Frequently Asked Questions

A velux conversion is one that uses rooflight windows installed into the pitch of the roof to give light. There is no visible extension of the loft beyond the existing roof line therefore planning permission is not required.

A dormer window is the exterior part of the conversion that is built at the rear of the roof to provide floor and living space and is generally a square section construction to maximise the overall living area.

This is when we extend the ridge line of a hip-end roof to make it into a gable-end roof. This gives you a much larger loft area. A hip to gable extends the ridge line from the existing hips to overall the flank wall of the house. It will effectively add on the required space to enable the staircase and the shower-room to be built and also increase the standing space available in the loft.

The staircases in almost all conversions are positioned above the existing staircase of the house. They start at the side of the bedroom door and climb upwards along the flank wall of the house and land at the top level with the new loft floor. This means that no extra space is needed or taken away from the first floor living area to accommodate the stairs into the loft.

When a homeowner embarks on a major project involving the extending of their home it can naturally be both an exciting time but also an anxious one as often the sums involved to realise their dream are significant. Therefore it is essential that a homeowner not only researches the loft conversion market in their area as there are scores of companies advertising to build loft conversions - but that they also feel completely confidant in the choice of loft conversion company they finally choose.

This is why Apex loft conversions have an order book that is constantly being built upon and have a high recommendation profile from previous homeowners we have completed loft conversions for as our Testimonials page which is updated regularly will help to confirm.

Initial Contact
On initial contact with us either via the website’s contact page or a recommendation from a friend or acquaintance, the owner and managing director of the company will telephone to confirm a time and either a day or evening in which to visit your home that fits into your current work and home commitments.

The visit to your home will allow us to discuss your requirements and carry out a survey for the loft conversion. Even if you are unsure of what can be achieved, we are confident that by navigating this website it will have given you a better understanding of what is involved in having the work carried out on your home. Once we have met and surveyed your home we will then within a week produce a detailed quotation. We can send this in one of two ways: either it can be sent via our e-quote system straight to your email address or, if required, to you through the post.

If you decide to make Apex Loft Conversions your preferred choice of loft conversion company we take a deposit that allows us to instruct our architect to visit your home and then after a few weeks produce detailed plans of the conversion. The paying of the deposit will also allow us to confirm the month in which the work will take place along with an approximate start date and this is your build time. As the time to start your conversion approaches we will contact you approximately one month before to confirm the exact date we would start work and inform you of the day the scaffold would be erected around your house which would be in advance of our actual start date therefore allowing us to commence immediately we arrive at your home.

Our workforce is made up of men who have been with the company for many years and who carry out all the work including the electrics, plumbing and exterior roof work. This allows us to build a close working relationship with homeowners as there isn’t a constant flow of different tradesmen entering the house just the familiar men you will see each day Monday to Friday from 8am until 4-30pm. We do not use sub-contract labour other than for the plastering and even these men have worked for us for as many years.

Finally as owner of the company, I will be working alongside my men as I still enjoy the hands-on approach to running this business and it helps that from first point of contact until the final completion day of the loft conversion, the homeowner has someone controlling the work that has a very real desire to build the very best loft conversion for you and maintain the standards he has set himself since 1992.

The answer is always yes when converting the loft as there are R.S.J’s or steel beams inserted into the loft and they are positioned to rest on and inside the party wall. Even though the beams only rest on your half and not the neighbours, a Party Wall Agreement has to be entered into to avoid any disputes arising once the work has commenced.

Party Wall Act 1996

The Act provides a Building Owner, who wishes to carry out various sorts of work to an existing party wall, with additional rights going beyond ordinary common law rights.

The most commonly used rights are:

• to cut into a wall to take the bearing of a beam (for example for a loft conversion), or to insert a damp proof course all the way through the wall
• to raise the height of the wall and/or increase the thickness of the party wall and, if necessary, cut off any projections which prevent you from doing so.
• to demolish and rebuild the party wall
• to underpin the whole thickness of a party wall
• to protect two adjoining walls by putting a flashing from the higher over the lower, even where this requires cutting into an Adjoining Owner's independent building.

If you intend to carry out any of the works mentioned, you must inform all Adjoining Owners. You must not even cut into your own side of the wall without telling the Adjoining Owners of your intentions.

The Act contains no enforcement procedures for failure to serve a notice. However, if you start work without having first given notice in the proper way, Adjoining Owners may seek to stop your work through a court injunction or seek other legal redress.

An Adjoining Owner cannot stop someone from exercising the rights given to them by the Act, but may be able to influence how and at what times the work is done.

The Act also says that a Building Owner must not cause unnecessary inconvenience. This is taken to mean inconvenience over and above that which will inevitably occur when such works are properly undertaken.

The Building Owner must provide temporary protection for adjacent buildings and property where necessary. The Building Owner is responsible for making good any damage caused by the works or must make payment in lieu of making good if the Adjoining Owner requests it.

It is obviously best to discuss your planned work fully with the Adjoining Owners before you (or your professional adviser on your behalf) give notice, in writing, about what you plan to do. If you have already ironed out possible snags with your neighbours, this should mean that they will readily give consent in response to your notice. You do not need to appoint a professional adviser to give the notice on your behalf.

Whilst there is no official form for giving notice under the Act, your notice must include the following details:

• your own name and address (joint owners must all be named, e.g. Mr A & Mrs B Owner)
• the address of the building to be worked on (this may be different from your main or current address)
• a full description of what you propose to do (it may be helpful to include plans but you must still describe the works)
• when you propose to start (which must not be before the relevant notice period has elapsed).

