I forgot about the higher tax bracket, need to look into that as well.

As a rule of thumb things like loft extensions etc won't make a difference to your tax band. Its only when you start doing major extensions you may end up being put up a tax band and thus pay more

Am I right in thinking you can avoid paying more council tax on the extra bedroom by NOT having a fixed staircase to the loft? I.E ladder you pull down?

Sure one of my ex gf's had this and avoided paying more money, even thoguh the loft had been converted with windows etc.?

As a standard, Building Control should only accept products with a BBA certificate, but individual authorities can accept other types of certification if they find it acceptable.

The BM Trada one isn't accepted everywhere and you might have to persuade the LA to accept it. Our problem was that the approved inspector didn't know whether or not it would be acceptable to the council, so we were effectively running our ideas past two lots of people.

quote:

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Originally posted by AndyKent
We've used the tri-iso stuff recently on a barn conversion to office development.

We wanted to keep the roof rafters visible inside and were going to run out of room with regular insulation, so went with this foil stuff instead.

Was a ballache persuading our approved inspector to allow it, but in the end he accepted the Trada certificate.

Trouble is that when installing its so thin that it tears easily. Or a chippie drops his blade through it, completely ruining the idea behind the stuff.

Worked really well on this particular project and if you were really running out of space I'd use it, but if you have the option of regular insulation, I'd use that instead.

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We've used the tri-iso stuff recently on a barn conversion to office development.

We wanted to keep the roof rafters visible inside and were going to run out of room with regular insulation, so went with this foil stuff instead.

Was a ballache persuading our approved inspector to allow it, but in the end he accepted the Trada certificate.

Trouble is that when installing its so thin that it tears easily. Or a chippie drops his blade through it, completely ruining the idea behind the stuff.

Worked really well on this particular project and if you were really running out of space I'd use it, but if you have the option of regular insulation, I'd use that instead.

Thats all i have ever found aswell, they have DECLARED it to be the same as 210mm glasswool.

Building control will not accept BM Trada certification.

I will remain unconvinced untill i can find proof of the claims, Kingspan is prooved tryed and tested i would stick to it TBH

I used to specify silver foil bublle wrap (name evades me at present) and it was certified but after independent tests with extra overlaps and taping all joints etc it took 3 attempts to make it pass. We used to be able to have a 4"kit with breather FR foil possibily the name

and it met regs, i wouldnt use it personally though

quote:

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Originally posted by a_j_mair

quote:

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Originally posted by bubble


its not BBA , its bm trada.

tri iso is equivalent to 210mm, but only physically 30mm

have read this all over the net but never seen the proof to back it up

conil regs here are 30mm plasterboard for walls, 45mm if used as a 1 hour firebreak

will only require fire rating/noise if is a party wall

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Not having a go, am really interested to find proof of tri iso, have had problems with a builder using it instead of what was specified and council will not accept it.

I have personally spent hours looking for Certificates and proof it works, never found anything

Company couldnt provide it when i asked them

Sorry for the highjack

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quote:

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Originally posted by bubble


its not BBA , its bm trada.

tri iso is equivalent to 210mm, but only physically 30mm

have read this all over the net but never seen the proof to back it up

conil regs here are 30mm plasterboard for walls, 45mm if used as a 1 hour firebreak

will only require fire rating/noise if is a party wall

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quote:

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Originally posted by a_j_mair
Bubble - Tri iso super 10?? this the bublle wrap 20 layers of fibre etc?

can you get me a BBA certificate for it?-its not BBA , its bm trada.

IMO you could piss through it if it is the stufff im thinking

what you need is 120mm Kingspan TP10/K7 all the same-why? tri iso is equivalent to 210mm, but only physically 30mm.

and 27mm insulated plasterboard for walls and coomb cieling-conil regs here are 30mm plasterboard for walls, 45mm if used as a 1 hour firebreak.
300mm glasswool on flat cieling

be nice and warm and pass regs-its not just warmth factor they take into consideration to pass regs, noise is a factor, and obviously fire hazards.

Architect will be able to talk you through all your options-my dad is an architect, and uncle is a joiner/builder, and granddad works for CPR who pass regs.

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Bubble - Tri iso super 10?? this the bublle wrap 20 layers of fibre etc?

can you get me a BBA certificate for it?

IMO you could piss through it if it is the stufff im thinking

what you need is 120mm Kingspan TP10/K7 all the same

and 27mm insulated plasterboard for walls and coomb cieling
300mm glasswool on flat cieling

be nice and warm and pass regs

Architect will be able to talk you through all your options

Well there is an architect coming on monday night to discuss things and take a look at what the loft is like and if its suitable.

There are no houses to the front or rear of me so it wont affect the neighbours at all.

I will be ideally fitting a max of 6 velux windows then another 2 smaller fire escape ones. I live in a conservation area so that will probably affect things but hopefully not stop any of it.

I know a mate that sells them and he owes me a favour lol.

I'm very lucky in a way that most of my mates are in the building trade so I should be able to make a good saving on materials and labour.

The only thing i'm waiting on is the plans so once thats sorted i'll take a wee pic of it and let yous guys have a look.

