Loft question

[LordFrederickIII]

Hi,

Firstly I'd like to apologise in advance for the probable incorrect terminology I'm about to use. Hopefully the image attached will help.

We're looking to replace the roof tiles on a house we are purchasing. I thought it would be a good idea to start preparing the loft for a conversion down the line. I will engage a structural engineer and architect at some point, but wanted to get a general feel of the work required.

The attached picture shows the loft in its current state. The beam running horizontal to the floor is about 3ft above the floor and seems to be supporting the beams that hold the roof. Is it a complicated affair to get that adjusted so it no longer is 3ft above the floor? Ideally embedded in the floor would be nice.

What should I be looking to get done?

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[freddiemercurystwin]

Typically you would stick a steel beam in directly beneath the each purlin and build a stud partition up to support the purlins off the new steels. Hang new timber joists off each steel beam to create the floor. The existing timbers you are talking about are removed altogether.

 

[LordFrederickIII]

Thanks for that post.

How do I proceed. Structural engineer or architect first?

 

[EB1caneyeB]

Talk to a couple of Architects. They normally have close links to a structural engineer they trust and vice versa.

They are well educated and smooth talking so have your wits about you. Don't be rushed into agreeing to what 'HE' wants. Listen to what they have to say then come away, without commiting, and have a think about it further.
May be well worth your while getting a loft conversion specialist in to run through things and give you a quote/estimate for a basic conversion.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Before anything else if you've not done so already I'd measure the height you have from floor to ridge. Anything less than about 2600 and the project is probably a no go anyway (typically you need about 250mm for the floor and 125 at rafter level) so 2600 - 250 - 125 = 2225. Just about OK for a floor - ceiling though you may need dormers if the ridge is quite low too. Though you may get the floor lower than that depending on the design. Getting the stairs in can also be fiddly.

It sounds like you're happy to go down this route anyway but unless you are prepared to put the time and effort in to learn about the required Building Regulations and construction techniques then it would be prudent to employ someone to do you a set of Building Regs drawings. People on here (DIYnot) do do loft conversions without any drawings (apart from structural engineers which is a must no matter what) but they do seem to come a cropper every now and then (though having a set of drawings not is any kind of guarantee to avoid odd things cropping up either).

If good (ie not just a set of notes) then these drawings will guide you through the process providing you with a specification and demonstrate what you need to do to achieve your conversion. These drawings are submitted to Building Control and once approved you can start building away confident that if you adhere to their requirements you shouldn't get too many hiccups.

Don't waste your money with architects, generally speaking they are overkill for a lofty especially any commercial practices ie only employ one man bands otherwise you'll be paying £80+ an hour. So, employing a one man band architectural technician would be prudent, most will give you the first hour or so to come round, have a look and a chat and get an idea of what you want to do and then write to you with a formal quote. Explain that you're a self builder and that you want drawings you can use (ie not just a plan and a set of notes cut and pasted from the last job) and ask to see a set of their Building Regs drawings. Don't be afraid to ask for references if you like. A good source of finding popular technicians can be looking at your local authority planning applications website and seeing who the popular technicians are. Ask for a fixed price (unless you are not sure what you want and want some feasibility done).

With regards to your structural engineer, (calculations are required for Building Control) a good technician will know pretty much what their usual engineers require and will integrate this into the drawings. How you employ a structural engineer is up to you/your technician. You will find some technicians charge you an overall price to include the SE calcs, others will expect you to employ and deal with the SE on your own and various other scenarios. Personally, with regards to SE's, within my fixed fees I allow for arranging quotes from, liaising with and integrating their final design within my drawings although the SE charges the client direct.

Before any other posters pick me up on it, (you know who you are) yes you can do the calculations yourself if you have the will and there are alternatives to employing an SE for the calcs provided they are suitably qualified. Same applies to for the Building Regs drawings ie some surveyors will do Building Regs packages and the like or some SE's do Building Regs packages too.

 

[EB1caneyeB]

Theres comprehensive answer for you.

Not sure it's good advice for someone who doesn't know what a purlin is but hey....who am i ?

Talk to an architect and find out how much cost will be involved. He should be able to give a ball park figure. Then decide for yourself wether or not it would be a waste of money to employ him.

It's not who is right.....it's what is right

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Theres comprehensive answer for you.

Not sure it's good advice for someone who doesn't know what a purlin is but hey....who am i ?

Eh what you talking about? But who are you anyway? Someone who bodges conservatory roofs for a living? Do you do spray foam loft insulation and jetwash roof tiles aswell?

 

[LukeyB]

Hi, I would have thought the simplest approach the one most builders / architects would recommend is leaving the beam where it is and raising the floor to align with it. Not sure how much vertical space that would leave you with though. You could always have a raised floor one side where you could have a bed or desk or something and then keep the floor where it is on the other side, a bit like a maisonette, you'd then just have to create a step out of the beam which could make it into a nice feature.

Maybe I'm talking rubbish actually. Ask an architect

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Hi, I would have thought the simplest approach the one most builders / architects would recommend is leaving the beam where it is and raising the floor to align with it. Not sure how much vertical space that would leave you with though. You could always have a raised floor one side where you could have a bed or desk or something and then keep the floor where it is on the other side, a bit like a maisonette, you'd then just have to create a step out of the beam which could make it into a nice feature.

Maybe I'm talking rubbish actually. Ask an architect

What??? Its about 2ft above the existing ceiling!

 

[LukeyB]

As I say, perhaps I'm talking rubbish. Is it right in the centre of the room?

 

[EB1caneyeB]

Freddy mercurys twin....pfffffffffff.

Steady on there. I'm only giving my opinion the same as you are. No need for insults.

Just because someone else offered some advice there is no need to take such offence.

Chill out. Have a slice of pizza and a drop of coke. The guy needs help/advice in this thread. Not you going off on one just because someone else dared to pipe up.

 

[LordFrederickIII]

Thanks for the responses.

The height is not an issue. I'm 1800mm tall, and the roof pitch is probably double.

Right now I don't have the cash to do the full conversion so intend to do it piecemeal and to building regulations. I would like to get the core stuff done first which is the roof and structure.