Loft Conversion

[pff]

Hi there!
looking at making the loft a bit nicer, hoping it can be a diy job, but trying to find out.
I had a look around planning portal, but i live in scotland, so i looked at my local council planning site and i can't really find anything about lofts so i came to ask you guys.
The main area of the loft is all ready floored, about 1/2 the width, then 1/4 at each side insulated but not floored. Theres a chimney roughly in the middle and the hatch to one side of it, down a ladder into the upstairs hallway.
The plan is to floor the unfloored areas and use these as storage, then insulate everywhere and plasterboard the floored area into a large room, then build a partition wall along the chimney to split the attic into two rooms.

I understand that if the area becomes habitable space the beams might be too small to support 'rooms' instead of just storage space, that a ladder would become unsuitable for access and i would need to put in fire doors and alarms everywhere.
What makes this space habitable exactly?
Can someone give me a starting point for regulations and what not?
planning portal is very nice but i'm not sure exactly what applies to scotland attics.
thanks

 

[noseall]

I understand that if the area becomes habitable space the beams might be too small to support 'rooms' instead of just storage space, that a ladder would become unsuitable for access and i would need to put in fire doors and alarms everywhere.
What makes this space habitable exactly?
Can someone give me a starting point for regulations and what not?
planning portal is very nice but i'm not sure exactly what applies to scotland attics.
thanks

From one point of view, it becomes habitable when you fix a proper staircase.

From another (jobsworth) point of view, it becomes habitable when you use it as a heated space.

If the space is going to be used on a say, 'more permanent' basis then you would be foolish not to upgrade fully. There will be loads of condensation and stress on the existing joists, not to mention fire regs, part p, part l, etc, etc.

 

[Chukka63]

what size joists have you got cos its unusual if they are sufficient just to board for a floor and walls to sit on

 

[pff]

There is no room for a staircase, the hallway is to narrow. there is an airing cupboard that could be used for maybe a spiral stairway but headroom becomes an issue as it would lead into the slope of the roof.
Suppose it was to be made habitable what would the requirements be for the rest of the house? i have seen that all doors have to be fire resistant for 30 mins?
Is this true in Scotland? i would be glad to install linked smoke alarms but fire doors would be a bit of a hassle.

the floor is made up of 150mm x 50mm joists. Is that suitable for living on? what size should they be?

 

[Chukka63]

you need a minimum of 1900mm for the headroom up your stairs.

 

[pff]

Yes we can't put in a staircase.
but are the joists the right size to support a living space?

 

[hotrod]

Yes we can't put in a staircase.
but are the joists the right size to support a living space?

Depends on the unsupported span and spacing of said joists. What's the length of the joists and how far apart are they?

 

[pff]

joists are 5.5M wall to wall, about 550mm spacing, although on one side they are doubled up width wise for about 1.2m

 

[hotrod]

joists are 5.5M wall to wall, about 550mm spacing

For 150mm x 50mm sized joists you are way over your permitted span there for a domestic floor - so the answer is no the joists are not the right size. They are considerably undersized given your span and centres.

 

[noseall]

550mm spacing, 5.5m wall to wall........? any chance of a photo of the inside of the loft?

 

[pff]

Untitled

• pff
• 4 Jan 2010
• 1

excuse the mess.

 

[Chukka63]

if youve got 150x50 joists with that span with no support along them at all.i wouldnt do any more to the roof.if you want to do what you propose you need to get a SE out to tell you how deep your joists need to be.

 

[pff]

The area was all ready floored by whoever built the house.
Is my house going to fall down?

 

[Chukka63]

well i wouldnt panic with whats up there at the mo as its still standing but i wouldnt do any more to it with out getting a SE in.

 

[lostinfens]

Rule of thumb for joists was always span/thickness + 2. This was in old money though, so an 8' span divided by 2" thickness + 2" = 6"x2".
So say 18' divided by 3" + 2" = 8"x3" ( always better to increase of course). Of course this was all before the looneys took over the asylum; building controlwise.