Is it possible to widen a dormer?

donmaico

I suspect it would make more sense to completely replace it with a wider one for which I would imagine I would planning permission. This situation is I live in a chalet bungalow with a bathroom upstairs which is taken up by the dormer extension which is 10ft wide x 6 ft back to front. The left side is taken up by an airing cupboard with a boiler inside and the right side has a sink and the narrowest shower enclosure I could find that would fit. On the front is the window and the back is the door entrance and a small cupboard with a rad underneath it.
The shower is way too narrow for my liking so I thought that if than dormer extension could be replaced or widened to make it, say, 13 ft wide I could then install a walk-in shower, fit a sink where the cupboard/ rad are and move the rad under a new window which would be somewhat wider then the existing one.
Unfortunately, the airing cupboard has to stay because it was the only place in the house we could get a combi boiler installed.
The roof space between the existing dormer( it has a flat roof) and the edge of the roof is probably about 4 - 4ft 6" so I am wondering if it's do-able and what sort of cost I can expect?

EachPenny

donmaico wrote: »

The roof space between the existing dormer( it has a flat roof) and the edge of the roof is probably about 4 - 4ft 6" so I am wondering if it's do-able and what sort of cost I can expect?

It is difficult to say without seeing pictures and/or plans of the existing roof and how you propose to change it.

Whether it is possible, and the costs involved, would depend on the existing structure and how loads from the widened dormer would be transferred through the roof structure into the walls below. There is a good chance the existing dormer would need to be completely removed and a new one constructed from scratch.

You may need planning consent (hard to say without knowing more about the property and its history) and you'd need building regs approval, including the involvement of a structural engineer.

donmaico

EachPenny wrote: »

It is difficult to say without seeing pictures and/or plans of the existing roof and how you propose to change it.

Whether it is possible, and the costs involved, would depend on the existing structure and how loads from the widened dormer would be transferred through the roof structure into the walls below. There is a good chance the existing dormer would need to be completely removed and a new one constructed from scratch.

You may need planning consent (hard to say without knowing more about the property and its history) and you'd need building regs approval, including the involvement of a structural engineer.

Unfortunately, i dont appear to be able to upload any photos

Furts

A simple, generic answer is this. It would be possible to widen an opening within a dormer say where there is a window, provided there is still space each end of the wopening to fit a lintel bearing. But the work involved means few would entertain this.



Widening the overall dormer means new construction - starting from scratch. Here one weighs up a multitude of items so professional advice would be needed.

donmaico

Furts wrote: »

A simple, generic answer is this. It would be possible to widen an opening within a dormer say where there is a window, provided there is still space each end of the wopening to fit a lintel bearing. But the work involved means few would entertain this.



Widening the overall dormer means new construction - starting from scratch. Here one weighs up a multitude of items so professional advice would be needed.

Do you think they would they be more prepared to replace it with another wider one or would t the same difficulties put them off ?