OK, first lets set the scene..
I have an existing single story side extension of single brick skin around 2m wide running down the side of the house which is around 11m.
It has a corrugated roof on and serves as an 'out house' for bikes etc and it is accessed from the behind the house via a single door.
I am putting a second story on top of it and and knocking through downstairs and up stairs rooms adjacent to basically push the whole side of the house out by 2m.
When I first had builders around to look at this they said I would need to demolish the existing single story extension, and re-do all the footings to take the weight of the double story.
Fair - enough, thats what I thought too.
My architect has said that in fact I can simply underpin the footings in three or four places (eg two corners and the centre) put in steel uprights on those three places just inside the external wall.
Then I span the uprights with RSJ's running at ceiling level and abutting the external wall. I then build the upper floor on top of this steel. I block or board out the lower level to building reg standards and Bobs your uncle... no demolition or new footings required. He says it will be much, much cheaper even with the steel
When I challenged him on wether a builder would have experience of doing this and how 'do-able' it was he said that it was often done in the case where people over build on the top of garages.
Thats seemed like a sensible answer!!
Can anyone advise me on if this is a fairly standard approach that most builders will happily take on or is it going to cause me grief...
All comments welcome!!
Regards, Scott.
I have an existing single story side extension of single brick skin around 2m wide running down the side of the house which is around 11m.
It has a corrugated roof on and serves as an 'out house' for bikes etc and it is accessed from the behind the house via a single door.
I am putting a second story on top of it and and knocking through downstairs and up stairs rooms adjacent to basically push the whole side of the house out by 2m.
When I first had builders around to look at this they said I would need to demolish the existing single story extension, and re-do all the footings to take the weight of the double story.
Fair - enough, thats what I thought too.
My architect has said that in fact I can simply underpin the footings in three or four places (eg two corners and the centre) put in steel uprights on those three places just inside the external wall.
Then I span the uprights with RSJ's running at ceiling level and abutting the external wall. I then build the upper floor on top of this steel. I block or board out the lower level to building reg standards and Bobs your uncle... no demolition or new footings required. He says it will be much, much cheaper even with the steel
When I challenged him on wether a builder would have experience of doing this and how 'do-able' it was he said that it was often done in the case where people over build on the top of garages.
Thats seemed like a sensible answer!!
Can anyone advise me on if this is a fairly standard approach that most builders will happily take on or is it going to cause me grief...
All comments welcome!!
Regards, Scott.