If you have a rafter framed attic the floor joists may or may not be large enough for living space and may need to be reinforced or replaced.
How to tell if attic supported enough for room.
Adding a floor to an attic can increase storage space or create a new room.
The safest way to move around an unfinished attic is to create a catwalk or walking platform by attaching some 1x6 or 1x8 boards or strips of 3 4 plywood to the joists with screws don t use nails because the hammering might disturb the drywall or plaster ceiling below.
An attic conversion requires easy access from an adjoining second story room or a staircase to provide entrance to and exit from the room.
Moreover if you have asphalt shingles on the roof attic.
To avoid rotting wood clumping insulation and mold your attic needs to be properly ventilated.
If your attic joists won t bear the weight necessary to finish out a living space but the engineer cleared them to support floor decking for light storage you can install inch plywood or.
If you have attic trusses not conventional trusses the members will be sized to support living space.
In most cases though the joists cannot support live loads and may not even be covered with boards.
In rare cases especially in new construction homes the attic may have been built unfinished with the correct flooring in place with the idea that the homeowner could later on finish the space.
Then you ll need to build a grid like structure that can hold up the plywood flooring.
Before you start creating a floor for your attic you must make sure that it can handle the additional load.
Attic floors are made with floor joists or with truss members.