🏠Get my advice on your loft conversion geni.us/loftsurvey

I have no intention to undertake a loft conversion but watched the whole video and found it very interesting, particularly thr use of sketchup

Looking at undertaking a loft conversion and the couple of videos of yours that I have just watched are ‘brilliantly useful’. Please keep producing them, they are priceless. Thank you

Good video I have been a builder for over 30 years still find it interesting Thanks Danny

If people would recognise how much time it takes to make a good model like this, and reading up on the law and contruction codes to make solutions like this.

The expertise shared in these videos is very valuable and much appreciated!

Thanks Robin for your excellent explanation of a loft space conversion and creative use of Sketchup to make visualising the process easy.

Currently building a new house on an end of a terrace row. The loft floor to the ridge is under 2m on the existing nextdoor, so therefore had to lower the floors on each level by 150mm in the new build to achieve a good head height in the loft.

Ah Robin, you are a godsend. Concise, exactly what folk need to know. I am looking to put stairs into my loft, but do not want to convert the loft just yet. I am guessing that at least some of the joists, which will presumably "hold" the top of the stairs will need to be reinforced? I watched another video of yours, explaining how to add wooden floor joists, rather than steel, making it FAR cheaper. And your videos are TOP DRAW!!!

Thank you Robin. Your videos are fascinating and give good indicators to problem solving. Ideas that most of us wouldn't perhaps think of.

Very clear computer graphics. Thank you. got this project myself.

Everyday is a lesson. Thank you for this great video. 👏

subscribed at first sight. Hard to find this level of information available freely! Thank you so much! :)

Yes, very well explained 👍🔨📐

Great use of sketchup

Excellent. Thank you for sharing your expertise.

Absolutely incredible video. Thank you

Some great advice and pitfall highlighting here.

This is exactly what I needed. Tkanks!

good explanation and a nice SketchUp model. Thank you!

Absolutely wonderful video… sketch up is a neat program

Love these,keep it good work

So useful!! Thank you.

I’m shopping an old home right now where you can see plain as day the same considerations taken to make habitable space access into the old attic. There is an oddly shallow dormer on the rear roof that surrounds just the attic staircase, to add code-compliant headroom when reaching and exiting the top of the stairs. No windows in the dormer walls, just a couple of (leaking) skylights above.

I believe the Approved Docs (England) allow the headroom to be reduced to 1.8m instead of 2.0m under the ceiling above the stairs on a loft converstion.

Interesting video, I'm looking to do something similar to this.

Great vid and nice model!

Cheapest solution: Ships ladder or spiral stair case... What I would do: I'd add 4 Dormers to the attic to make the room more usable, one at the stair top

Excellent analysis and 3d skills thanks

Wow, thank you!

What is the software you use here? It's excellent! Excellent explanatory. An excellent 'go-to' for referring to clients to watch while you build the stringers.

Nice use of SketchUp for live demonstration.

Good presentation, however in my experience winders are a substandard solution as they are very dangerous especially as one steps toward the pivot of the winders. Also in many instances the authorities require a minimum tread width of winders of 200mm to address the danger of slipping, so the benefit versus the danger equation is reduced from what is shown here. My suggestion is to look at a full size landing top and bottom one step up at the bottom and one step down at the top then reorganise the pitch of the upper stairway to suit a straight run. In my experience a small difference in rise and going in the upper stairway over winders that will be consentable will not be noticeable in the finished job, the stairway will be considerably safer, and the stairway cost will be less as winders tend to be more complicated to build. Cheers. Philip 🇳🇿

I wish I had you here to discuss reworking a staircase to get more room at a front door for better wheelchair maneuverability.

Nice sketchup skills.

Hello Robin, I am thrilled by the inforamtion and quality of your videos. They are helping me a lot for my upcoming home remodeling project. What software are you using in this video, I am curious. Thanks for sharing.

Looking at the view at 1:09 where you can see the required headroom I don't understand why you'd want a loft conversion as you hardly gain any space. You'd basically end up with a one meter wide corridor. One possibility would be to put in a very wide dormer, which you then of course could also have above the new staircase, eliminating any problem you'd have with the required headroom.

