UKC

With the huge rise and record-breaking numbers using Netflix, Amazon Prime and other home entertainment services in 2020, whilst seeing Cinemas forced to close and in complete crisis, can the UK's climbers learn anything from this armchair revolution?

Some of them look great. Out of interest is it actually possibly to build a board in your loft? We had ours boarded recently and went overboard as the floor space is about 5x what we actually needed for storage. It's huge. And the apex is plenty high enough. I did consider it and thought this just seems like a bad idea! The house is pretty old (1914). I guess reinforcing the current chipboard floor would be pretty easy. And I doubt I'd even be repeatedly falling / jumping on to it anyway. But still, just seems like a bad idea to me. Feel free to convince me tho as I'm pretty keen

the ceiling below would be more the problem - lath and plaster isn't going to like it (nor is nailed plasterboard). Your joists may also be over-spanned, mine from my 1895 house are.

What’s an over spanned joist then? Quick google and I’m none the wiser 

That top shed-wall is great - did some digging and the top half is articulated to extend to full height.

The only real limitation (beyond budget) of an outside wall is pesky planning permission, which they've nearly avoided.

At a guess a joist that is spanning a gap larger than it should be given is cross sectional strength, I have just boarded and insulated our 1800's house loft for storage as its also huge, I haven't strengthened the floor (it's not going to be classed as habitable space) and I certainly wouldn't want be jumping up and down on it

I figured reinforcing the floor would involve using the joists but if it's more involved than that then I'd be stumped anyway. Bit beyond my skill level all that. No idea what overspanned joists are mind you. 

Normally to make it strong enough for habitable it would be steels front to back with new 10" (or suitable size) joists between

Mine is in the loft.  Its a modern extension and when they built the loft floor I got them to double noggin (the builder's term rather than mine) the floor - similar to if you want to install something heavy like a cast iron bath.  I bought some ex climbing wall foam to cover the landing and its fine.  Its a bit too steep as it needs to follow the roofline (66 degrees) but makes for good training.

As Sans-Plan says, if you are going to use the loft for more than storing a few boxes, then you need proper floor joists.  We had to have two steel RSJs fitted either side of the house then 10 ins joists were laid across those.  The original ceiling joists are still there underneath holding the ceiling up. But a separate isolated structure in engineering terms, so they don't crack.   If you plan to build a gym in the loft, you also need to conform to Fire Regs. 

https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/loft-conversions/article/loft-conversions/l...

Seldom quite as simple as you think.