Charles Jeffrey Ltd

Dormer Loft Conversions in North London

Introduction

Dormer loft conversions in North London are an extension to your existing roof, allowing for additional floor space and headroom within a loft conversion. Dormer loft conversions in North London protrude from the roof slope, typically at the rear of the property and can be built in a wide variety of styles. Internally, a dormer will have a standard horizontal ceiling with vertical walls, compared to the normal diagonal sides of a conversion.

Dormer loft conversions in North London will provide additional space that can make a conversion feasible in lofts that have limited space or headroom.

Flat roof dormer loft conversions in North London give the maximum amount of additional internal space, although they don't look as attractive from the outside unless meticulous attention is paid to even minor details.

Gable fronted and hipped roof dormers loft conversions in North London are much more attractive but they often do not give as much internal space and will cost more to build, due the extra complexity.

Dormer Loft Conversions in Barnet

There are different types of dormer loft conversions in Barnet:

• Hip to Gable fronted dormer loft conversions in Barnet: the front of the dormer rises to a point at the ridge of the dormer roof. Also known as a dog-house dormer.

• Hipped roof dormer loft conversions in Barnet: the roof slopes back from front of structure to a point farther back.

• Flat roof dormer loft conversions in Barnet: the roof of the dormer is flat.

• Shed dormer loft conversions in Barnet (also known as an "eyelid" dormer: A dormer (window) whose eave line is parallel to the main roof eave line.

• Shed dormers can provide more attic space and head room than gable dormers, but cannot be the same pitch as the main roof and may therefore require different roof sheeting. Often used in gable-roofed homes, a shed dormer has a single-planed roof, pitched at a shallower angle than the main roof.

• Wall dormer: A dormer whose face is coplanar with the face of the wall below, breaking the line at the cornice of the building.

• A hip to gable loft conversions in Barnet involves making major changes to the roof: The gable wall is built up to the ridge line and a new section of roof is built to fill in the gap. As a general rule, houses with hip roofs tend to not have enough internal volume for a conversion to be practical so a hip to gable conversion is the best solution.

A new gable wall will be built either in masonry or studwork. There are several options for the finishing of the masonry gable wall, which include brickwork, block work with render or tiled. If the gable wall is built from studwork they are normally finished in render or tiled. For most people the preference of for the new gable wall to match the existing walls as much as possible. As a hip to gable conversion changes the outline of the roof planning permission may be required. You will need to determine if the conversion falls within your permitted development allowance. Once the roof has been extended the conversion is normally completed with either Velux roof lights or a dormer.

Is My Loft Suitable for a Dormer Loft Conversion in Barnet?

Roof type

There are main types of roof construction, the traditional rafter and purlin or the modern trussed roof. Generally the older type of roof is easier to convert as it has a steep pitch that gives the headroom required. Most houses built before the 1960s will have the traditional rafter and purlin design.

Dormer Loft Conversions in Whetstone

Headroom

As a general rule you will need a minimum height of 2.2 meters across around half of the floor area to make a conversion worthwhile. There isn't much point having an extra room if you can't stand up in it!

Does the roof void give adequate height and room ? Usually a height of 2.4m is required under the roof ridge (the highest point), although with careful design by Charles Jeffrey Ltd, you may get away with 2.1m. There are two basic types of roof construction, rafters (the traditional, built on site method) or trusses (pre-built in a workshop and transported to site) popular since the 1970's. Roof rafters normally leave the center of the roof void fairly open, whereas the standard design of roof trusses obstructs the space. Where standard roof trusses are used, a fair amount of strengthening will be required so that parts of the trusses can be cut away to open up the roof space - roof trusses must never be modified without professional guidance. Installing dormer windows can extend the area of maximum height but at a financial cost.