The most I have set out realistically is £15k max so I will hopefully try and keep the price down to a minimum.

[Edited on 30-01-2010 by big eck]

quote:

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Originally posted by Colin
If you like the area your in & the house etc then building upwards can be a great idea & add a lot of value to the house, the fact that theres been something up there before (did it have planning?) & someone in the streets done the same means it shouldnt be a problem.

Whether you just use the loft space & put some velux windows in or whether you build out some dormer windows will have a huge impact cost wise. Again if you want plumbing put up there will make a difference again. I'd imagine something basic-ish would cost around £10-15k. Be worth it though & you'd see that back & then some when you do come to sell it.

You only need planning permission if your A. changing the exterior of the house. or B. Increasing floor space to the property by more than 15%.

You'll need a building warrant & probably a structural engineer to check the joists & roof etc.

You will need a Party Wall Agreement with any neighbours affected.

Ive also heard you need 2 points of access, due to fire reg's.

[Edited on 25-01-2010 by Colin]

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with loft conversions you need tread carefully.

you can convert the loft into a storage space without planning permission and regs no trouble. ie, floor it, and use it for storage.

if you want to use it as a habital area, you will need to get approval by your council and go through a CPR for permission. like mentioned, velux windows are cost effective and easy to install, just make sure that your builder uses the new tri iso super 10s insulation as the law recently changed and this is one of a few insulations you can now use.

average loft conversion costs between £12k and £15k dependant on size and also things like having shower etc....

shame you dont live near me as our family do this and extensions for a living!


just thought id show a pic of our house at mo, just finishing the 3rd extension, this one starts from ladder and goes to the right hand side, has a triple garage below it, and the new room is the 4th double ensuite.

the entire loft on original house has been converted ages ago as well. proper interesting stuff!



[Edited on 30-01-2010 by bubble]

quote:

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Originally posted by AndyKent
Mate of mine had the same problem, instead he just did the conversion without planning or building regs.

I dread to think what'll happen when he comes to sell it. Totally pointless anyway, its barely tall enough to stand up in :lol:

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planning will be £145 council fee

may be aloud under permitted devemopment if you are not protruding out the roof, i.e. no dormers

velux do not require planning so long as not a listed building or in a conservation area

Mate of mine had the same problem, instead he just did the conversion without planning or building regs.

I dread to think what'll happen when he comes to sell it. Totally pointless anyway, its barely tall enough to stand up in :lol:

We tried to get ours done but the loft wasn't tall enough and we would have had to drop the ceilings on the 1st floor = AG :lol:

Totally depends on:

1. Response from the planners
2. Size of ceiling joists

Quite a few people in our area have been flatly refused loft conversions due to the proposed rooflights overlooking neighbours.

The 2nd problem is that if your existing ceiling joists are too small you will either have to replace them with upgraded items (not cheap) or upgrade with larger timbers which usually means you run out of headroom.

my parents got theirs done years ago, its quite a decent size, velux front and back think they were near 10k or thereabouts...

cant remember actually, but its added quite a bit onto the value of the house anyway. would you have one room or 2 up there?

what type of trusses have you got and how deep are your joists?

we have a loft conversion in our house and just as an example, for a moderate size room (king size bed, long wardrobe, units etc with some floor space and a small bathroom it cost at least 25k.

that's from a bare shell though, there was nothing at all up there except planks of wood before.

and also, there are at least 10 other houses down our street with loft conversions and ours kept getting rejected. took about 4 or 5 times to go through.

[Edited on 25-01-2010 by Ben G]

If you like the area your in & the house etc then building upwards can be a great idea & add a lot of value to the house, the fact that theres been something up there before (did it have planning?) & someone in the streets done the same means it shouldnt be a problem.

Whether you just use the loft space & put some velux windows in or whether you build out some dormer windows will have a huge impact cost wise. Again if you want plumbing put up there will make a difference again. I'd imagine something basic-ish would cost around £10-15k. Be worth it though & you'd see that back & then some when you do come to sell it.

You only need planning permission if your A. changing the exterior of the house. or B. Increasing floor space to the property by more than 15%.

You'll need a building warrant & probably a structural engineer to check the joists & roof etc.

You will need a Party Wall Agreement with any neighbours affected.

Ive also heard you need 2 points of access, due to fire reg's.

[Edited on 25-01-2010 by Colin]

The wife and I were thinkin on selling up and moving to a bigger place this year but I had the idea of doing the loft up.

Its a massive space at 34ft long and 27ft wide so got plenty of options, it actually used to be another room any years ago but its been ripped out since then and needs completly redone. Flooring, walls electrics everything you can think of.

I also need to have a stair case built.

I know a load of electriciains, plumbers, plasterers, and a joiner/jitchen fitter.

Anyone on here had theres done before and what kind of costs are involved???

How much is it to apply for planning permission to have this done??? I know it wont be turned down as another house in the street has it.

I also know someone that will draw up the plans so i've got a good head start I think.

I'm gonna phone about for quotes this week but I thought I would ask on here if anyone has had similar.