Loft Boarding and Loft Ladders

Sin_Chase said:
I thought the general consensus was to AVOID loading roof trusses?
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Trusses shouldn't have much extra load on them. However if they are supported mid span from below properly by block walls not stud on stud (unless designed for it) or the re-reinforcement timber for the new loft floor spans near enough/to the walls the trusses rest on then that's a different matter.

There are so many variables that there's no simple answer without specifics of overall construction.
 
Simon42 said:
Trusses shouldn't have much extra load on them. However if they are supported mid span from below properly by block walls not stud on stud (unless designed for it) or the re-reinforcement timber for the new loft floor spans near enough/to the walls the trusses rest on then that's a different matter.

There are so many variables that there's no simple answer without specifics of overall construction.
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My understanding from the surveyor was that the frame was the full size of the existing one.
With the downward force onto the trusses I thought that meant that the joists wouldn't be impacted and therefore no risk of issues with the ceiling.
 
There is a light storage loading included in a Trussed Rafter design of 250N/m2 on the bottom chord of the trusses only. You just need to remember the decking system eats into that provision so if your system has a weight of 150N/m2 you have used over half the load in boarding out.
 
What would people think is a good price to have someone supply and install a full Loftzone area of 2.4m x 4.8m (legs, boards etc) c/w loft ladder?
 
Probably way more than you’d think it would cost.

It also depends, is the loft completely empty or are they having to work with half a house of belongings also being up there. How complex the shape of the loft is and east it is to install.

In any case, I’d price up the kit, ladder and insulation, add at-least 10% markup then add on your typical labour rate for your area to install it as an absolute minimum.
 
Richie said:
What would people think is a good price to have someone supply and install a full Loftzone area of 2.4m x 4.8m (legs, boards etc) c/w loft ladder?
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2-3 days of pretty miserable labour so I'd want at least 600/day with a labourer 200/day.
 
b0rn2sk8 said:
Probably way more than you’d think it would cost.

It also depends, is the loft completely empty or are they having to work with half a house of belongings also being up there. How complex the shape of the loft is and east it is to install.

In any case, I’d price up the kit, ladder and insulation, add at-least 10% markup then add on your typical labour rate for your area to install it as an absolute minimum.
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dlockers said:
2-3 days of pretty miserable labour so I'd want at least 600/day with a labourer 200/day.
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Sorry, I should have put that detail on there - House is about 5 years old and nothing has been stored in it before. The only "modification" is a TV Aerial mounted off one of the trusses.

The loft is clean, dry and nothing to move apart from rolling back the top layer of insulation:

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After pricing it all up myself, Its about £550 fitting cost (£1400 to supply/fit for the loftzone and 3 part aluminium ladder)
 
I had a local place quote today to board my loft. He has a basic package for £489 with a 2 section aluminium ladder, loft hatch enlargement, 4ft light strip and switch and 112 sqft of flooring, that's without raising the flooring though for insulation. Raising is £250 extra and is done with timbers.

The above package is £549 with a 3 sectional aluminuim ladder, or £599 for a wooden ladder with hand rail.

He said my full middle section would be an extra £240, which is 8 more boards. Or £350 for the whole area, though not sure I need that much.
 
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Richie said:
So I am looking at boarding out a park of my loft and will go with Loftzone but I have a couple of questions:

Is this relatively straight forward for a DIY-er and can it be done by 1 person?
Loft ladder - I kinda want to keep my existing hatch as it would be less hassle than having to fit a new one with the ladder attached - any recommendations for a loft ladder that will keep the existing hatch?

Cheers
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The ladder is pretty easy. Abru make a good one that sells for £90. You just need to ensure that there is a board in front of the loft access that the ladder can land on when it is pushed inside the loft. You also need to attach a spring-assist to that. You need a ladder to reach the loft to fit the new ladder. Once the ladder is fitted you need to climb up inside, pull the ladder with you, to fit the spring.

What I usually do is fit walk-ways to the loft but no storage space. The problem with storage space is that you don't know how the loft is constructed and whether it has been designed to take any load, and people ALWAYS tend to overload them. You can put a storage area up there as long as you trust yourself to only put light stuff on it.

The walkway and any storage area should be raised. Not difficult to do and if done correctly will actually strengthen the roof.

When I did my own house, I put a storage area in my garage. There, I could easily strengthen the roof to take the load. An elephant could sit on it. And pretty much does, the amount of **** that's up there!
 
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The average person isn't really putting a lot of weight up in their list realistically, a bit of storage isn't going to affect much.
Before we moved into current house the previous owners removed water tank from the loft, I imagine that weighed a couple of hundred kg when full. So in not overly concerned about a few Christmas decorations and stuff like that
 
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