Mumsnet Talk

Had a loft company come to the house today to look at the possibility of having a loft conversion. Although the head height in the loft is OK as it is now, by the time they've got the support in / strengthened the floor etc, there would not be enough height. They therefore have said that they'd have to lower the ceilings in all of the bedrooms. Its a typical 1930s semi - so the ceilings are quite high but not edwardian / victorian house style high iyswim. Builder said they would be above the regulation height as put in all new builds - if 6ft husband stood on tiptoes, he'd almost be able to touch them.

At the end of the day, we need another bedroom and we're unlikely to get planning permission for a double storey extension, so this is probably our only option. The room then would be a good double bedroom with good standing height etc, but really wary of lowering the ceilings. Can anyone give any advice?

Thanks

We had our ceilings lowered but we have an edwardian terrace with high ceilings and are still quite high (although we are all short arses in this house). We stayed with friends (already conveniently arranged) while the ceilings were done, bit of dust etc but no damage to existing wallpaper. Was quite impressed.

Friskymare If you'd have been left with ceilings as low as I describe, would you still have done it? I'm not bothered about the mess / disruption etc, I'm just worried about the bedrooms feeling closed in / claustrophic kind of thing afterwards.

There is no minimum headroom for ceilings in a loft conversion - only on the stairs which has to be 2m

Sorry, yes, there is no required head height as I understand it, but you need a certain amount of head height to make it a usable room (for adults) as opposed to a child's bedroom or a play room.

do you mean the new room would only have a head height of just over 6ft or all of the existing bedrooms? Could probably cope with the loft being on the short side but would be a bit unsure about the first floor rooms having restricted height.

Sorry, not being very clear am i? To get a useable, double bedroom in the loft with walking space around the bed etc, we need apparently to lower the ceilings in all of the bedrooms upstairs (so the floor of the loft can be lower than it is now). Have just been to measure how high the ceilings would be in all of the bedrooms once they'd been lowered and they'd be about 7'8'' high (about 2.32m). The ceilings are about 28cm higher than that at the mo (about 10").

I wouldn't. But that's because I have a tall husband who regularly vetoes houses I want because he says they have low ceilings.

Those heights sound absolutely fine to me - so a ceiling height in the bedrooms of 232cm/7'8"? We just moved from a new apartment block in Switzerland which had ceiling height of 230cm in all rooms and it felt perfectly sufficient - was a super-modern high spec place and not a new build a la UK standards. If a man of 6'5" would have a clearance of more than a foot between him and the ceiling I'd say that sounds good!

I wouldn't. I find low ceilings claustrophophic, and it would in some ways, really change the airy feel that 1930 homes have.

Could you instead put dormers upstairs or extend towards the back?

I agree, but a ceiling height of 7'8" is not low!

But it is low to some people, ie my ridiculously picky dh. He would regard only a foot clearance above his head as too low. But normal many people would think that was fine; I just think it's worth pointing out as to me, anything that could put off future buyers needs careful consideration.

Agree that it is not low for a new build or say, a cottage, but it is low for a 1930s type of home, and would feel odd.

I wouldn't, but then I also have a tall and picky DH who doesn't like low-ish ceilings (like Rhubarb's) so I agree that it could put some future buyers off.

How low would the loft ceiling be if you don't lower the first floor ceilings? Would a, say, 6ft adult be able to stand up in there without bashing their head? If so then I would just stick with having a low ceilinged loft. It will be a child's room anyway so mostly occupied by small person/people?

I don't know what the height would be without lowering the ceilings, just that the guy from the loft company said it would be a compromise and we'd end up with a room that could only be used by a child.

2.4m is the standard ceiling height. I think you would need to know how high the loft conversion would be to make a decision.i.e ceiling height in 3 bedrooms vs 1 lower ceiling in new loft room. Also has anyone did something similar in your road so you could check out what is possible. Are dormers being proposed?