To the required height, complete new ones, build a new one and a roofing cake.
A new roof is expensive and troublesome. However, there are options in which a complete disassembly of the structure is not required.
Good results at minimum costs
It is possible to increase the height of the rooms under the roof, which has under-rafter beams in the structure, at the lowest cost in this way.
The living space is disassembled, that is, the floor is completely. Plasterboard or wooden panels are sewn to the transverse structural elements, thus forming the ceiling. The bases are also decorated.
The obvious advantage of this method is that the supporting structures are not affected: the walls and roof frame remain in their original form, while the ceiling rises.
Time consuming but effective way
More difficult, but undoubtedly more attractive in terms of performance, is lifting the roof with jacks.
- First of all, the base of the roof is reinforced with the help of channels.
- Supports are installed, also made of channels. Since the load at the place of the stop will be large, it is necessary that the supporting structure be under the support. When calculating, it is important not to forget about. In order to avoid damage to things in the house, it is better to choose good weather to raise the rafters with.
- After strengthening, the roof begins to rise. The angle is lifted by a hydraulic jack to a height not exceeding five centimeters - then there is an alternate movement in a circle.
- Transverse metal beams are fixed to the supports by welding. Other structural elements meeting the strength requirements can be used as a lining.
- The jack is supported by a metal roof support.
- The brickwork should be built up after being lifted to the required height.
- The roof is fixed on the walls: an armo-belt is poured on top of the bearing walls, it is laid, on which the rafter frame is attached.
- Work is underway on additional hydro and - it is especially important to complete this item if the ceilings were increased for the arrangement.
An important point: the number of lifting mechanisms
Some builders recommend the use of multiple hydraulic jacks with a lifting capacity of five tons each.
There is a separate issue with their purchase - it is impractical to buy, and it is difficult to rent more than two.
In addition, theoretical calculations do not take into account possible errors in the operation of the devices themselves.
That is, it is unlikely that it will be possible to provide ideal conditions, and it is not worth relying on the well-coordinated work of even two such mechanisms.
The risk of roof skewing or sideways movement is too great: with two anchor points, there is a greater chance of losing stability.
Weighted decision
Note that work should be started only after a comprehensive and detailed inspection of the condition of the rafter system. If some of the beams are rotten, it is impossible to predict how the frame will behave when exposed to it.
It is impossible to achieve an effective effect without some risk. However, with correct calculations, the probability of success is very high.
And if the roof is strong, reliable - for example - it will serve for many years to come, covering a room with high ceilings.
The problem of raising the roof is often encountered when they want to increase the living area of the house by building an additional attic in the attic area. Sometimes (very rarely) the need to raise it is explained by the subsidence of the walls of the building and the desire to extend its life at any cost.
Note that before raising the roof of the house, it will be necessary to bring a reliable foundation under it that can withstand the full load of the entire structure.
Preparatory activities
To equip the base of the roof, it will be necessary to prepare a special metal frame, assembled from channels and rigidly fixed to the supporting beam of the roof.
The list of accessories and materials used for lifting the base of the roof should include the following names:
- metal channel bars of 14U grade;
- special cable-stayed braces used to secure the structure during its lifting;
- the so-called support legs, playing the role of guides, ensuring strict verticality of the rise (without noticeable displacements to the sides);
Immediately, we note that cable-stayed braces can be made of reinforcing rods with a diameter of about 14 mm. To prepare the metal frame, 14U channel bars are used with metal lugs welded to them, which are necessary for fastening to the base of the roof.
They are attached to the lower cut of the base of the channel using ten-millimeter screws with a length of the screwed-in part of at least 10 cm. When choosing channels used to strengthen the base, it is necessary to take care that the total weight of the structure does not exceed 2 tons.
Installation of support devices
Support legs are necessary so that the roof structure can be lifted without shifting to the sides. In addition, they can be used as temporary roof supports until a permanent foundation (wall-to-wall) is placed under it.
The complete set of supports includes four legs, each of which must withstand a load of at least 1.5 tons. Such legs are made of 4 channels with a height of about 3 m. They are connected to each other using horizontal jumpers about half a meter long, cut from 8U channel channels.
The supporting structures prepared in this way will be able to withstand a total vertical load of up to 40 tons. In order to avoid damage to the storey floor, footrests should be placed in areas that can withstand extreme loads (in the area of the location of load-bearing walls or reinforced partitions).
