Converting Your Loft Into An Extra Living Space

Many of us use our attics purely for storage, but what if you could turn this space into an extra bedroom? Loft conversions can be expensive but could add value to your home, making them a worthwhile investment. It’s also a lot cheaper than extending as you’ve already got the basic shell to work with. Here are some of the steps you may want to take when converting your loft.

Converting Your Loft Into An Extra Living Space

Declutter

For most people, a loft ends up being a place for hoarding inherited items, old memories, holiday suitcases, and Christmas decorations. All this clutter needs to be relocated or got rid of if you plan to convert your loft into an extra living space. The likes of this website offer removal, which could help you dispose of these items. Alternatively, you may wish to sell some of these items on second-hand sites or donate them to charity shops. If you want to keep onto these items, but don’t have space in your home, consider using self-storage as a solution. You may rely on self-storage providers just like WhatStorage for affordable storage units in Manchester, London, Brighton, and many cities in the UK.

Consider the roof height

For a loft conversion to be legally classed as a living space, there needs to be 1.9m of clear headroom at the most central point. You can convert your loft and live in it without meeting this height requirement, but it won’t be classed as an extra bedroom when selling your home, so you won’t get the added value. Raising the roof is a costly job and you may need planning permission in some cases.

Add a staircase

For your space to be legally classed as a bedroom, there also needs to be a staircase leading to it – not just a ladder. This is for fire safety reasons. Many choose to build an interior spiral staircase, which may involve knocking through part of a room below. Alternatively, you could fit an exterior fire escape. Designing and building a staircase can be another costly job that is best handled by a professional.

Insulate

If your loft isn’t insulated, you’ll want to add some thermal protection otherwise it could be very drafty. You could install insulating wool or boards yourself as available from this store or you could hire a professional to spray insulating foam onto the surfaces of your loft. Any windows meanwhile could benefit from double glazing.

Add heating and electricity

Heating and electricity may also be required, which could involve hiring a professional electrician and plumber. You can choose the number of radiators and plug sockets that you need as well as adding any light fittings. It’s much more practical than trailing up an extension cable to plug in an electric heater and other devices.

Consider extra features

You may want to add some other features such as an en-suite bathroom or even a balcony. A loft’s location also makes it perfect for features such as a skylight, allowing natural light to pour into the room. You may even be able to add a roof terrace, although this will involve planning permission as it could affect neighbors’ privacy.

Now you have a number of options for converting your loft into an extra living space. Whether it be a bedroom, a child’s playroom, or an additional tv/living room, you have the basics to start looking into. Have you converted a loft into your home? Please tell me about it in the comments below.