Loft extension ? lowering bedroom ceilings

[Emmie42]

Hi,

I am looking to do a loft extension in my (terraced) house ? however the loft height is far too low to do this at the moment. As it sounds like we aren't allowed to increase the height/pitch of the roof, it has been suggested that we lower the height of the ceilings in the bedrooms and create the space that way. Has anyone had this done? What was your experience like and did it materially affect the ?feel? of the rooms? Also, if anyone has any recommendations for builders who do this kind of work, that would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[enjoy]

Had a similar dilemma, we would just reach the minimum height,

but our neighbour (semiterrassed) has a nice high ceiling,2.20 at least.

We had some builders round, all of them guessing a final height.

So we will go with an architect and she worked out a good ceiling

Height for us.

Haven't done it yet, all i am saying is, there are other options too.

One of the builders suggested lowering the ceilings in the first floor,

I am just glad we didn't go that route.

Good luck!

[Jeremy]

We did this in one of the bedrooms in our old place. Actually the bedroom still felt perfectly OK, even after lowering the ceiling by a foot. If you still have around 240cm height after lowering, it should be fine - but if it would be more like 220cm, then you should think carefully as you might be affecting the saleability.

If it turns out that your ceilings would be unacceptably low, then another option is just building over the rear "outrigger" instead of using the main loft space. In many houses you can get a decent size bedroom with a small ensuite in this area.

[LondonMix]

Friends did this. The most important factor is how much ceiling height you have below as Jeremy says. 240cm after lowering is fine. 2.1- 2.2m in the loft room is also fine as people expect loft rooms to have low ceilings.

[duffy10]

I had the same problem - got quotes from a couple of loft conversion companies and an independent builder all of whom said I'd need to have bedroom ceilings lowered - but Classic Lofts eventually carried out the work without lowering any ceilings. They have done a lot of conversions in Landells Road.It might be worth contacting them.

[arthurthecat]

We are in a small terrace, built a dormer out the back of the house above the now bathroom (was a bedroom). Didn't have to lower ceilings, got a sizable 3rd room and kept the loft space at the front of the house for storage.

[giggirl]

I had the same problem and the only way ahead, for me, was to raise my roof and get my neighbour to raise theirs too. In the end I decided not to go ahead. I didn't get as far as applying for planning permission.

I used Prestige Build who work mainly in SE22 (their vans are becoming ubiquitous). They have many recommendations on this forum. Not cheap but they do top work.

[Emmie42]

Thanks everyone. I think the height of the walls after the lowering of the ceiling would be just under 2.3m so I'm still not sure. I guess the only thing to do is to have a few people around to look at it and see what options they come up with.

Thanks.

[Jeremy]

2.3m is not outrageously low, but it is noticeably lower than typical victorian properties, and even pretty low for a new-build.

If it's a choice between (for example) 2.3m on the first floor and 2.2m in the loft, or 2.4m on the first floor and 2.1m in the loft, I'd go for the latter. As LondonMix says, people will be more forgiving of lower ceilings in the loft when it comes to selling.

[motorbird83]

As long as you have at least 2.1m in the loft, I wouldn't bother lower the ceilings on the first floor unless you plan to make the loft room your master bedroom. Even then, don't go below 2.4m on the first floor if you can help it. Personally, we are staying on the first floor and using the loft room for kids so the low ceiling height doesn't really matter that much.

[Jeremy]

But lots of houses don't have the roof height for even a 2m loft without lowering the ceilings...

[motorbird83]

I know- I said if / if you can help it. If the only option is between 2m above / 2.3 below after lowering it, I agree that would be the right thing probably. However, I wouldn't go below 2.4m on the first floor if the loft could be 2.1m without dropping the ceiling further.

[ali2007]

Hi Emmie - we had to do exactly this last year. The ceiling height on the first floor is now 2.4cm & we have our loft room as the master bedroom & it's our favourite room (the loft has the minimum legal ceiling height). We couldn't be more happy with the result. Definitely worth it. We're in a Victorian terrace - if you want to take a look send me a PM

Ali

[Emmie42]

Hi,

The main issue, as Jeremy said, is that the loft is far too small at the moment to convert, which is why there's a problem. If only Southwark were a little more relaxed about raising the roof height!

Another option I'm considering is leaving the master bedroom as is but only lowering the ceiling of the middle bedroom and hall (the bathroom and small back bedroom obviously already have much lower ceiling heights) - this might make enough space for a bathroom and a bedroom without having to do anything to the main (and nicest!) room. Does anyone know of someone who has done this kind of thing as a compromise?

Ali - it's nice to hear of a positive result! Thanks for the offer - I'm still mulling things over at the moment but that could be really helpful a bit later on.

Thanks.

[Tr?]

My old neighbours had the same problem, so they just used the actual loft space for the entry staircase, and built the extension over the outrigger. Still called it a loft conversion and seemingly no permission required, but to be honest it was a sun and light blocking monstrosity (even though it was effectively a third floor on the outrigger they had to dress it in roof tiles, etc to maintain the fiction it was a loft conversion).

[Alfonso]

Hi Emmie

Did you come to a decision in the end? We have the same problem and would be interested to know what happened?

[Tommy1000]

We also did this last year, dropping the first floor ceilings by a foot. I think we ended up with something like 2.1 or so in the loft and 2.4 on the first floor. Which in both cases is perfectly good. Try and incorporate as large a velux window/s as possible as it can really take the edge off the impression of a lower ceiling.

[bobby's bear]

We're also thinking about this to acheive a suitable ceiling height in the loft.

Anyone who has had it done how awful / messy is the whole lowering process and how much time roughly did it add to the build?

[Jeremy]

It is very messy. You'll need to take up all the carpets in the first floor otherwise they will get ruined. And probably completely redecorate afterwards (not just the ceilings).

[TJH140]

Hi Emmie, Did you lower your ceiling ? What height did you go for?

Tom

[alex_b]

Just to say, we were successful in applying for permission to raise the ridge line by 30cm so don't presume it can't be done (as our loft company initially claimed).