Raising the roof
After completing the preparatory procedures, you can proceed directly to raising the roof. At the same time, it is most convenient to use a hydraulic jack designed for a maximum load of 12 tons as a lifting mechanism. Note that sometimes two jacks are used to raise the roof, but this method is not at all safe, since it can lead to a loss of stability of the structure.
In addition to the jack for work, you will need the following consumables and tools:
- hammer and nail puller;
- fixing screws;
- metal fittings;
- blanks of channels used for arranging fixing crossbars;
- metal mounting strips.
To further strengthen the support zones (at the location of the support legs and the jack), it is advisable to prepare special substrates made of several scraps of channels welded together.
The rise is carried out by successive movement in the vertical plane of each of the corners of the roof to a height of no more than 5 cm.
Passing in turn from one corner to another, it is necessary to ensure a uniform rise of the entire structure by about 25 cm.And only after reaching this mark can another safety crossbar be welded to the supports, which fixes the position of the roof base.
Moving sequentially along each of the 4 supports, after a certain time (as a rule, it takes from 2-3 days) you will be able to reach the required base lifting height. Note that as the roof is raised, the anchor point of the jack will also need to rise.
To obtain a full-fledged attic "superstructure", the roof will need to be raised to a height of about 3 m.
To carry out a full range of preparatory, lifting and superstructure works, you may need 10-12 days.
Low ceilings are a problem in many older private houses. If you bought such a house or are the owner of it, the height of the ceilings can be increased without dismantling the roof. You can do this yourself, having one or two assistants.
But first, you need to prepare well for this work. To do this, we need at least three oil jacks with a lifting capacity of 5 tons, the more the better. As racks, you can use logs, beams, metal profiles (pipes, channels, I-beams). We will prepare gaskets from thick boards or the same channels on the floor, and under jacks and ceiling beams.
We will also take care of the material with which we will build up the walls: brick, adobe, foam blocks (we are not talking about a wooden house now). Let's not forget to buy cement and sand for the preparation of the solution. All materials should be enough for a full cycle of work, because they need to be done as quickly as possible. Otherwise, a strong wind can blow up the roof, which is on the gaskets, and add a bunch of new problems to the owner.
If everything is ready, you can start slowly. We determine where our beams are (in some houses they are sewn up, in some they are visible from the outside). We start from the corner. We need a stand (channel, log, timber) and three gaskets: under the channel on the floor, between the jack and the channel and between the jack and the beam. The axis must be strictly vertical, otherwise the rack and the jack will begin to tilt, the latter can jump out and cause injury. Therefore, be extremely careful. If the work has gone skewed, loosen the jack and straighten the entire structure vertically.
After making sure that the vertical is observed, carefully extend the jack by 5 centimeters, no more. Place a spacer between the wall and the joist. Do not loosen the jack. Take the next jack and lift the adjacent beam. Having pulled out all the jacks, you can go back to the corner from where you started, lifting the beams by another 5 centimeters and laying gaskets of greater thickness between the beams and the wall. Now we go to the opposite wall and perform similar operations, lifting the beams by 5 cm and installing spacers between the beams and the wall. From this side, they can be raised by a total of 15-20 cm.
The outermost beams usually run over the walls. You can't get there with a jack. Old Archimedes will help us here. You will have to lift the beams manually, using a lever with an increased shoulder. When the rest of the beams have already been raised by this moment, the task will not be so difficult. You may also want to raise the height of the window openings. To do this, you will need to raise the jumpers above them and lay the voids at the moment when the roof is on jacks. But it is better not to be smart with the windows, but to build brick pillars on the mortar under the beams on the walls. When he gets up, the jacks can be loosened by gently lowering the beams onto new supports. All that remains is to bring the wall to the level of the beams, cover up all the cracks, and walk in the renovated house in full growth, and even jump for joy.
One caveat. Do not leave jacks under load for a long time, and even more so overnight. They can fail, and if you rented them, you will also have to explain to the owner. If you do not have time to finish the work by the evening, lower the beams on the spacers, and let the jacks rest. Do not rest the jacks on the beam itself without spacers. The effort is quite large, and the roof weighs decently, so it is easy to split or split the beam, because it is also aged. Take your time and do the job carefully. Then the house will serve you for many years to come. Good luck!
Low ceilings are a common problem in many older houses. If you are the owner of such a house and want to increase the height of the ceilings, it is not necessary to disassemble the roof - you can raise it on your own.
