The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us the significance of a roof over our heads and how our home is the single most valuable piece of an asset in our lives. This present circumstance has forced us to work from our homes and stay in isolation with our family at times of distress. The lockdown has tested us on many fronts, but we have been adaptive nonetheless. Keeping all this in mind, let’s see what additional design aspects can be included in our homes to be better prepared if such a situation arises in the future.
A separate study room/office to work from home
Working from home is not a luxury but a necessity in the present time. The lockdown in our country has made us realize that most jobs can be executed right from our homes if we are willing to or have been forced to (in many cases). I am talking about people who are working in or as Teachers, IT, Software, Call centres, Journalism, Architecture, Designing, and the list is endless. Work-from-home leads to a lot of benefits too: It cuts down traveling to work drastically, it unclogs our city’s infrastructure, it reduces pollution. But, to accomplish their tasks these professionals require a separate designated space to work, i.e., an office or a study where they won’t be disturbed. A study occupies only about 60-80 sqft. in a house and can add a lot of value in return.
Spacious Ventilated rooms with attached bathrooms
Doctors recommend isolation and self-quarantine to alleviate (apart from taking certain medicines) and to cut down the spread of every contagious disease viz., COVID-19, Common Flu, Tuberculosis, Malaria. So, a spacious ventilated room with enough natural sunlight and air and an attached bathroom where one can dwell in isolation and keep his spirits high will lead to an easy and timely recovery. Lack of space in modern homes makes it difficult to have an attached bathroom but with proper planning and just the basics i.e., a toilet, a place to bathe, and a washbasin, a bathroom can be constructed in just about 25-30 sqft. Isolation and self-quarantine can truly be possible if the rooms in a Home have attached bathrooms.
Wash Areas, Place to keep your shoes and coveralls
With the current pandemic, our traditions viz. The Namaskar way of greeting, taking off our shoes outside our home, washing hands and feet regularly have often been used as benchmarks by everyone around the world. We must diligently practice these actions. To aid these processes and make it easier for us to practice them daily, we can do the following:
- Install taps/wash-basins in the porch area of our homes or the parking area in our apartments to clean our hands and feet before entering our homes. This is easy and can be implemented immediately.
- Install a separate shoe stacking place near the entrance of our homes or place a sturdy shoe rack outside of our homes or flats so that we can stow away our shoes before entering our homes.
- Wear coveralls, overcoats, or jackets while going outside. We have often seen this in foreign cultures where people practice this because of extreme cold weather. But in India, we can also wear cotton coveralls instead of the heavy ones to protect us and our family members from getting infected due to dust, dirt, smoke, any infection or any viral droplets, etc. that we may have come into contact during our visit to the market or workplace. These items can be worn while going out and placed on the entry coat hangers when returned. So, a provision for entry coat/coverall hangers can be made in the Foyer (home entrance area). This can assist in maintaining a good house and personal hygiene.
A garden to grow vegetables
Home-grown fruits and vegetables are not a new thing and in fact, it has been practiced in the past by our ancestors regularly. It is extremely easy to grow vegetables and fruits which boost our immunity like lemon, tulsi leaves, pudina leaves, aloe vera, and vegetables such as palak(spinach), methi, carrots, chilis, tomatoes, gourds- bitter, sponge, ivy, etc., and many more. And the best part is that the yield of these plants is continuous and regular and require minimum supervision. All someone needs to do is designate a space on either the terrace or balconies and have the right kind of pots and soil and they will be good to go. In case of space constraints, we can use the vertical walls on the balconies or terraces. No space is less space for doing gardening.
A separate fully functional space with all amenities for tenants
As home-owners, COVID 19 has made us realize the importance of social distancing in our colonies, from our neighbors and even from our tenants. Although rentals provide us with strong monetary support and also add security to our homes, to practice social distancing in the truest sense tenants must have their own separate fully functional living space with completely independent entry and exit. This is quite possible if we have two gates instead of one at the entry.
Having these simple yet useful features in our homes can ensure that we are both safe, and productive at the same time.
Questions?- I’d love to help. Have I missed any important points?- I am all ears! Get in touch with us, today.
Author- Sarbojit Dutta
Civil Constructions, Home Interiors & Renovations!
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