Hello everyone,
I’m asking out of curiosity if there are any homeowners here who have built a gable roof and deliberately chose not to make the knee wall as high as possible? Many are restricted by zoning regulations or planning permission, but some are not.
We built a gable roof in 2018/2019 with a knee wall height of 1.30 m (4 feet 3 inches) interior measurement, a roof pitch of 38 degrees, and just under 170 sqm (1,830 sq ft) of living space. Since we don’t have any specific zoning restrictions here, we could have built it differently or higher. However, we decided against it for the following reasons:
- We actually like sloped ceilings, as long as we’re not talking about a knee wall of only 40 cm (16 inches). It feels particularly cozy in the bedrooms.
- We are both only 170 cm (5 feet 7 inches) tall and therefore hardly feel restricted. If we were taller, it would probably be a different story.
- At the time, a gable roof with a very high knee wall didn’t appeal to us visually at all (it somehow looked too “leggy”); meanwhile, I (my partner does not) also find houses with a high knee wall and a shallower roof pitch very stylish. The only downside is that it reduces the size of the attic.
I’m really looking forward to your replies.
Best regards
I’m asking out of curiosity if there are any homeowners here who have built a gable roof and deliberately chose not to make the knee wall as high as possible? Many are restricted by zoning regulations or planning permission, but some are not.
We built a gable roof in 2018/2019 with a knee wall height of 1.30 m (4 feet 3 inches) interior measurement, a roof pitch of 38 degrees, and just under 170 sqm (1,830 sq ft) of living space. Since we don’t have any specific zoning restrictions here, we could have built it differently or higher. However, we decided against it for the following reasons:
- We actually like sloped ceilings, as long as we’re not talking about a knee wall of only 40 cm (16 inches). It feels particularly cozy in the bedrooms.
- We are both only 170 cm (5 feet 7 inches) tall and therefore hardly feel restricted. If we were taller, it would probably be a different story.
- At the time, a gable roof with a very high knee wall didn’t appeal to us visually at all (it somehow looked too “leggy”); meanwhile, I (my partner does not) also find houses with a high knee wall and a shallower roof pitch very stylish. The only downside is that it reduces the size of the attic.
I’m really looking forward to your replies.
Best regards
bauherr2019_he schrieb:
This is a very nice house. The short roof overhang makes it not look so low despite the 75cm (30 inch) height.
I would probably build a somewhat taller house with a flat roof now. But then there’s the issue of the smaller attic since we don’t have a basement. We have neither a basement nor an attic in the house. Instead, there is a 55 sqm (592 sq ft) garage with an attic above it, as well as a utility room and a mechanical room.
But sometimes a basement would be really useful.
B
bauherr2019_he15 Dec 2021 07:3411ant schrieb:
but on the other hand, not placing the window sill too high Sorry for the silly question 😀, but what exactly do you mean by that?
11ant schrieb:
In my opinion, that is a very practical dimension. I agree with that, by the way. Our building permit/planning permission shows two full stories despite the 1.30 m (4 ft 3 in) height. We built in Hesse. We can actually stand upright up to about 30 cm (12 inches) before the wall since we are not that tall. Apart from large wardrobes, everything else can be placed (bed, dressers, sofa, etc.).
Tolentino schrieb:
Is there technically any reason why it wouldn’t be allowed to go above 2 meters (6.6 feet)? It’s basically what @11ant already mentioned (at least I think that’s what they meant). You need to consider in advance what kind of windows you want. Roof windows don’t make much sense above a certain height—at least if you want to be able to reach them. For a "normal" window, the height might still be insufficient, especially when you add roller shutter or blind boxes. That leads to window bands where the top edge is around 1.60 meters (5.2 feet) high.
I’ve seen this a few times. It looks really strange from the inside. I’m 1.85 meters (6.1 feet) tall and have to bend down to look out. But some people don’t mind that.
For me, it’s either a knee wall so you can have nice roof windows, probably limited to a height like the one mentioned, or otherwise as high as possible with a full additional story.
Tolentino schrieb:
Is there technically any restriction on going above 2 meters (6.6 feet) in height? Apparently not:
Deadree schrieb:
In our case, the wall goes up to 2.65 meters (8.7 feet), then the roof starts with a 22° pitch. We don’t have an attic; instead, the roof structure is visible from inside, showing the wooden boards and beams. You might need to reinforce the exterior walls on the upper floor, as the floor/ceiling between the upper and attic levels no longer supports tension forces. It likely also depends on the location of interior walls serving as supports, but that’s what structural engineers are for.
H
hampshire15 Dec 2021 09:44The choice of knee wall height depends on the room requirements, building regulations (building permits / planning permission), and the personal preferences of the homeowners. Ultimately, a good house can be built with any option.
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