Our master class will help you with this.Tools and materials for work
We need:
- at least three jacks (preferably oil) with a lifting capacity of 5 tons;
- the corresponding number of compression-resistant wooden beams, metal channels (optimal) or pipes of a suitable length;
- the corresponding number of rigid floor pads, which will redistribute the point load from the jack to the areal one (thick boards, channel pieces, etc.);
- cushioning material that will be laid under beams and jacks in the process of lifting the roof (trimming boards, bricks, etc.): their number must be calculated so that it is enough for all beams on both sides to the full height of the roof;
- the material from which the walls will rise (brick, shell rock, adobe, etc.), as well as mortars (sand, clay, cement, etc.): their number must be calculated depending on the length of the walls and the height, by which the roof will rise.
So, let's begin
As part of the first stage of work, it is necessary to adjust the jacks to the ceiling beams. The beams can be initially visible or sewn up from below, in this case, you need to calculate their position (it corresponds to the location of the roof power frame) and mark on the walls from the inside in order to know where to install the jacks. There will be a lot of dust in the process, so the furniture should be covered or taken out of the room.
We start from the corner. We install the jack on the distributor gasket strictly under the beam and slightly wedge the channel between the beam and the jack by extending the jack rod. The jack should still have a 5-10 centimeters power reserve for the upcoming lift. Next, you need to make sure that the channel is located vertically in all planes. If necessary, you can loosen the jack, adjust the channel and slightly wedge it again.
If you do not plan to sew up the beams in the future, place a cushioning material between the channel and the beam, so the beam will not be damaged. Now you can try to gently lift the beam. Observe the relative position of the jack and channel. If you see a kink occurring at their point of contact, loosen the jack and move it slightly towards the inside of the kink. Do not ignore this kink - under the increasing load during lifting, the channel can jump out of the connection, which is fraught with injury. If there is no break, extend the jack rod by 5 centimeters, no more, and fix this position by placing a spacer between the beam and the wall. Do not loosen the jack.
Repeat the same operation with all the jacks on one side of the house.
The more jacks you have, the better - you will save time reinstalling them.
When all the jacks have been raised by 5 centimeters, you can start again from the first to the penultimate one, raising them another 5 centimeters and increasing the thickness of the spacers between the beam and the wall. It is not worth lifting higher yet: in the event of a large skew, the roof may "slide" in the process of raising the opposite side.
Next, we loosen and rearrange all the jacks under the next beams, except for the last one, raised by 5 centimeters. We repeat the whole process from the beginning. When all the beams on one side are raised by 10 centimeters and gaskets are inserted under them, we go to the other side of the house and raise in the same way. From this side, you can raise it by 15–20 centimeters, and we also do all further ascents to the required height. This will compensate for the slight misalignment that occurs when the roof is skewed.
Additional complexities
The first and last beams are usually hidden by a wall, so they will need to be lifted manually using the extended shoulder. It will be much easier to do this when the second and penultimate beams of the house have already been raised by 5 centimeters.
The spacer under the jack must be strong enough to avoid damage to the floor covering.
We fix the roof at the desired height
When the beam is raised to the required height, a support must be erected under it. Even if you use clay when laying openings, it is better to use mortar for building props, since it dries faster and acquires the necessary strength. The support will have to be erected at the moment when the beam rests on the raised jack, after loosening the jack, the load will immediately fall on the support - freshly laid clay at this moment is likely to give a drawdown.
Particularly difficult will be the sections of the wall where the beams lie over the window openings. You will probably want to increase the height of the windows, for this you will need to raise the lintels and fill in the voids at the moment when the beams are supported by the jacks.
Try to organize the entire process efficiently so that it takes as little time as possible. While the roof is on temporary supports, this is a rather wobbly structure - a gust of strong wind can ruin the result of your work.
After the inner masonry has been laid and the roof is firmly in place, the front masonry can be lifted.
Since lifting and repairing a roof is a rather laborious task, you should immediately think about updating the roof so that this issue does not bother you anymore.
Vitaly Chetverik, rmnt.ru
It is much easier to heat a room in which the ceiling is low. This technique was often used in older houses. But this was not the only reason, another problem was the lack of modern technologies for the procurement of building materials. Often, when performing repair work, owners are interested in how to raise the ceiling in a house with the least loss.
