Using A Converted Attic As Your Home Office

Taking your unused attic or loft and converting it for use as a home office is a wonderful idea. An office of this type in this location offers privacy and quiet away from the noise and disruption in the rest of your home. You'll have complete privacy and a dedicated working area that you can then also lock when not in use; just like a real office.

Although using your attic or loft as an office space is ideal there is a cost. A real financial cost. Unless you're Mister DIY then you'll need to have your attic converted by professionals and this can cost several thousand dollars to complete properly. Converting your attic into a home office isn't just a matter of laying down some flooring and fitting some power sockets to the wall. Not at all. The conversion needs to be both properly insulated and ventilated for your own personal comfort and for your computer or other electronic equipment also. Always bear in mind that all the heat from your home flows upwards to the attic/loft. Unless designed properly an attic office can quickly become unbearably hot - I learned this lesson the hard way.

What You Need

Apart from the usual flooring and power socket issues you're also going to need natural light and fresh air coming into the office. The best, safest and most established way to do this is to fit Velux windows - these allow plenty of natural light, they're water tight and they can also provide a safe exit from the attic office in case of emergency.

A really important consideration to make is whether or not your attic or loft can be converted. Not every attic can be converted - altough those that can't are rare in the extreme. It basically depends on how the roofing timbers are organized and arranged within the attic and how much support your roof will need if/when these timber supports are removed. An attic conversion specialist (please don't try some handyman - you'll pay for it in the long run) will be able to take a look at your attic and give you a "Yes" or "No" on the conversion.

Just make sure that if you do decide to go down this route that you have a proper stairs fitted - some attic conversions only come supplied with ladders which simply isn't convenient or safe for any real business purpose. You don't want to be carrying files, boxes or computer equipment up and down a ladder do you?

Using your attic or loft as a home office is an ideal solution - just make sure you understand all the costs before you start the conversion process.