Unfinished upper floor - affordable cost proposal?

[MackanMH]

Hello!

My family and I are moving into our new house, which we ordered, in early spring 2019. It’s a 1½ story house (102+62 sqm) that is turnkey, but the upper floor is unfinished. I am far from a carpenter but lean towards the DIY side of things and have some contacts regarding the construction of the upper floor, including a carpenter, electrician, and generally helpful people in our vicinity.

The house manufacturer would charge 550k to finish the entire upper floor, which didn't seem economically feasible for us. However, the carpentry firm building the house has indicated from their end (which the house manufacturer themselves admitted wasn’t entirely okay but agreed to anyway) that they can construct a sort of semi-finished upper floor for us. That’s why I’m reaching out to all the knowledgeable individuals on this forum. They want 57,700 for the whole package, which includes the following (let's see if I can paste what I received via email in an understandable way):

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ventilation between rafters from eaves to ridge (45x45 battens and oil-hardened masonite).
Fastening of age-resistant plastic throughout the roof and then nail battens 28x70 at cc300.
Insulation followed by associated plastic covering, after which installation battens 45x45 are applied externally and additional insulation on top.
Loose fill and 70mm impact sound insulation are also included in the price.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, what do you think? As I understand it, this is to have a warm upper floor from the start, which I suspect would tremendously simplify things for us to start framing, running conduits, and other fun tasks in walls and floors, installing floor particle boards, etc.

Primarily, I'm wondering if it's a reasonable price? Personally, without having extensively checked, it seems reasonable. Partly their labor time costs a lot, partly the materials do cost a bit as well, and it saves many precious evenings and weekends time-wise that must also be included in a calculation like this.

Please move this to the correct category if it's misplaced Take care!

 

[MackanMH]

No one with input?
(Sry for bump)

 

[catherineb]

I don't really have much input, but our home builder would also charge around 500k to finish the entire upper floor for us, so we decided to go with a unfinished but prepared upper floor, i.e., insulated with plumbing, water, and electricity prepared. These are things that are hard to do afterward when the lower floor is finished without tearing up walls and ceilings. It might be worth considering.

It might also be smart to think about what you should have under the floors, whether it be battens or chipboards. We have battens, which has been advantageous when my husband wanted to recess speakers and spotlights down through the ceiling. Tearing off chipboards is probably not very smooth. We've also placed the underfloor heating in the battens.

Another thing we didn't really get clear when we signed the contract was that the staircase was included but installation was not included. So we have a staircase in boxes and have to go up to the upper floor via a ladder (which is actually good since sheet materials like chipboard and gypsum are easier to lift up without a staircase).

Just some experiences from my side.

 

[MackanMH]

I don't really have much input, but our house builder would also charge about 500 k to finish the entire upper floor for us, so we decided to go with unfinished but prepared upper floor, meaning insulated and with drainage, water, and electricity prepared. These are things that are difficult to do afterward when the lower floor is finished without tearing up walls and ceilings. It might be worth considering.

It might also be smart to think about what you should have under the floors, floor joists or chipboard. We have floor joists, which has been advantageous when my husband wanted to recess speakers and spotlights through the ceiling. Tearing off chipboards is probably not that convenient. We have also placed the underfloor heating in the floor joists.

Another thing that we didn't quite clarify when signing the contract was that the stairs were included but installation was not included. So we have stairs in boxes and have to go to the upper floor via a ladder (which is actually good since material like chipboard and plasterboard is easier to lift up without stairs).

Just a few experiences from my side.

Exactly! A prepared floor as you describe it is exactly what we will (probably) go for. An attic ladder is included for us. A proper staircase and removing the ceiling to install it are things we will do when everything is finished up there.

Thank you for sharing your experiences

 

[Martin Berggren]

Yes exactly! A prepared floor as you describe it is precisely the kind we will (probably) take.
A loft ladder is included for us. A real staircase and taking out the ceiling to mount it is something we will do when everything is completed up there.

Thank you for sharing your experiences

How will you get the materials up to finish (sheet material etc.) through a loft ladder?

 

[MackanMH]

How are you going to get the materials up to finish (sheet material etc.) through a spiral staircase?

Tricky of course, but should be doable? What might possibly be a problem?

 

[catherineb]

How are you going to get the material up to complete it (sheet material etc.) through an attic ladder?

Is an attic ladder really meant here? Or does TS mean a regular staircase to the upper floor?

 

[Martin Berggren]

I imagine this, but it doesn't have to be of course..

 

[MackanMH]

I imagine this, but it doesn't have to be of course..
[bild]

Hmm, I hope it's bigger than that. Do you have any input on the original question?

 

[catherineb]

Hmm, I hope it's bigger than that. Do you have any input on the original question?

That's just a standard attic ladder. I can say that through such an opening, you can fit exactly a moving box.

 

[dansussie]

That sounds like an affordable proposal, I would have gone for it.

 

[kashieda]

As mentioned above, consider pulling up electricity and water, sewage, and ventilation so that it doesn't have to be done through a fully furnished lower floor.

 

[MackanMH]

Remember to consider setting up electricity, water, sewage, and ventilation so that it doesn't need to be done through a fully furnished lower floor.

Opted for the alternative and laid down floor particle boards and prepared for everything you mentioned. Of course, there was a price increase but a heck of a boost to fix the rest by ourselves, plus we have warm wind from day one