Why is the ceiling low
In order to qualitatively approach the work to increase the level of ceilings, it is important to know two more reasons why the ceilings are low:
- inattentive approach when choosing logs;
- shrinkage of the building;
- uneven load distribution;
- the house was originally designed incorrectly.
When buying building materials, it is better to do this with your own tape measure. So you will have the opportunity to check the compliance with the stated dimensions. Often for the sake of economy or the desire to earn more, and sometimes simply due to negligence, the total width can be underestimated by a whole centimeter, which, when assembling the general structure, can result in 15 or even 20 cm.
Note! In the case when the building was built from a bar or profiled log, or without a foundation, it can exhibit significant shrinkage. In the case of rounded logs, this value can reach 10-15 cm. It happens that builders do not take this moment into account and do not make a reserve, which subsequently leads to unpleasant consequences.
When designing a house, it is necessary to correctly approach the distribution of the load on the supporting beams and walls. In this case, the entire building will form a monolithic frame. It is important that all the material is from the same batch, then there will be a high probability that all the boards will behave the same.
Lifting methods
In most cases, the ceiling level can be raised without removing the roof. In other situations, this is indispensable. Here are the methods that are used quite often:
- Lowering the floor... This option will not be feasible in all situations. If the house is completely without a foundation or it is not deep enough, this can lead to partial or complete destruction of the building. When applying this method, it is also necessary to analyze how high the windows will be. They may need to be moved to a lower level.
- Changing the plating method... A frequently used method. Suitable in most cases. With the right approach, you can get a beautifully decorated ceiling.
- ... It can be implemented when the ceiling beams are not load-bearing and the roof rafters are not attached to them.
- Lifting the whole building... Will be relevant in a wooden house , when the entire building forms a monolithic bandage from a bar and can be raised without the consequences of skewing or destroying the walls.
- ... This is a very discouraged method, but, nevertheless, it can be carried out subject to all the rules.
Note! No two buildings are completely identical. This means that it is worth approaching the matter by analyzing general principles, and not stereotyped solutions.
Preparatory work
Before choosing one of the methods listed above, it is necessary to inspect the main units in a private house:
- Examine the foundation carefully. Rate how deep it is in the ground. Is it a ribbon or is it just a mound of cobblestones.
- Assess the condition of the walls. If they are made of wood, tap them to see if the planks have rotted in the middle.
- Go up to the attic. Look at what method the ceiling was stitched. Whether the rafter beams (crossbars) were involved or the ceiling beams were laid separately.
- Check how secure the roof deck is.
Note! If possible, draw and describe the course of action on a piece of paper before starting work. This will provide an opportunity to best analyze all the advantages and difficulties.
If, after inspection, you come to the conclusion that the foundation has high strength and is made soundly, then you can go this way.
- If the house is made of logs, then this means that the logs are fixed between the first and second crown. The main task will be to lower them directly to the foundation or slightly lower. In this way, we will be able to win about 20 cm.
- We free our room from all furniture and clean it.
- With the help of a nail puller, we remove the boards that form the floor covering. Don't rush to throw them away. If they are oak or just in good condition, then they can still come in handy.
- Assess the state of the lag. See if they are provided for the base only in this room or have a continuation in the next one.
- We cut the logs with a hacksaw, saber or chain saw. Be careful, sometimes nails can be caught.
- We seal the cracks and openings that remained in the walls after removing the beams.
- We examine and clean the space that has become available.
- We transfer the boards to the level below. To do this, if necessary, it is important to make openings for the strips in the flange. After they are inserted and fixed (you can use metal corners).
- If the floor has not been insulated, then if there is space from below, you can fill perpendicular strips on which mineral wool is laid (it will need to be covered with a film) or expanded polystyrene.
- If the floorboards were in good condition, they can be used again to sew up the floor. After that, everything will need to be cleaned, primed and painted.
If the operations are not carried out in a house from a bar, then after removing the floor covering, you may have to go deeper into the ground in order to achieve the desired result.
- When performing such actions, you lose a significant layer, which served as insulation. Now it is necessary to compensate for this. The sampling should be made taking into account the fact that the layer of insulation will be laid. It will consist of waterproofing, expanded clay and possibly expanded polystyrene. It is better to fill the screed from above.
- Do not forget that the walls are bare and cold bridges may appear. To compensate for this, waterproofing and damper tape can be installed even before completing the floor insulation layer. It should go above the future screed. Its excess is cut off with a knife.
