Putting a Second floor on a Bungalow

JBsplit

i used telebeam when i was hunting for quote, there system uses special beams that eliminate the need to have any supporting walls as they span the entire house.and they are very helpful.

http://www.telebeam.co.uk/

glenstan

we did this just over a year ago, we contacted architect who on looking at what we wanted said, i think i will have to bring in a structral engineer on certain parts of this, he did and co ordinated with the engineer about his drawings, between them they dealt with the council and their building regs, all in all we payed £150 more than we expected but the whole thing was dealt with the minium of fuss. They used terms we had never ever heard of, we have ended up with a loft conversion to our bungalow that we are highly delighted with and it can withstand a herd of elephants running over it.
I must add that i live up in the far north where the cost of these pros are a lot cheaper

Bleg

A loft conversion company?. Never thought of them as anything special I just thought of them as an ordinary building company. I will certainly look into them.

sneekymum

I am an architect and I would not undertake a loft conversion - not even my own. There is little profit in this type of work - each one is individual and these jobs always require a structural engineer. (Many people confuse architects with technical persons offering "architectural services").

I would recommend you use a loft conversion company who will do everything for you. Though even if you find you don't need Planning Permission write to the council anyway and get a letter confirming this to be kept safely.

Bleg

I think it would be a bit more than a loft conversion. We would prefer a whole second floor. Depending on what we are advised is structurally possible combined with the available funding we have and the level of inspiration of the architectural design I am sure we could end up with somethng between a loft conversion and a second floor. I hope this makes sense.

lush_walrus

Im an architect too...

And to me it sounds as if you are planning a little bit more than an addition of a couple of dormers, so personally I don't think a loft extension company is actually what you are looking for. They will provide a very standard solution for you and do simplify the whole process, but may not be actually able to provide anymore than that.

Your first obsticle will be the planning application (again if you are planning a second floor then it sounds to me as if you will be increasing the volume enough to require planning permission. Have a look at http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/england/genpub/en/1011888239467.html all of the info you will require regarding planning is on there (its the official site for all planning matters).

If there is anything tricky about the application then choose the architect wisely. Some architects are good at persuding planners, others are pretty useless and as this will be your first obsticle then this is where your focus should be.

With regards to the architect's appointment, focus on getting to the planning stage with them. If you want to stick to a tight budget, you wont necessarily require the architect beyond that point. Contractors can deal with building control generally if the project is straight forward enough, so dont worry hugely about that and unless you are going for a high spec 'designer' appearance to the extension you wont need the architect to specify very much and project managing is something that if you have some time on your hands you will be able to manage yourself.

Speak to the planners now and sound them out before employing anyone. If it is totally against local policy then you could be totally wasting your time. Check around you to see if any of the other bunglows have done simular. As someone else has said talk to your neighbours, you want them on side rather than reacting adversely to your application.

Boohbah, not all architects are 'he'!

woodbutcher_2

A lot of this will depend on whether the footings on your house will support the extra weight of a second floor.This is something that needs to be clarified and will probably be the first thing the council wants to know should you apply for planning.It will depend on the age of the house mostly.