The notice should be dated and it is advisable to include a clear statement that it is a notice under the provisions of the Act. You may deliver the notice to the Adjoining Owner(s) in person or send it by post. Where the neighbouring property is empty or the owner is not known, you may address the notice to "The Owner", adding the address of the premises, and fix it to a conspicuous part of the premises.You do not need to tell the local authority about your notice. The notice should be served two months before the planned starting date for work to the party wall. The Adjoining Owner may agree to allow works to start earlier but is not obliged to even when agreement on the works is reached. The notice is only valid for a year, so do not serve it too long before you wish to start.

Agreements must always be put in writing.

If you cannot reach agreement with the Adjoining Owners, the next best thing is to agree with them on appointing what the Act calls an "Agreed Surveyor" to draw up an "Award". The Agreed Surveyor should NOT be the same person that you intend to employ or have already engaged to supervise your building work . Alternatively, each owner can appoint a surveyor to draw up the award together. The two appointed surveyors will select a third surveyor (who would be called in only if the two appointed surveyors cannot agree).

In all cases, surveyors appointed under the dispute resolution procedure of the Act must consider the interests and rights of both owners and draw up an award impartially. Their duty is to resolve matters in dispute in a fair and practical way. Where separate surveyors are appointed by each owner, the surveyors must liaise with their appointing owners and put forward the respective owners' preferred outcome. However, the surveyors do not act as advocates for the respective owners. They must always act within their statutory jurisdiction and jointly prepare a fair and impartial award. The surveyor (or surveyors) will prepare an "award" (also known as a "party wall award"). This is a document which:

• sets out the work that will be carried out
• says when and how the work is to be carried out (for example, not at weekends if the buildings are domestic properties)
• specifies any additional work required (for example necessary protection to prevent damage)
• often contains a record of the condition of the adjoining property before the work begins (so that any damage to the adjoining land or buildings can be properly attributed and made good)
• allows access for the surveyor(s) to inspect the works while they're going on (to see that they are in accordance with the award).

Download a sample Party Wall Agreement »

Typically, a rear dormer loft conversion on a terraced property will take four and a half weeks to complete and a Gable end and rear dormer on a semi-detached property will take five and a half weeks to complete. These timings are an accurate guideline as we have full time tradesmen that convert the loft and they have been with us for more than 10 years. We do not use sub-contract labour and therefore do not get let down by outside trades not showing to complete their part of the conversion. This means, barring exceptional weather conditions, we are confident of our agreed timescale with the customer.

Yes, we work twelve months of the year. It’s an enviable position to be in as our order books are always very good due to our high volume of customer recommendations. Especially in the winter months, Apex Loft Conversions build your loft to a system that makes sure that you the customer are never exposed to the weather at any time during the construction period. The summer months are no different.

On 1st October 2008 the planning laws for loft conversions in England and wales changed significantly. Before this date a Total Permitted Development (P.D) allowance was granted on a property to allow it to be extended before it would require planning permission. This was a maximum of 50 cu.m for a terraced home and 70cu.m for a semi-detached. A loft conversion could be constructed up to a volume of 40 cu.m for a terraced property and 50 cu.m for a semi-detached before it required planning permission. These maximum figures still apply to loft conversions. However, prior to 1st October 2008 if you already had a ground floor extension built on the property the volume of this ground floor extension would be subtracted from the allowance already given as permitted development which meant in a large number of cases the loft conversion would require planning permission as there was insufficient volume left to construct the loft. Obtaining permission was always a minefield with regards to different local authorities’ criteria on planning regulations. Under the new simplified planning laws that have come into force, the need for planning permission has been removed for all but a few loft conversion that are built today.

There are some restrictions on the new planning rules however and they are:

The enlargement of a dwelling house consisting of an addition or alteration to its roof

• Must not exceed the highest part of the existing roof (ridge line)
• Dormers are not allowed to be front facing a highway
• Maximum Volume limit of 40 cubic metres for terraced houses and 50 cubic metres for semi-detached and other dwellings
• Planning permission must be sought in conservation areas

Conditions

• Materials shall match as closely as possible or be of a similar appearance to those used on the exterior elevations of the existing house
• Other than in the case of a gable end, the rear dormer shall not be less than 200mm from the edge of the original eaves
• Side windows in Gable end conversions shall be obscure glazed and either non-opening or have the opening sash positioned more than 1.7 metres above floor level
• Any other alteration to the roof of a dwelling house must not protrude more than 150mm beyond the original roof plane, or be higher than highest part of the original roof

For more information on the new planning laws that came into effect after 1st October 2008 governing England and Wales you can view the government’s Planning Portal.

The Local Authority is involved from the start to the finish of the conversion. They first receive the plans submitted by the architect and check all the structural calculations through the Borough Engineer’s department. Once these have been confirmed along with all the relevant building regulations for loft conversions, an approved set of plans are returned and the work can then commence. During the various stages of the work, a building’s inspector from the local authority arrives to make sure all the structural work and building regulations are being implemented in the construction of your loft conversion. After the completion of the work a final inspection is carried out. Once this has been confirmed as meeting all the requirements, a completion certificate is sent to the homeowner confirming that the loft conversion they have had built on their home complies with the building regulations covering England and Wales.

Nearly all lofts or attics can be converted as long as they are not breaching planning or conservation guidelines. However, it depends also on the height of the ridge. If you were to stand in the centre of the roof and measure from the top of the existing ceiling joists to the top of the ridge board at the apex of the roof and you have a minimum of 2.2 metres, then the loft can be converted. If the measurement is less than 2.2 metres even though the regulation on height has been relaxed in loft conversions, it is unlikely to have enough useable headroom clearance.

We have Employer’s Liability Insurance of £10,000,000 and individual Public Liability Insurance of £1,000,000. Both are available on request. We also offer a 10 year structural guarantee against our loft conversions and a 1 year free maintenance guarantee.

We are also a member of the Guild of Master Craftesmen and our membership details can be found on the website.