Habitable room or wet room?

Joined
23 Jun 2015
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Location
Devon
Country
United Kingdom
Hi there,

I hope someone can help answer my question. I am purchasing a house where the garage was converted into a room in the house. This room was then fitted with a kitchen making it a kitchen/living room.

The building regulation certificate has signed off the work as a habitable space. I noticed that there is no extraction fan which I would expect to be installed in new wet rooms.

1. Does the term 'habitable space' cover the fact that this room can be a kitchen or anything else?
2. Would I need to install a ventilation fan?
3. Do I need another building regulation certificate signing it off as a wet room?

Thank you in advance.
 
Sponsored Links
1. For Building Regs purposes, it would be regarded as a kitchen
2. As a kitchen, it would need an extract fan.
3. No; it is not a 'wet room', BTW.


4. As you are buying the house, are you hoping to make a reduced offer on the grounds that there is no extract fan?
 
Thank you.

I doubt I will ask to reduce the price. But I also I don't yet know how much it would cost to install an extractor fan. I would imagine if I wanted to go down that route, I would need to see some kind of building regulation sign off advising that an extractor fan would be needed. Nothing was noted in the homebuyers report about it, so I assumed it was fine.
 
tony1851 I can see why an extract fan would be a good idea, but why would it need one?
 
Sponsored Links
Why bother about it? There's nothing the local Building Regs dept can- or will - do about it.
 
@Najako, if it's a kitchen/lounge, it would be classed asa kitchen, therefore would need a fan, but my view is why bother at this stage?
 
OK - but just for fun... You're assuming that there's no openable window. This seems like an assumption too far - or am I missing something.
 
IIRC, a kitchen is required to have a fan, even if there is an opening window - but I might be wrong.
 
A kitchen/lounge in a garage?

With cooker oven and fridge, TV settee and sideboard?
 
He's not. A kitchen requires Extract ventilation. This can be active (mechanical) or passive (natural).
 
It can't be passive as in a window.

If passive it must be part of a proper passive stack system, typically whole house not just a hole in the roof either.

So Tony is correct in that the OP needs a fan.
 
Sorry. Am I missing something here? The Building Regs are satisfied if 'adequate ventilation is provided'. There is not an Approved Inspector or BCO in the land who would consider an openable window in reasonable proximity to a kitchen as 'inadequate'.
 
Part F states the following

Addition of a wet room to an existing dwelling
7.11 The requirements for the additional wet room will be met by following the guidance in paragraphs 7.12 to 7.15.
7.12 Whole building and extract ventilation can be provided by:
a. intermittent extract, as given in Table 5.2a, and a background ventilator of at least 2500 mm2 equivalent area; or
b. single room heat recovery ventilator, as given in Table 5.2a; or
c. passive stack ventilator, as given in Table 5.2b; or
d. continuous extract fan, as given in Table 5.2c.
 

DIYnot Local

Staff member

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.


Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local

 
Sponsored Links
Back
Top