans with a garage The Meadow
- two large bedrooms instead of three: see the 2 bedroom plans 2 Bedroom Barndominium Floor Plans
- a bigger master closet: the walk-in closet here is 6′ × 16′ with hanging on one wall; see The Meadow or The Alder Barndominium Plans
- a shop: see plans with an attached shop The Brazos
Tour The Orchard
The Heart of the Home
Step in through the French doors and the 20′ × 24′ living and dining room runs back to the 20′ × 16′ kitchen at its end, vaulted ceilings over both. Its barn door hides the walk-in pantry; its sliding door opens onto the rear porch. Whoever is cooking is a full room from the front door, in the same room.
The Master Suite
Off the living room, the 14′ × 15′ master opens under a vaulted ceiling. Its own bath opens off it, and beside the bath, with its own door from the bedroom, a 6′ × 16′ walk-in closet. It is private, 20 feet of living room and kitchen from the other bedrooms, and the first one up dresses in the closet.
The Office
Through its own door off the living room, the 14′ × 9′ office takes the south-east corner, daylight from two sides: a twin window on the front wall, a single on the end wall. A closet sits behind a sliding door. Whoever works from home shuts the door and keeps all three bedrooms for sleeping.
The Other Bedrooms
Walk down the hallway to the two bedrooms at either end of it: Bedroom 2, 16′ × 9′ in the north-west corner, and Bedroom 3, 16′ × 11′ in the south-west, each with its own closet. The hall bath opens off the hallway. Windows on two walls of each bedroom mean whoever sleeps there wakes to daylight from two sides.
Outdoor Living
An 8′ × 36′ covered porch faces the front and an 8′ × 36′ porch runs along the back, 576 square feet of covered outdoor space. The French doors open under one and the kitchen's sliding door under the other. Both are 8 feet deep, room for a table. One of you takes coffee out to the rear porch.
Plan Specifications
Square footage
| Conditioned living area | 1,853 sq ft (heated and cooled living space, not the porches) |
|---|---|
| Covered porches (front 288 sq ft + rear 288 sq ft) | 576 sq ft |
| Total under roof | 2,429 sq ft |
Building
| Span × length | 40′ × 50′ (40 ft clear span, 50 ft long) |
|---|---|
| Eave height | 12′ (where the roof meets the wall) |
| Ridge height | 17′ |
| Roof | Gable, 3:12 (3 inches of rise per foot) |
| Stories | 1 |
| Ceiling height (flat areas) | 9′-0″ |
| Vaulted ceilings | Master Bedroom, Kitchen, Living / Dining |
Construction
| System | Designed for standard pre-engineered metal building (PEMB) construction |
|---|---|
| Interior walls | 4-1/2 in thick (2x4 framed) |
| Foundation | Not included; designed by your local structural engineer for your site, using the anchor bolt plan and loads from your building supplier |
Openings
| Doors | 17 (one pair of French doors at the front, one walk door from the mud room, one sliding glass door from the kitchen onto the rear porch, one barn door, three sliding closet doors, nine 3 foot interior doors and one 2′-8″ door to the walk-in closet) |
|---|---|
| Windows | 15 (each bedroom has an egress window, big enough to climb out of in an emergency) |
| Skylights | 2 tubular (a small roof dome that pipes daylight down a reflective tube), in the hallway and the mud room |
Rooms
| Master bedroom | 14′ × 15′ |
|---|---|
| Bedroom 2 | 16′ × 9′ |
| Bedroom 3 | 16′ × 11′ |
| Office | 14′ × 9′ |
| Living / dining | 20′ × 24′ |
| Kitchen | 20′ × 16′ |
| Master bath | 8′ × 16′ |
| Hall bath | 12′ × 7′ |
| Walk-in closet | 6′ × 16′ |
| Pantry | 5′ × 8′ |
Room sizes here are before the outside wall is taken off. The floor plans print finished sizes, a little smaller along an outside wall, and the presentation floor plan notes any corner a room gives up to a closet or a notch.
