Hi All,thinking about trying my hand at a loft conversion in the future and have read up a bit on diynot .forgive my innocence firstly! It seems ( I dont know all the lingo) I should screw 8x3s to my existing beams if i can get them to sit on the outside wall alongside the original beams and they will also rest on a central load bearing wall.? is this roughly the extent of strenghthening the floor or should I think of another way? should I get someone from Building regs in to tell me what I need ,for a fee? also I know I will have to insulate the roof itself,now a couple of points here please: my old felt is a bit rotted in places and sagging with bits of debris and prob old birds nests but it doesnt appear to have any leaks. could I just insulate anyway and plasterboard and not worry that mabye it may leak in the future,or pay a fortune to have the whole roof off to refelt it,do you think it would be ok? Also could I use the fibre insulation I have on my loft ceiling and reuse it to fill the spaces on the rafters as insulation (under the tiles ) ? Im trying to find out what is the first thing I should do basically with a few other bits thrown in for good measure! I dont need a dormer or any structural work (as far as I know!) I dont htink I could do the stairway or window but you never know !so wondering is it possible to do this job as a total amature ( but with a bit of self belief?! Thanks for reading this far anyway,cheers!
lofts,small steps but which first?
- Thread starter mikell
- Start date
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A few points. Loft conversions require Building Regulation Approval. It would be best to appoint a local architect or surveyor to draw up some plans for you. This will give you all the answers you need regarding constuction as the insulation, floor joists, staircase and other details have to be specified. The Building Control Officer will call out to inspect the work.
Alternatively you need not provide a set of plans and submit a Building Notice. This ensures the work is inspected, but importantly, you do need to be confident of undertaking the work before you start. I don't know about the floor joists, it depends on the span. Glasswool between the rafters will never work. The felt sounds as though it's shot, you would be better off stripping the roof and re-felting using a breathable membrane. There are other aspects to consider, eg smoke alarms, fire protected escape route, fire protection to the floor.
Without specifying the whole job, I'd advise you initially to get plans prepared and submitted.
Alternatively you need not provide a set of plans and submit a Building Notice. This ensures the work is inspected, but importantly, you do need to be confident of undertaking the work before you start. I don't know about the floor joists, it depends on the span. Glasswool between the rafters will never work. The felt sounds as though it's shot, you would be better off stripping the roof and re-felting using a breathable membrane. There are other aspects to consider, eg smoke alarms, fire protected escape route, fire protection to the floor.
Without specifying the whole job, I'd advise you initially to get plans prepared and submitted.
thanks,didnt want to hear about the refelting though!prob cost as mu8ch as all the other jobs together! found an company who do the flooring windows and stairway to biulding regs spec as part of a pack called a diy starter,prob gets the difficult (most ) jobs done leaving me to cock up the rest of the work! am going to get in touch with them (its £5500 for the 3) but mabye I can get the same jobs done much cheaper by shopping around,seperatly? I 
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good luck
Option 1. Check-out similar houses down your street to see if anybody's had this type of work done (look for dormers & Veluxes). Go cap-in-hand, introduce yourself, explain your a neighbour & are thinking about doing something similar in your loft. Get an invite to see their solution. If you are really nice they may even let you 'borrow' their plans (or even let you 'rent' them for a small consideration. Use these plans as a basis for producing your own proposals for the Council. Produce a Specification for local firms with a track record to quote against the Spec.
Option 2. Invite a couple of 'big' specialist firms in to have a look, take measurements, talk about options. It'll cost you nothing to pick their brains. They'll not give you detailed drawings but should leave you with 'sketches'.
Optio 3. (This really isn't an option) Contact the appropriate Council Dept and see what they say.
Option 2. Invite a couple of 'big' specialist firms in to have a look, take measurements, talk about options. It'll cost you nothing to pick their brains. They'll not give you detailed drawings but should leave you with 'sketches'.
Optio 3. (This really isn't an option) Contact the appropriate Council Dept and see what they say.
Thanks,Have got a architect coming to check things out,as you say itll cost me nothing for now.I have spoken to a local company who say sistering isnt an option anymore you have to have steel strenghteners fitted to comply with building regs now even if you have a supporting wall,cost are rising already! think il buy a nice tent instead!
Well one came round...said I DO need rsjs in place as my roof is hipped £££££ I need to remove all my doors on upper and ground floors to all be replaced with 30 minute fireproof doors ££££ as well as adding the one to the new stairway to be installed (o.k fair enough that one!), My stairway needs respindeling down the lenghth of stairway as spindles are too far apart for an escape route...???? and we havnt got to the loft yet! loads more for the loft like seperate fusebox for loft fireproof insulation throughout house,wired smoke alarms throughout house,I thought I could get it done mabye with a bit of diy to do the basics but the things mentioned just killed the notion of going ahead with it . I may just get the basics for starters,the floor stairway and m.o.e do the rest myself and let my son use it as a room but we dont actually class it as a room. Is that o.k? do you need to tell biulding regs people that youve done work to it even though you are not saying it is a habital space,just using it as such?or can they tell you to rip it all out? no dormer or the like is needed so no structural changes will take place(I think!) any thoughts please?
and we havnt got to the loft yet! loads more for the loft like seperate fusebox for loft fireproof insulation throughout house,wired smoke alarms throughout house,I thought I could get it done mabye with a bit of diy to do the basics but the things mentioned just killed the notion of going ahead with it . I may just get the basics for starters,the floor stairway and m.o.e do the rest myself and let my son use it as a room but we dont actually class it as a room. Is that o.k? do you need to tell biulding regs people that youve done work to it even though you are not saying it is a habital space,just using it as such?or can they tell you to rip it all out? no dormer or the like is needed so no structural changes will take place(I think!) any thoughts please?BC can't stop you doing what you like inside the confines of your own home. However, if there is a fire or other such disaster as a result of works you have carried out [or even completely unrelated] which do not comply you will be liable for some fairly hefty kneecapping - probably via the HSE.
You will not be able to sell the house with a loft conversion and you may even find that any prospective purchaser will not be able to even get approval for a mortgage without a certificate for even the most minor works which have been carried out - even if you don't call it a loft conversion it is clearly there. And saying the house was built that way won't work - they know the construction types.
Really the safe bet is do it how BC insist or not at all.
The other option to doing it BC's way is track down a CAI - corporate approved inspector - and see what their view is. It is supposed to be as LABC's but often they take a more realistic [and technically correct] approach so will accept things based on supplied evidence rather than the blanket rules which LABC insist on applying.
A lot of what LABC come out with is tosh and is just the outcome of the ODPM or whatever it's called these days keeping themselves employed by updating the regs. The regs are not hard and fast design data -if they were architects would be surplus to requirements - and are open to certain interpretations dependant on the site itself. There can not be a come one come all rule for every structure as every structure is different. Many LABC officers fail to see this.
I find this whole FR door thing throughout your house because you have 3 stories utterly farcical. The most irritating part of it is it is quite often a technically incorrect application of the regulations by the BCO. You can take them on over it but you need to establish your travel distances, means of escape etc and be sure you have a watertight argument before you go in there all guns blazing but it is possible to prove them wrong.
Get a good surveyor on side and there is a fair chance you can get a workable solution without having to destroy all semblance of homeliness in your property and spend the equivalent of a small country's GDP in getting there.....
You will not be able to sell the house with a loft conversion and you may even find that any prospective purchaser will not be able to even get approval for a mortgage without a certificate for even the most minor works which have been carried out - even if you don't call it a loft conversion it is clearly there. And saying the house was built that way won't work - they know the construction types.
Really the safe bet is do it how BC insist or not at all.
The other option to doing it BC's way is track down a CAI - corporate approved inspector - and see what their view is. It is supposed to be as LABC's but often they take a more realistic [and technically correct] approach so will accept things based on supplied evidence rather than the blanket rules which LABC insist on applying.
A lot of what LABC come out with is tosh and is just the outcome of the ODPM or whatever it's called these days keeping themselves employed by updating the regs. The regs are not hard and fast design data -if they were architects would be surplus to requirements - and are open to certain interpretations dependant on the site itself. There can not be a come one come all rule for every structure as every structure is different. Many LABC officers fail to see this.
I find this whole FR door thing throughout your house because you have 3 stories utterly farcical. The most irritating part of it is it is quite often a technically incorrect application of the regulations by the BCO. You can take them on over it but you need to establish your travel distances, means of escape etc and be sure you have a watertight argument before you go in there all guns blazing but it is possible to prove them wrong.
Get a good surveyor on side and there is a fair chance you can get a workable solution without having to destroy all semblance of homeliness in your property and spend the equivalent of a small country's GDP in getting there.....
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