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I am buying a bungalow which has a room for a loft conversion (according to the estate agent)The Loft has an apex height of 12.8 feet. and is over Three bedrooms and a kitchen. As I have placed an offer on the property, a family friend who had a similar loft conversion has asked me to enquire the size of the joists from the vendor as according to him it may cost me upto £5000 plus, just to replace the joists if they are not of upto a standard width / thickness. How worried should I be as £5000 is a lot of money. The loft is fully boarded at present. Is there anything else I should be worried about . If the thickness is not enough then what could be my options please :?:

Just because the loft is boarded does not mean it is suitable for a loft room and when the agent says it is suitable for a conversion he means

" With a lot of work and money it is etc etc"

Loft conversions carry many many regulations and every one must be adhered to, to the letter or your home insurance will not be valid and resale will be a virtual impossibility. See our project on loft conversions to find out whats involved as 95% of conversions need the roof timbers stregthened, new staircases and hallways put in and corridoors taking you from the roof room to the fresh air in accordance with fire regulations. Even if you floor is strong enough to suit new living accomodation the rest of your property may need alteration to get a regulations approved staircae in. Please check with an architect on site before making any decisions.

Many alterations eg loft conversion will require a structural engineer to design the steel beams and new floor. Existing lofts are usually designed for 0.25kN/m2 and new floor should be designed for 1.5kN/m2. I would ask a structural engineer to inspect.
ga consult

Hi just having loft converted at mo. Existing joist in a bungalow are irrelavant . Main issues for you is structural wall on ground floor as this iss what a calculated number of steel beams will sit on . The upper struture will then sit on this and not be in any way in contact with any existing beams.The present head height you have quoted seems ok. Must be clear of 2.1mtr at top of staircase to ceiling /apex etc. Remember as regs get tighter eg insulation plaster board plus finish on ceilings and flooring thickness increases /fire regs..this all takes away from your present pre work clearance of 2.1mtr plus Hope this helps cmc