If, after visiting the attic, you notice that the ceiling consists of boards that are stuffed onto the bottom of the beams, this is simply the ideal option and the easiest to fix.
- It is better to empty the room completely, without trying to cover the furniture, because it can still be accidentally damaged.
- We remove all decorative trim from the ceiling.
- We remove the layer of boards and insulation that may be present there.
- If the boards are in good condition, they can be reused.
- We examine the condition of the beams. They can be cleaned and covered with an antiseptic if required.
- We transfer the hemmed boards from the bottom of the beams to the top. In this way, we gain about 20 cm of space. But the structure of the floor will now be visible.
- If the surface of the floor beams has an unpresentable look and staining will no longer help, then you can go the other way. Using a wooden lining or drywall, we sew them up and paint them in the color of the tree.
- Further finishing work is carried out.
Usually, when building houses, separate ceiling beams are laid for the ceiling, which are not connected to the roof structure. If this is the case in your case, then you can proceed as follows:
- We clean out the attic space and remove all the cladding from the ceiling.
- We descend back into the room and make supports for the existing ceiling beams. They can be tied to tie bars (truss cross bars). Before performing this operation, it is very important to correctly calculate the maximum support weight.
- Once the beam has been secured, it can be cut using a reciprocating or chainsaw. When both ends are released, it simply drops to the ground.
- We do this with each of the crossbars.
- After the ceiling space is cleared, you can raise the partitions with the help of logs.
- The binding of the ceiling sheathing is carried out to the beams of the trusses. Thus, you can raise the ceiling by several tens of centimeters.
- If this seemed not enough, then you can do it differently. With the right approach, there is the advantage of carrying puffs. Before cutting off the old ones, new ones are made, which are located slightly higher. The whole structure is fixed and, if necessary, additional struts and spacers are added. Next, we hem the ceiling to the new beams.
Lifting the whole building
Before using this method, it is best to have a few jacks. Their lifting capacity should be from 5 tons. In simultaneous lifting there is a danger of losing the reference point, therefore it is important to consider avoiding horizontal displacement.
- Determine how high you want to raise the building.
- Divide this value by 5 cm - this is how much better to lift in one approach. You can go to a lower height, but not to a higher one.
- Make props according to the number of approaches.
- Determine the pivot points for the jacks.
- Before starting work, make sure once again that the walls are properly bandaged and the roof is fixed.
- The lift must be done synchronously.
- As soon as the next wedge is placed, it must be fixed to the previous one with self-tapping screws so that they do not part.
- After reaching the desired height, the jacks are loosened and everything remains on the supports.
- Now you can add some crowns to the resulting space. Instead of crowns, you can pour the foundation to the planned level.
- Further, hydro and thermal insulation is carried out. The building rises a little again, the supports are removed, after which it sits in the place designated for it.
Note! Before performing all operations, calculate the mass of the house. To do this, multiply the volume of the material by its density. The volume is obtained by multiplying the width by the length and height, then the values for each wall are added and added to the approximate weight of the roof.
This option can be carried out if the supporting part of the roof is close to ideal condition.
- Determine how high you want the roof to be raised.
- Calculate the total weight of the roof structure.
- Now you need to strengthen the perimeter. For this, a channel of a series not lower than 14U is used. It is necessary to build a frame from it, which will connect the entire structure.
- The base is fixed to the timber using self-tapping screws with a diameter of at least 10 mm and a length of at least 10 cm.
- Throw additional cross members between the trusses if necessary.
- Now you need to completely disassemble the ceiling in order to install the support legs.
- Support legs are made from a cruciform base. For this, a 12U channel is used. Four vertical strips of the same material are welded to the base. The distance between them should be such that the jack fits inside. They are connected using perpendicular crossbars. In addition, struts are mounted.
- The stands are located at the points of the anchor points. Lifting is carried out using one jack with a step of 5 cm.
- When the roof is raised to the desired height, additional crowns are installed in the case of a wooden structure or an armored belt is poured.
- Once the roof support is ready, you can put it back in place.
Note! Carry out work only in calm weather, because there is a danger of collapse due to gusts of wind.
This article aims to provide a basic understanding of possible solutions to problems. Each specific situation has its own difficulties and unique ideas are born. Share your solutions in the comments. We are always glad to new offers!
Video
This video shows how a private house is lifted: