I'm thinking about doing some work in what would be the loft space of my house and have heard contradictory things about regs... any opinions/advice would be appreciated.
I've got what I believe to be an original attic room in my 1905 terrace - the materials are of the right age and identical to the rest of the house. Looking at the rest of the row, I believe the rear dormer to also be original or renewed to the same spec. There's a door at the bottom of the stairs immediately adjacent to the bottom step. At the top of the stairs is a small landing separated from the main room by a stud wall, and with a door leading into the attic room. The front 4m of so of the attic is separated off by a stud wall and is a typical loft space with no floorboards or plaster etc. There's also a strange 2m square space behind the stairs only accessible by a ladder that is nonetheless floorboarded.
Am I allowed to knock out the stud walls in the attic and make it into one big room? (There's nothing supporting the roof in these walls as far as I can tell)
Can I install a velux window in the front of the roof? (Overlooking the highway and a small wooded area - nearby houses have them)
Do I need to move the door at the foot of the stairs away from the staircase to comply with fire regs? (This is possible)
Will I need a buildings inspector for any of this?
I'm planning to hopefully sell on in five years or so.
Thanks for your time.
I've got what I believe to be an original attic room in my 1905 terrace - the materials are of the right age and identical to the rest of the house. Looking at the rest of the row, I believe the rear dormer to also be original or renewed to the same spec. There's a door at the bottom of the stairs immediately adjacent to the bottom step. At the top of the stairs is a small landing separated from the main room by a stud wall, and with a door leading into the attic room. The front 4m of so of the attic is separated off by a stud wall and is a typical loft space with no floorboards or plaster etc. There's also a strange 2m square space behind the stairs only accessible by a ladder that is nonetheless floorboarded.
Am I allowed to knock out the stud walls in the attic and make it into one big room? (There's nothing supporting the roof in these walls as far as I can tell)
Can I install a velux window in the front of the roof? (Overlooking the highway and a small wooded area - nearby houses have them)
Do I need to move the door at the foot of the stairs away from the staircase to comply with fire regs? (This is possible)
Will I need a buildings inspector for any of this?
I'm planning to hopefully sell on in five years or so.
Thanks for your time.
