Roof insulation

Nail lengths of wood of the correct height along the joists.

Rob Graham

Could possibly be done in one area which would give us some storage space. Would have to check th wiring too.

Had a similar problem with our 1900 terraced house. How to snugly insulate and still make use of the valuable storage space in the loft.

Firstly consider if you are going to need any lights (or extra lights) in the loft. It's easier to do it now then when you've board the place out. I did mine when we were renovating the entire house so I also but a few electrical sockets in the loft just in case.

I then used some nice lengths of approx 3"x2" to raise the height of the joists up by 3" and screwed them diagonally to the existing joists. I didn't screw them in-line along the existing joists as the spacing wasn't appropriate for the new boarding I was going to lay down. I also resisted the temptation to nail the new wood as I didn't consider the ceiling below would have survived the hammering without cracking or falling down. I spaced the wood to support equally the boarding to go on top. I then filled the extra 3" with loft insulation and then used Thermawrap on top of it to give extra heat reflective properties before fitting the loft boarding on top. Nice and snug.

Ash

Do not nail them, screw them. Nailing will crack the ceiling.

Adam

In addition to the other comments, unless you know the ceiling includes a vapour barrier _under_ the insulation (such as foil backed plasterboard), make sure you keep any over boarding well ventilated from the insulation, or it will get damp on the underside from slow migration of moisture up from the house which then condenses on the first unventilated cold surface. Either use slats (such as floor boards) spaced apart with gaps, or raise the floor at least a couple of inches above the top of the insulation, and ensure it's ventilated from the edges.

That sounds a better idea. I don't want the whole loft boarded out just a platform about a couple of metres wide along the centre line to pile boxes of books and papers on

That's what you think ... wait until the boss of the house sees the potential for storage and you'll soon have the loft full

Be careful with such an old house that you don't overload the ceiling joists as they are likely to be undersized and over spanned. Keep weight to a minimum, lay 100mm Xtrathem or similar over the joists in the area you want to board out then lay 9mm ply over to form a deck. The insulation that you have will be compressed but the Xtratherm will compensate.I would also recommend screwing some struts between some of the rafters and the ceiling joists to help distribute the loads. Best to store lighter items only not boxes of books for example.

Unfortunately for her she is now unable to climb up there. I'm finding it a struggle too now :(

My golden rule for my loft when I bought my first home was that the only things that go up there are the original empty boxes for packing things back into when moving. I'd seen enough other peoples' lofts which were basically rubbish stores you couldn't move in, through just chucking things up there.

Over 25 years, I've almost stuck to my rule. Only deviations are a few things that have been packed back into their original boxes as I don't have space for them until I move somewhere bigger, and spare tiles which I would leave with the house anyway (and are stored on top of a supporting wall). Also a few very long lengths of timber which won't fit anywhere else. I also found that it is occasionally necessary to check that you aren't still storing the original boxes for things you've chucked out.

A 120 yearold house doesn't have that

That' something I han't considered. Slats it will be

If you're finding it a struggle to climb up there may I tentatively suggest that you forget about using the loft for storage. I don't want to be a kill joy but if it is a struggle then try and find a space for storing things without the need to clamber up a loft ladder whilst carrying boxes. Unless you're installing a nice sturdy loft ladder - carrying things up steps or ladder isn't fun and gets worse as time moves on. It isn't really the best place to store books and paper as they will get damp and mouldy over a few year years. If the books are worth keeping put them on display ... if not then maybe it's time to let them go?

Ash

You been looking in our loft?

All stored in garden quality bags and plastic bins. Keeps for years like that

Bad advice to nail any thing to the joists in a house 120 years old unless you are intending a new ceiling. Screw them yes, nail no !.

One thing no one seems to have mentioned is this treatment I've seen advertised quite a lot whereby foan spray is sprayed onto the underside of the roof slates/tiles thus having the duel advantage of insulation and sticking to the slates/tiles is prevents them from slipping at any time.

I am thinging about having this done, I understand that you can hire the kit to do it yourself too.

If anyone knows how much the companies charge to do this in an average 3 bed house I'd be interested to know

Ron

It does get mentioned here from time to time, and is heavily frowned upon. Look back to old threads on google.

Apparently the foam can hide leaks and trap water on the timbers. First that you know of this is when something collapses. Also, roofing firms don't like the stuff; it can lead to high bills for simple replacement of tiles.

ISTR hearing the word "bodge" used.

You can't get the tiles off afterwards, even if you want to.

It stops you seeing anything that might be going on in the rafters - like a tile leaking onto one - so they'll likely be damp. So they'll rot.

Andy