I wish to take the cellings up and expose the beams in my roof. The timbers in the roof are sound and there are no leaks. I wish to insulate, board and plaster between the beams. The only thing is that there is no felt under the roofing tiles. I was hoping that I would not have to take all the tiles off !
Exposing my roofing beams in bedrooms
- Thread starter hughsie
- Start date
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Well if its not leaking there is nothing to worry about regarding felt, you would have to strip the roof to install it. When you say yo want to expose the roof timbers do you mean the purlins and possibly you have an 'A' Frame? If so, then go for it. Insulate between the rafters with 'kingspan'type insulation making sure to leave an air gap between the insulation and roof slate/tile. Sand down the timber you want to leave exposed before you fit insulation with belt sander, no need to treat or stain them just leave them.
Thanks, and thats good news. Looking at some of the celings Ive seen and some of the images on google it would be a bit over -kill to expose the rafters so I think that your idea of the a-frames and purlins would be the best idea. Its good to see that I wont have to strip the roof. So it would be a 50mm gap between the tiles and the kingspan, then plasterboard covering the rafters. I think that I would have enough depth in my rafters for 50mm kingspan - would that be enough ? Would I need any vents do you think in the pitch of the roof to esnure air flow ?
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You are taking all this a bit simply, you need ridge vents without a doubt, you need around 120mm in total of Celotex or Kings etc. You would normally fix however much you can between the rafters then the rest below with the plasterboard under, you need to ensure your rafters are up to the job of caring the extra load. As mentioned you need to check the existing ceiling joists you are proposing to remove are not working as ties for the roof. You have given too little information for anyone to realistically answer these questions. Rafter sizes, spans, centres, same for the joists, are their purlins, what sizes etc etc. With regards to the felt, remember that any leaks from a slipped tile or whatever will show up in your ceiling as leaks.
I personally think the idea is bonkers, especially since (as has already been pointed out) that the ceiling joists are likely to have to stay.
Thanks for your constructive comments !
If you have your heart set on the project then you need to be aware of just what is involved. Having what is known as a raised tie roof with raked ceilings is the best you are likely to achieve.
Your original suggestion of exposing the beams in the roof is what i would deem bonkers as it is ultimately unfeasible, coupled with the fact that the timber-work is unlikely to lend itself to exposure in the first place.
We feel that this is the most useful and constructive comment that you could receive. It may just save you a shed load of grief and expense that is going to come back and haunt you.
We totally agree with nose, big-all and Fred.
oldun
All the advice seems a little harsh seeing that all I seek to do is expose some timber. The purlings and a frame are in great nick and the idea would give some more hight in the room. I see loads of places around here with the same exposed timber, surely this is all fairly standard stuff ?
What exactly does your roof structure consist of? Do you have any photos of the attic space?
If you have big oak A-frames and purlins then almost certainly you have a ridge beam too, in which case the rafters don't need tying with the ceiling joists.
However, you can't mess with the A-frames, so you are still going to have big bits of timber flying across the room. I guess that's not too much of an issue as they will be above head height.
I can't see any reason why it shouldn't be done, but get a Structural Engineer to look at it before you go removing structural elements.
as an aside
if you open out the roof space unless you improve insulation your heating cost will be more than doubled for that room because to get 18 degrees at waist height you will have around 24 degrees at the apex
if you open out the roof space unless you improve insulation your heating cost will be more than doubled for that room because to get 18 degrees at waist height you will have around 24 degrees at the apex
i am just advising you that it will cost you about twice as much to heat the room assuming your new insulation is equivillent to the old 7" off loft insulation
you will need twice as much heat to heat the space partly because its a larger space and partly because the greater temperature needed to give you the same warmth at body height
you will need twice as much heat to heat the space partly because its a larger space and partly because the greater temperature needed to give you the same warmth at body height
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