ᐅ Renovating a Timber-Framed House – Options for Low Ceiling Heights?

Hello,

A while ago, we looked at a timber-framed house in need of renovation, but didn’t pursue it further due to too many complications. Now, a few months later, offers in our area have not increased, and yesterday the property was listed again… this time at a lower price. Since we have often thought about the nice outbuildings in the meantime, one might say it’s a sign of fate that the house has been relisted and that we should seriously reconsider it.

The biggest drawback for me was the very low ceiling height. It was under 2 meters (6.6 feet). What do you think... is there anything that can be done about it? We haven’t done any inspections yet; I’m just gathering ideas. If it really comes down to it, of course, we would involve a structural engineer, carpenter, etc.

I would look at the floor construction. But since there is a vaulted cellar underneath, there probably isn’t much room for adjustment.
Then uncover the beams of the first floor and attic, as they are covered—here you might gain a few centimeters (inches).
But overall, you won’t get more than 10 centimeters (4 inches).

Are there solutions without a complete teardown? Maybe reinforcing or doubling the timber frames of the upper floors or something like that?

I’ll tag [USER=28319]@fach1werk

Oh, and by the way... there is no historic preservation designation and the timber frame is not visible.

Best regards

Tamstar schrieb:

That was not 2m (6.6 ft). What do you think... is there anything that can be done?

Look for a suitable house. No wonder no one wants to buy this "junk property." The only reasonable option is demolition and rebuilding.

Yes, it is clear why no one wants that. In principle, we only want it because of the extensions, but demolition and rebuilding will probably not be possible (without having verified this) because the required distance to the neighbor cannot be maintained.

Living on One Floor and Opening the Intermediate Ceiling?

The current residential building has only a very small footprint (blue), while the rest consists of barns and sheds.
A change of use would need to be clarified with the building authorities, but I could imagine opening up the first floor of the residential building upwards and incorporating parts of the barn.

What do you like about the many/large outbuildings? Are they in good condition? I wanted to suggest raising the roof, but if the other buildings are connected, that probably doesn’t make much sense.