Service & extras
| Mud room | 12′ × 5′, with the side entrance |
|---|---|
| Laundry | 7′ × 8′ |
| Mechanical | 5′ × 8′ |
| Hallway | 4′ wide (3′-7½″ clear) |
| Front porch | 8′ × 36′ |
| Rear porch | 8′ × 36′ |
Square footage
| Conditioned living area | 1,896 sq ft (heated and cooled living space, not the porches) |
|---|---|
| Covered porches (front 288 sq ft + rear 288 sq ft) | 576 sq ft |
| Total under roof | 2,472 sq ft |
Building
| Span × length | 40′ × 50′ (40 ft clear span, 50 ft long) |
|---|---|
| Eave height | 12′ (where the roof meets the wall) |
| Ridge height | 17′ |
| Roof | Gable, 3:12 (3 inches of rise per foot) |
| Stories | 1 |
| Ceiling height (flat areas) | 9′-0″ |
| Vaulted ceilings | Master Bedroom, Kitchen, Living / Dining |
Construction
| System | Designed for standard wood-frame construction |
|---|---|
| Exterior walls | 2×6 studs with continuous sheathing and braced wall panels, shown on the detail floor plan |
| Interior walls | 4-1/2 in thick (2x4 framed) |
| Foundation | Not included; designed by your local structural engineer for your site |
Openings
| Doors | 17 (one pair of French doors at the front, one walk door from the mud room, one sliding glass door from the kitchen onto the rear porch, one barn door, three sliding closet doors, nine 3 foot interior doors and one 2′-8″ door to the walk-in closet) |
|---|---|
| Windows | 15 (each bedroom has an egress window, big enough to climb out of in an emergency) |
| Skylights | 2 tubular (a small roof dome that pipes daylight down a reflective tube), in the hallway and mud room |
Rooms
| Master bedroom | 14′ × 15′ |
|---|---|
| Bedroom 2 | 16′ × 9′ |
| Bedroom 3 | 16′ × 11′ |
| Office | 14′ × 9′ |
| Living / dining | 20′ × 24′ |
| Kitchen | 20′ × 16′ |
| Master bath | 8′ × 16′ |
| Hall bath | 12′ × 7′ |
| Walk-in closet | 6′ × 16′ |
| Pantry | 5′ × 8′ |
Room sizes here are before the outside wall is taken off. The floor plans print finished sizes, a little smaller along an outside wall, and the presentation floor plan notes any corner a room gives up to a closet or a notch.
Service & extras
| Mud room | 12′ × 5′, with the side entrance |
|---|---|
| Laundry | 7′ × 8′ |
| Mechanical | 5′ × 8′ |
| Hallway | 4′ wide (3′-7½″ clear) |
| Front porch | 8′ × 36′ |
| Rear porch | 8′ × 36′ |
Included in This Plan Set
The Design Plan Set is eight pages in one PDF, sized to print at 24 × 36 inches (ARCH D). It is the set you send out for quotes and estimates; each page is listed below. One home, one license.
Included Pages
- A-001Cover sheet and legend
- A-100Presentation floor plan
- A-101Detail floor plan
- A-102Schedules
- A-111Roof plan
- A-201Exterior elevations
- A-202Exterior elevations
- L-001License and terms
Not included, handled by local professionals
- Foundation design: by your local structural engineer for your site, using the anchor bolt plan and loads from your building supplier
- Engineering drawings for the structure (provided by your chosen supplier)
- Plumbing, electrical and HVAC layouts, by your local trades to local code
The Design Plan Set is eight pages, delivered as a single PDF sized to print at ARCH D (24 × 36 in). It carries the detail a framing contractor and a truss manufacturer need to quote this exact home, enough for local contractors to price the slab foundation and the interior fit-out, and enough to take a real number to your lender.
Included Pages
- A-001Cover sheet and legend
- A-100Presentation floor plan
- A-101Detail floor plan
- A-102Schedules
- A-111Roof plan
- A-201Exterior elevations
- A-202Exterior elevations
- L-001License and terms
Not included, handled by local professionals
- Foundation design: by your local structural engineer for your site
- Roof truss engineering: the sealed truss drawings and layout from your truss manufacturer
- Plumbing, electrical and HVAC layouts, by your local trades to local code
Can I Build This?
Yes: every page is designed for standard pre-engineered metal building (PEMB) construction. Stamped structural drawings come from your building supplier's engineer, and permit review is with your local building department.
Why a pre-engineered metal building?
A PEMB encloses more home for the money than a wood-framed building and goes up in weeks. Its steel frames carry the roof, so no inside wall has to hold it up: the kitchen, living room and master bedroom can be vaulted. The frame layout on these pages follows standard metal building practice, so a supplier can quote it as drawn.
Who does what
We design the home: the rooms, where the doors and windows go, the elevations and the roof. Your building supplier engineers the steel frame for your site and confirms the vaulted ceilings against it. That is the usual split on a metal building project, and our pages are drawn to it.
Yes: every page is designed for standard wood-frame construction. The sealed truss drawings come from your truss manufacturer's engineer, the foundation design from your local structural engineer, and permit review is with your local building department.
Why wood framing?
A 2×6 wood frame is the construction framing crews work in and lumber yards stock, with a deeper wall cavity for insulation than a 2×4 wall. The roof is carried on trusses, engineered by your truss manufacturer for the spans these pages draw, and the kitchen, living room and master bedroom are designed with vaulted ceilings that follow the roof trusses. The braced wall panels on these pages follow the US building code's standard method; the header framing comes with the construction plan set, and any beam too large for the code's tables is marked there for an engineer to size.
Who does what
We design the home: the rooms, where the doors and windows go, the elevations and the roof, and the braced wall panels the US building code asks for. Your chosen truss manufacturer's engineer designs the trusses: the sealed truss drawings and layout for your exact roof, and they confirm the vaulted ceilings against the trusses they supply. Your local structural engineer designs the foundation, including any thickened footings under interior bearing walls. That is the usual split on a wood-framed project, and our pages are drawn to it.
What Will It Cost to Build?
$310,000 to $360,000
A home like The Orchard is estimated to complete for $310,000 to $360,000 with you as your own general contractor, hiring the trades yourself. That covers the steel building and putting it up, the foundation, the inside finish, and an allowance for site work, utilities, driveway and septic.
