Expert: Richard Taylor, AIA - 12/10/2010

Question
QUESTION: I have a house about 2500 sf on the main floor, stucco exterior and ceiling height in all rooms is only 8 ft.  What would it cost to raise the entire roof so that all rooms have at least 10 ft ceiling?  What are the factors to consider in deciding whether this is a worthwhile project to undertake (other than it would make me very happy)?

ANSWER: Divya - oops!  Your message got overrun in my inbox - sorry I didn't get to this sooner.

The project you're talking about is very extensive - and expensive.  There are a number of significant issues you'll face including the structural integrity of the walls.

When you add to the height of exterior walls, you can't just extend the walls up; that creates a structural "hinge" where the old and new walls meet, and that's a very bad thing.

What you need to do instead is extend new walls from the floor up; usually that means new, taller (and usually wider) studs side-by-side with the existing.

And that means redoing all the electrical, drywall, and trim inside.

It also means lifting the existing roof - which is a fairly major undertaking in itself, assuming it has the structural integrity to be lifted at all!

Other issues - new/repaired stucco outside; taller windows (the existing will look odd 3 feet below the top of the wall); and - here's a biggie - with the additional cubic feet of space in the house (2500 sf X 2' = 5000 cubic feet) you'll probably need a new heating/cooling system.

Yikes!

Here's what I'd suggest instead (assuming I've turned you completely off with all the doom and gloom above!).  How about raising the ceiling joists (they make the flat ceiling inside) up a couple of feet?  That's MUCH easier and far, far cheaper to do and will get rid of the oppressively low ceiling.

And in my opinion, it's a much more appropriate look for a small house.  Raising the ceiling joists will require a bit of structural work, new insulation, and new ceiling drywall and painting, but not much else - no exterior work at all!

Plus, by raising the ceiling (instead of the roof) you can pick and choose where to raise it - maybe just the living areas and not the bedrooms and bath, for example.

Hope this helps - let me know how it works out!

Richard Taylor, AIA

check out our blog at www.rtastudio.blogspot.com
www.rtastudio.com

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Mr. Taylor,
Thank you so much for your detailed response.  I really appreciate it.

So, if I go with your suggestion, what would you approximate the range of costs to be?  I understand that costs would depend on the details of the layout beyond just a simple square footage but I am trying to get an idea of the costs involved in order to decide if it's something worth pursuing further.  It is as desirable for me to have higher ceilings as a grand kitchen might be for someone else!

Thank you.
Sincerely,
Divya

Answer
Divya - so much goes into estimating a project like this; it's impossible to guess without seeing the house.  The particular structure of the roof will have a big impact.

You should contact several local (reputable) contractors to come take a look. Tell them what you're thinking about and ask them for a range of cost.

If the numbers are feasible, then you can hire an Architect or designer to do the drawings and engineering for you.  You might even find a contractor who knows a good designer you can work with.

Wish I could be specific, but it would be a meaningless guess at best!

Good luck!

Rich