"Christian McArdle" wrote in message
news:bSXyc.278$Ee2.277@newsfe4-gui...
Also are there any online guide's available on the internet on how to
convert a loft etc, just for some guidance.

The loft conversion will be subject to building control (and in some cases
planning permission). The building control officer will need to have
structural details of how you propose to strengthen the floor. You will
probably also need structural alterations to the roof to remove struts
which
will need careful design and calculation. There are a number of other
things
that will need to be sorted too. Here's a list off the top of my head,
there's probably more.

1. Mains powered linked smoke detectors on every floor.
2. Protected main stairway to the outside (there are several options).
3. Escape window reachable by ladder low down so a children could be
carried
through.
4. High levels of insulation to the rafters with either 5cm ventilation
behind the insulation, or breathable membrane (which requires reroofing,
but
gives more headroom). This will typically require around 40mm from the
rafter, although this is variable.
5. Joists strengthening. This will typically raise the floor by around
100mm.
6. Approved staircase.
7. Firedoor at top or bottom of stairs.
8. Roof redesign to remove struts or insert Velux windows.


All of what Christian says is true but you should add:

9. 30 minute fire protection between loft conversion and rest of house (the
firedoor is part of this).

and to add to 3: the window must be reachable by ladder from the road side
of the house (ie if there is no direct access to the rear of the property
the window must be at the front).

You may also need planning permission but that depends on what you overlook
and what you intend to do and may not be necessary for you.

If you think all this a bit OTT, wait until your kids have a friends to
sleep over and they are in the loft. At that point you become quite glad you
did things "by the book". That's aside from any problems you may have
selling without a building regs certificate, which you may not regard as
important. This is all for a "habitable" room. Normally this is defined by
the presence of a staircase. If the access is solely by a drop down ladder,
you can generally claim that it is not a "habitable room" but, if you are
going to use it as if it was, you may, on reflection, decide that a "proper
job" is better.

Generally speaking, while theoretically within the scope of a good d-i-yer,
the structural part of a loft conversion is more normally done by a
specialist contractor. The fitting out (wiring, flooring, insulation,
plasterboarding/plastering, smoke alarms etc) can then be done by the
d-i-yer to save costs.


--
Bob Mannix
(anti-spam is as easy as 1-2-3 - not)