It leaves out land, financing, sales tax, payroll taxes and insurance on labor, appliances beyond a standard allowance, landscaping and window coverings. Hiring a general contractor adds about 15 percent.
This is a rough estimate, not a quote. Costs vary by region by 15 to 25 percent, and your building supplier and local contractors will price it for your area. Our barndominium buying guide walks through what moves the number.
$365,000 to $415,000
A home like The Orchard is estimated to complete for $365,000 to $415,000 with the owner acting as general contractor, including framing materials and labor, roof trusses, metal roofing and wall panels, the foundation, interior finish, and an allowance for site work, utilities, driveway and septic.
It excludes land, financing, sales tax, labor burden, appliances beyond a standard allowance, landscaping and window coverings, and hiring a general contractor typically adds about 15 percent.
This is a rough estimate, not a quote: costs vary by region by 15 to 25 percent, and your framing contractor and local trades will price for your chosen building location. Our barndominium buying guide walks through what moves the number.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can we really afford a three-bedroom house?
It depends on your land and local prices; the honest answer is a range, in the cost section on this page. The plan keeps the number down: one 40′ × 50′ rectangle, one gable roof, no garage. The floor goes to three bedrooms, a home office and two baths instead. Your builder and local trades price it for your site.
Are the two smaller bedrooms big enough?
Bedroom 2 is 16′ × 9′ and Bedroom 3 is 16′ × 11′ before the outside wall is taken off. Each has a closet and windows on two walls. They are drawn for a child, a guest or a desk. The master bedroom, 14′ × 15′ under a vaulted ceiling, is where the plan spends its floor.
Where do the cars go?
Outside. The Orchard has no garage or carport, which keeps the building to 40′ × 50′ and the conditioned area under 1,900 square feet. The mud room's side door on the west end wall is the working entrance from a driveway or a detached building. If you want a garage under the same roof, see the plans with a garage.
Can I build The Orchard with any metal building supplier?
Yes. Every page is designed for standard pre-engineered metal building (PEMB) construction, so any steel building supplier can quote this home as drawn. Their engineer then provides the stamped engineering drawings for the steel building, along with an anchor bolt plan and the loads for your site, and your local structural engineer designs the foundation from them.
Is the plan stamped, engineered, or permit-ready?
No. No plan set is a permit. This design set is for quotes, budgeting, and financing; permit review comes later, on a construction plan set (ours is launching soon) with the engineering your building department requires. The Orchard is designed and informed by the IRC (USA) and NBC Part 9 (Canada). Local permit review is between you, your builder and your building department.
Is a steel barndominium a good choice in a wildfire zone?
Yes, with the rest done right. The steel frame and the metal wall and roof panels do not burn, the kind of construction wildfire rules favor. A metal roof also carries the top fire rating, Class A. Ember-resistant vents, boxed eaves, tempered windows and cleared ground around the house decide the rest. No home is fireproof.
Can we really afford a three-bedroom house?
It depends on your land and local prices; the honest answer is a range, in the cost section on this page. The plan keeps the number down: one 40′ × 50′ rectangle, one gable roof, no garage. The floor goes to three bedrooms, a home office and two baths instead. Your builder and local trades price it for your site.
Are the two smaller bedrooms big enough?
Bedroom 2 is 16′ × 9′ and Bedroom 3 is 16′ × 11′ before the outside wall is taken off. Each has a closet and windows on two walls. They are drawn for a child, a guest or a desk. The master bedroom, 14′ × 15′ under a vaulted ceiling, is where the plan spends its floor.
Where do the cars go?
Outside. The Orchard has no garage or carport, which keeps the building to 40′ × 50′ and the conditioned area under 1,900 square feet. The mud room's side door on the west end wall is the working entrance from a driveway or a detached building. If you want a garage under the same roof, see the plans with a garage.
Can I build The Orchard with any framing contractor?
Yes. Every page is designed for standard wood-frame construction: 2×6 exterior walls with continuous sheathing, braced wall panels drawn to the US building code's standard method, and roof trusses. A framing contractor and a truss manufacturer can quote the home from this set; the sealed truss drawings and layout come from the truss manufacturer's engineer when you order with the construction plan set, and your local structural engineer designs the foundation for your site from that set and the loads from your truss manufacturer.
Is the plan stamped, engineered, or permit-ready?
No. No plan set is a permit. This design set is for quotes, budgeting, and financing; permit review comes later, on a construction plan set (ours is launching soon) with the engineering your building department requires. The Orchard is designed and informed by the IRC (USA) and NBC Part 9 (Canada). The sealed truss drawings come from your truss manufacturer's engineer, the foundation design from your local structural engineer, and local permit review is between you, your builder and your building department.
Is a wood-framed barndominium a good choice in a wildfire zone?
It can be. The metal roof and metal wall panels help with the exterior rules wildfire codes set, and the wood framing behind them stays protected only while that skin holds. Ember-resistant vents, boxed eaves, tempered windows and cleared ground around the house decide the rest; ask your insurer how they rate a wood frame under metal.
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