Interesting. The things you don't think about. Thank goodness for professionals.

Thankyou very informative I am doing a loft conversion soon 😅😅 so binge watching loft conversion videos 😊 #corbygirl 🙌

Hey, What CAD software do you use? Wonderful illustrations!

Nice walk though, what software are you using? I love the flexibility it offers.

The software used to illustrate the points in this video looks really nice. What is it called?

Good video. At 1:50 ish, you don't have to have 400mm to a door, as long as the swing is away from the stair landing. Another option for headroom if you're struggling is of course a dormer, although aesthetics have to be considered.

Hi Robyn watched your video on engineered trusses for my bungalow do i need steel beams instead of concrete lintels for a 1800mm window on my load bearing wall thanks

Hi thanks for the really helpful videos. What design programme do you use?

The first set of stairs I ever cut had this exact problem. Wish I had this video available at the time so I didn’t have to spend half a day figuring it out

Hi, can u do a video for semi-detached house loft conversion, question is where to stairs?

In other scenarios a double (U-bend) winder mid height can also be used. Lots of adventures with winder possibilities!

Those wider steps on top of the stairs is not passing building code in the USA where I've been building and renovating for the last forty eight years... when you turn a staircase you actually have to build a 3'×3' landing than add additional steps if needed to reach the Attic floor... So your solution will not work in the states with today's building code.. This is the reason a number of renovations keep the old staircases as "existing to remain" otherwise in some small residential buildings it would be almost impossible space-wise to build a new staircase... By the way this is a great video and very good explanation step by step... no carpenter should mess up the job with all this great help! Thank you friend.

Hi robin, I have a few questions, I have a conundrum, our builder is doing the structural work, ie putting in the I beams and structural opening for the stairs( 2 I beams on one side holding the chimney and another on other side ) the builder wants to take off the roof and the old roof beams off. Put new wider ones in and put the old roof tiles etc back on. Is this the best option or would it be better to add new beams attached to old ones?

Quite often in 1930s houses the loft stairs above the existing stairs cut across an existing landing window

Really helpful video! Can I ask which version of Sketchup graphics you use? Is it in the settings, or do you have a special textures package. They look so much more realistic than what I have found in my work - the concrete block for starters. I'd love to know.

I am putting a winder top & bottom of mine to solve that problem as you suggested, I have to get it right as I'm 6'6" tall😁 stairbox is a good site to design your stairs & see a 3D visualization

Hello, what are your views on this.existing ceiling is 2 X 4. I need 2 X 8 for span. I want to adhere a 2 X 4 onto the existing 2 X 4 screw then together vertically and add nail plates to either side making it a 8 X 4. Reasons are to maintain as much height as possible. Comment would-be appreciated. David

What program is this it's amazing

Very informative, by using the app to show the different staircases. My concern is the tripping hazard at the top of the new staircase, and the difficulty of moving furniture up and down. Is there any concern about needing fire exits from the loft

The winder at the top is dangerous and it doesn't meet code in Canada. A landing is safer and will require more space. Another solution would be a dormer in the roof to get more headroom at top of stairs, of course a lot more work. Also could put the stairs on the outside to not loose space in the house. Plan ahead and build safe!

Creative!

Hi Robin, I am looking for a solution to introduce the staircase to my loft, do you provide this type of service? Many thanks

I do this for a living (New Build & Extension design), nice presentation Robin, I use SketchUp to work out the more complicated jobs as well. Will you be mentioning fire compartmentation requirement in another video?

what software you use in this video?

Cool video . I personally would have had the winder at the top and bottom . Or better yet had a half staircase ,landing , return on itself half staircase .

What type of software is your using for engineering am interested

what software are you using?

I like corkscrew soffets. 60 degrees inside, 26 degrees outside. Steel studs are a godsend for twisting planes

Hi, great video!! What program are you using for molding this?

Very well explained, thanks Robin,. can I ask what software you are using?

... is there a cheap way to lift up the roof, perhaps making it into a Mansard roof instead, with a tight budget? It seems to me you get very very few square meters usable space after the law proscribed insulation...

Which program are you using there?

