Adding a second floor to a house

[JayBird]

Am I mad? Am I insane?  

 

I'm thinking of getting a house with a flat roof.  (new, modern build, not Thai style). I'm thinking of putting a second floor on top of that house.  How crazy am I?  Or is this doable?

 

In the western world, I would:

 

1) Know if the foundation is strong.

2) Know if the walls are strong.

3) Know if the ceiling is made with any material that needs to be removed before a second floor was added (perhaps some heat sealing, that if it remained, would cause the first floor to stay hot rather than allow hot air to rise?)

 

In the western world I would be able to hire an independent surveyor who would get me that information than go away (no vested interest in doing any building).

 

Is such a thing possible here?  Is such a thing discoverable by a lay person like me?  (I know nothing... except, if I hit the wall and the building falls, it wasn't done right).

 

Given all that, how crazy is it to add a second floor?  Again, in the western world, not a problem.  But out here?

 

Do I want to:

1) Build it as if building a normal house on top (walls, ceiling, etc.)

2) Consider getting a custom prefab and just plopping it on top?

 

Welcome all advice, ideas, suggestions, etc.   ????

 

Thank you!

[worgeordie]

The foundations would not have been made to the required

strength to add another floor,why would they.

Better to get your wife buy a piece of land and build the house

you want, 

regards worgeordie

[JoeMc]

Dont even think about it .. I had a simple single story building built with proper roof etc .. but foundations were limited ..

Next to me they are just building 3, 2 story houses ..they have just completed the drilling for a series of pilons for each house .. each pilon is 'cagged' and for a sq. Mtr of cement base around each pilon ..etc.

[Boomer6969]

16 minutes ago, JoeMc said:

Next to me they are just building 3, 2 story houses ..they have just completed the drilling for a series of pilons for each house .. each pilon is 'cagged' and for a sq. Mtr of cement base around each pilon ..etc.

I have a two storey house. I got 16 6 meters pilons under the house and only 16 mm R bars in all structural pillars and beams. Must say I put an extra concrete floor under the roof. 

[Skallywag]

You think too much.  "never buy anything in thailand you cannot walk away from" 

 

Heat rises, best to build a basement so you can stay cool in the hot weather 

[Crossy]

1 hour ago, Skallywag said:

Heat rises, best to build a basement so you can stay cool in the hot weather 

 

And you can swim in it when it fills with flood water ????

 

But I agree with all the above, unless it was designed to have second floor originally it's a non-starter.

 

A thought, maybe a lightweight structure would pass muster, have a look at the Smart Truss thread, could be light enough.

 

 

 

[Yellowtail]

If it is concrete structure with a (almost) flat roof you could likely build a light-weight second story with c-channel. Steel roof and skinned with smart-board.

 

What would the second floor be for?

[JayBird]

The purpose of the second floor would be bedroom and bathroom.

 

The owner (a westerner) said he built it to western specifications, and even said it would support a second floor.  I'm not accepting this blindly, but nor do I wish to dismiss it immediately.  If there was a way for me to find out how structurally sound it was, that would be great.  Does such an ability exist?

 

I suppose, worst comes to worst, I can add a rooftop garden/patio or solar panels. 

 

 

[Crossy]

2 hours ago, JayBird said:

Does such an ability exist?

 

His approved architectural drawings would be a start, they ought to be in the records at the ampur that issued the building permit ????

 

That said, our approved architectural drawings were originally attached to a permit which said "one floor wooden house".

[taninthai]

I am doing this exactly the same bedroom and bathroom,I built this house with the idea to have roof top terrace,then decided it’s a pretty big roof top terrace so make half of it a bedroom and bathroom.

plan is a steel frame and then cement board so not exactly loads of weight,have had a quote off 72,000 bht for steel frame and roof including finish railings of all round the terrace.

its an external staircase on mine so could also be used as a sort of studio flat.

[Kwasaki]

10 hours ago, JayBird said:

1) Know if the foundation is strong.

2) Know if the walls are strong.

That's enough to ad another floor if you think what your buying is cheap enough to extend.

To go ahead with a project like that just needs your feasibility study not anyone has little building knowledge... 

[thaibeachlovers]

If it were I doing it I'd put in foundations outside the house and erect a steel beam framework over the top of existing house to put a lightweight structure on. However i wouldn't do anything as it would cost too much and too much messing about. So either I'd build/ buy a 2 story house or live with what it is.

 

Of course I'd do none of the above as I wouldn't be barking enough to actually own property in LOS, especially as things are likely to change muchly in the aftermath of Corona.

[Yellowtail]

To that end, it might make sense to build a small two story structure as an addition to the single story. It would contain the staircase and upstairs bathroom. The new second story of the existing structure would be a bedroom only, and perhaps a terrace. 

[JayBird]

Thank you all for the feedback, it is very helpful!  After investigating the property of choice, I was not convinced the structure was sound enough to add a second floor.

 

I'm too used to european build quality where houses last for centuries, and am constantly surprised here ????

 

I may have to investigate building from scratch (if the necessary skills and materials are even available in this country).

 

Thank you all again.

[Yellowtail]

2 hours ago, JayBird said:

Thank you all for the feedback, it is very helpful!  After investigating the property of choice, I was not convinced the structure was sound enough to add a second floor.

 

I'm too used to european build quality where houses last for centuries, and am constantly surprised here ????

 

I may have to investigate building from scratch (if the necessary skills and materials are even available in this country).

 

Thank you all again.

 

You can supply the skill....