The original loft space was used as a storage area for light weight articles that hardly ever got used or moved. These items were resting on loose boards that had been placed accross the existing ceiling joists.
Step 1 - The first thing I had to do was evalute the space and see if it was feasible to be converted into a usable/habitable space. I then had to take into account what I wanted to use the space for and what I would have to do to facilitate this.
The size of the floor space from party wall to party wall was 5892mm and width from perlin to perlin was roughly 4000mm, the height of the highest point from roof to top of ceiling joist was 2448mm. I visualised that there would be enough space for a reasonable sized bedroom with an en-suite and a fixed staircase. The existing ceiling joists where 6''X1'' planks that were 28 feet long from the front wall to rear wall, these joists were supported mid span by an internal wall that wasn't load bearing.
I was very aware that the floor I wanted to install had to carry the bedroom and bathroom furniture and had to be able to cope with the occasional hoard of teenagers running and jumping about, I didn't want them comming through the ceiling so I had to carry out some additional research with the aid of the internet and talking to people involved in the building trade. Another concern was were a fixed staircase could be installed without taking up to much of the proposed floor space.
In the end I decided that i would comission a set of designed plans with structual building calculations to ensure that the floor and staircase conformed to building regulations and I would be able to plan the tradesmen and materials required to decide if I wanted to continue with the conversion or leave it as a storage area.
Step 2 -