Great videos. What software do you use?

Hi Robin. What software do you use to create your drawings? Thanks mate.

Another good example of the futility of building standards, winders have a sidnificant risk of falls down stairs, particularly at the top of the staircase.

It is important to note that this video only deals with the basic structure of access into the loft space. There are many other elements that impinge on the actual design and setting out that go well beyond this simplified view e.g. The design of a staircase and winders is prescribed and can offer a 3-D conundrum. Most UK housing have ceiling heights of 2.4m and with maximum rise on each tread that means the second riser fall foul of the minimum height rules that is exacerbated by the requirement of a minimum of 75mm of tread on each winder. The second riser is often under the ceiling and thus can fall foul of the headroom requirement. Remember also that the loft space will require furniture and contorted staircases can preclude the installation of beds and the like.. If the loft space is going to be used as a habitable space (why would you go to all this work if it wasn't a habitable space?) then the original roof will need to have considerable insulation added that will probably lower the sloping ceiling so that it again becomes problematic with headroom. Because adding a loft conversion increases the overall height of the accommodation to 3 storeys fire precautions play a big part and the staircase will need to be a fire protected core from attic to final exit. These are some of the considerations beyond the simple structure and designing in detail a loft conversion is more difficult that any other improvement to the home.

What software are you using?

Hi, what software do you use to model the structure? Revit?

You need to talk about fire regulations and thermal properties. Other than that, nice vid.

Plenty of regulations about stairs and things, but nothing prohibiting a jump spring from Sonic 2. I'm going to put a box of rings at the bottom of each spring chute so guests can grab one and survive the hit with the ceiling without dying.

which software is this? autocad!

What software are you designing this house in? I'd love to design my dream house with it 😍

Even when playing games (Minecraft), stairs always was pain in the ass to figure out where to place. I always ended up obstructing my windows or hitting my head up a ceiling.

I have a question about what is said @1:40 about the 400mm from an opening door. That does not seem to be what Part K says. The text has that 400mm restriction for doors that _swing across_ a bottom landing. If the door swings into the room and not the corridor, there is no minimum distance given. Have you found control officers to interpret that as "no doors within 400mm, regardless?"

What is this program?

Can I make a flitch beam with scaffold boards and 3mm galvanised sheet steel 4 scaffold boards and 3 laminations of galvanised sheet I ask as I have plenty of both span is 6.5 meters?

Why not put in a switchback stair?

I really what the reason or history of those regulations.

if costs aren't a huge issue, I would add like 4 dormers to the roof, obviously with one of them being directly over the stairs. added benefit of bringing in more natural light

and or bump out the roof to give head height to the entire side of the loft

No mention of fire safety at all? It's a different situation for a 3 storey house

Can I convert a loft and still achieve habitable space if the max height in the loft is 1.9 metres?

Do you offer a paid consulting service? I am building in Australia and need some help with how my loft conversion can happen

What software do you use for your drawings?

or you could install one of those new snazzy lifts that go all the way through the home

How about a 90° turn around on the 9th step, then 3 steps up and you are in the center of the loft area? Do codes allow for this?

Very nice ideas. Personally I don't mind losing headroom for an attic/loft. That's to say nothing of code but not that I care much lol

The building regs are going nuts. Its for bloomin storage!

7:14 "open atrium" The building now has 3 floors. One of either the top or bottom floors must be closed off from the other 2 to create a fire break.

I visited a friend's house about a year ago, that I hadn't been in over the covid period, during which he'd had a loft conversion done. I was coming downstairs from the bathroom, where I'd been many times before, but this time I absolutely crowned myself against the ceiling on about the third step - I had to actually sit down, and I drew blood and had the bump for about a fortnight. His new upper stairs business had obviously changed where the downstairs ceiling pitched. I'm 1.83m tall. Ceiling height matters. I never said a word because he did some the work himself with help.

Actually not quite true, I've made literally hundreds of loft staircases in London. As long as you can match the original headroom heights on the ground floor staircase, they will accept it. Obviously they want you to have as much as possible but most DS will accept it.

What software is this please?

If it's a single room you could alter the pitch.