Roof problem - is it safe ?

BlondeHeadOn

This is a bit complicated, but I will try and explain it clearly! Apologies in advance for the long post.

Bit of background:
We live in an end-terraced house, and used to have a flat roof over our garage, kitchen and lobby. Our next door neighbour had flat roof over just his garage, which adjoins our garage.

Last year we clubbed together with our neighbour and had a pitched roof built over all the flat roof areas. This was all done properly, planning permission, building regs etc, also very good builders - no problem there. Very nice tiled pitched roof, looks great. It also gave us extra storage space over both of the garages, in the gap between the original flat roof and the pitch, which is very useful. Very happy with the job all round.

Until this year – when our neighbour decided to knock through the flat roof of his garage (i.e. take it off completely), to give him more space to work on the roof of the vehicle he is rebuilding in there. And I mean ‘rebuilding’, as in every day, welding, grinding, filling and painting the bodywork.

The Problems!

The first problem we noticed was the noise. It’s bad, but I suppose (mostly)bearable. It’s a lot louder than it used to be with the flat roof on though!

The second – and very major – problem we have had is fumes. One Sunday night we were sitting watching TV, when all of a sudden we were choking on fumes from some filler her had put in the bodywork. And I mean choking – it was terrible, and these fumes are apparently toxic and should only be used in a ventilated environment. The whole house was affected, and it meant we had to open all our doors and windows, both garages doors, the loft hatch – anything to try and clear the house of this awful choking stench. I suffer from asthma as well, and was nervous of having an attack. We ended up having to sleep in the bedroom with all the windows wide open in sub-zero temperatures, with the electric blanket on and me with a hat on. I can see the funny side of this now, but not at the time! When we opened the bedroom door in the morning we could still smell the fumes.

Since then my OH and neighbour have tried filling all the gaps in the little wall between the two garage roof spaces with expandable foam etc., but the fumes still come through. I had to go round and complain again last night and get him to open his garage door at 10pm, while we had our garage open and the doors and windows again to disperse the fumes. I am so fed up with this I can’t tell you! (Apart from anything else, it is costing us a fortune in heating having to have the windows and doors open on cold nights.)

And finally – I am worried about the possibility of an increased fire risk. The pitched roof was designed and built on the basis of an existing flat roof on all of the areas covered, but next door have removed that flat roof in his garage. There is a wall built up between his garage and ours, but it clearly has gaps between the tiles etc, as all the fumes get through. My OH and the neighbour have tried to fill all these gaps, but the fumes still get through anyway, so I am worried that if a fire started in the neighbours garage it could spread quickly through our roof space before we even knew about it. And the work he does in there often creates a lot of sparks (e.g. welding).

Sorry, this has turned into a very long post! (It’s good to vent though….)

My main questions are:

1. Is this an increased fire risk? Would this even comply with building regs now he has taken the flat roof off?
2. Is there anything we can do to prevent the fumes from being such a problem?
3. What would other people suggest we do? I don’t want to be unreasonable as they are very good neighbours in every other way.

Any suggestions gratefully accepted!

BlondeHeadOn

Anyone ??

matilda101

Hiya,

Try posting your message on the forum here:
http://www.ebuild.co.uk/cgi-bin/forums/discus.pl?pg=topics

There should be someone who knows the answer!

macduf

I feel for you I suffer from asthma and cant be near vehicle fumes for to long and would not have a chance of even living with the house ventilated.
I think even if you fill in all the gaps that the fumes will still penetrate dont ask me how but they do and yes you do have a fire risk into your garage. My advice would be to seperate the roofs.
Its hard to work out if the roof is safe without knowing more of the design.
Hope this helps.

silvercar

1. Is this an increased fire risk? Would this even comply with building regs now he has taken the flat roof off?

Two parts to this question. Building regs certificate is only a certificate to show that it complied with building regs at the time of inspection ( a bit like a car MOT), so if you were to sell, the building regs certificate would be fine.

Whether his current set up complies with current building regs (or even those in force at the time of the inspection is a different matter. I suspect that one or more of the following may apply:

1. the party wall is now between his garage and your loft space rather than 2 loft spaces; this may effect the standard of party wall that should have been built, particularly regarding fire proofing.

2. The roof supports may have been effected by taking out the flat roof.

3. Insulation requirements for a roof/ ceiling combination will be greater than for a roof perched onto a ceiling (that the old flat roof is).

4. Ventilation requirements if the garage is being used as a workshop.

Additionally, the planning permission you sought is not now what has been built/ modified.

I would be inclined to phone the council and ask their opinion.

planning_officer

Firstly, there is no breach of the planning permission - the removal of the original flat roof is purely internal, so it doesn't need planning permission.

If this guy is rebuilding a car, it could be argued that the noise/fumes/disturbance exceeds that of a hobby that could be carried out at home - it's a bit tenuous, but worth asking the council if they think the garage is now being used for car repairs rather than parking a vehicle.

dwarvenassassin

Either way, if fumes are an issue he is prob in breach of pollution law and as an asthma sufferer you should get it sorted! Good neighbours they may be, but you cannot be expected to live with your windows open and an increased risk of asthma attack.