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https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl DIY Forum >> Building Questions >> do i need a lintel? https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1378061857 Message started by andyhayes90 on Sep 1^st, 2013, 7:57pm

Title: do i need a lintel?
Post by andyhayes90 on Sep 1^st, 2013, 7:57pm

Hi, I have recently purchased a mid terraced house and due to a few problems with the property they have held a 6000 pounds retention until the relevant works have been carried out. One of the problems is a roof to a single storey extension, the mortgage lender has said it needs completely removing and replacing to meet regs. My question is whether or not I would need to replace the wooden lintel above the window and would it be ok to use another wooden one, if it does need changing.

cheers
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Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by thescruff on Sep 1^st, 2013, 11:45pm

Sounds to me as though they want it knocked down completely and rebuilt to building regs, not just patched up.

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by big_all on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 1:53am

what you have is a poor quality "lean to"
no insulation probably no damp proof as scruff says probably knock it down and start again ::)
you need to ask your morgadge provider what exactly is required as they are calling the shots so they need to be satisfied to release the funds

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by andyhayes90 on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 7:02am

They have just said that the roof needs removing and replacing, will a wooden lintel above the window be ok? I haven't got the money to knock down and rebuild at the moment.
Cheers

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by woodsmith on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 7:20am

What sort of roof do they want you to fit?

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by andyhayes90 on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 11:53am

As long as it meets building regs it's fine, and they only said the roof. Cheers

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by woodsmith on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 1:52pm

It looks like this is just a simple lean to, so are you planning to fit a twin wall polycarbonate type of roof? If so it has very little weight and you wouldn't need a lintlel, although you may need to fit a length of timber on top of the windows, across the entire width of the extension, to spread the weight over all the windows.

This is as long as the back door opens into this room rather than the back door opening out of it. If it opens into the room then it is more or less a conservatory and building regs are not stringent. If the back door is in the extension then the extension forms part of the house and you would need a much more robust roof design, which I think you would find difficult to fit on the window wall you have. Then you would need building permission from the local council and from the look of the pictures it would cost you thousands to do properly.

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by CWatters on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 3:37pm

Quote:

the mortgage lender has said it needs completely removing and replacing to meet regs

Humm. What is the room used for? Is it considered a habitable room or not?

If the room is classed as a conservatory or other non-habitable room then as woodsmith says the regs are different. I'm not sure there is anything specific in the regs apart from general stuff such as the suitability of materials and workmanship.

If it's considered a habitable room it would have to comply with all the regs in force at the time it was built. That might include insulating the walls, floor or double glazed windows. There might even be too much glazed area to meet the building regs for a habitable room. There are several ways to work that out but the simplest method requires the area of glass and doors to be less than about 25% of the floor area.

Scroll down this page to "Building Regulations" to see if it meets the rules for a conservatory..

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/permission/commonprojects/conservatories/

Quote:

However, conservatories are normally exempt from building regulations when:

* They are built at ground level and are less than 30 square metres in floor area.
* The conservatory is separated from the house by external quality walls, doors or windows.
* There should be an independent heating system with separate temperature and on/off controls.
* Glazing and any fixed electrical installations comply with the applicable building regulations requirements (see below).

Has the lender said if they want Building Control to inspect or certify it?

It might be sufficient to just write to the lender and state that the extension is considered to be a conservatory and that the existing roof meets building regulations for a conservatory.

Have they said why they think the existing roof doesn't comply with the Building Regs?

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by andyhayes90 on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 6:21pm

The door does open into the room, but that is the back door, does it matter what sort of roof I put on? Polycarbonate? Or wood construction with insulation?

No they just want it to meet regs, Doesent need certifying

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by woodsmith on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 10:12pm

wrote on Sep 2^nd, 2013, 6:21pm:

The door does open into the room, but that is the back door, does it matter what sort of roof I put on? Polycarbonate? Or wood construction with insulation?

If it is currently classed as a conservatory you may well need planning permission to replace the glass roof with a timber one. But it was the weight aspect that I was more concerned about, the windows may not take the weight of a timber roof.

Title: Re: do i need a lintel?
Post by CWatters on Sep 4^th, 2013, 11:05am

Planning permission would be needed if the new roof is raised more than > 150mm but there is still the question of what building regs does it need to meet?

If this is classed as a conservatory then the existing roof probably meets the regs and you don't need to do anything but minor repairs such as replacing the broken glass. On the other hand if it's not a conservatory then you might have to do a lot more than replace the roof.

From here it looks like it meets the rules for a conservatory already so I'm puzzled why the mortgage co think you need to do anything.

There are other reasons why different regs may apply....

In some cases the flat roof of an extension is used as a fire escape route from the main part of the house. eg out of a window, across the roof of the extension and down onto the ground. In that case the roof would have to be a lot stronger to allow it to be walked on. Should be possible to check if this applies.

In some cases an extension close to a boundary has to meet certain fire regulations that might have implications for the amount and type of glass used.

I think you need to ask the mortgage co why they think the existing roof doesn't comply with the regs. The reason they give should help identify the work required.