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Plan & Takeoffs

Quote check

Check a loft conversion quote

Paste the quote you were given and enter your measurements. Every line is read against the job: what the quote leaves out, what it adds, which quantities sit outside the computed range, and what to ask. Quantities only — never prices.
  • 3029Lines the job needs
  • 17Measurements
  • QuestionsNever a verdict

How the quote is read

Each line of a loft conversion quote is matched to the line of the job it names, or marked as something the Loft conversion with a dormer takeoff does not measure — labour, removal, hire, fees, or anything else. Work the takeoff lists as part of the job but gives no quantity for is read as that work, not as something the quote adds.

The job’s own figures come from 17 measurements — loft length, wall to wall, new floor, knee wall to dormer face, sloped ceiling, on plan, knee wall height, floor to flat ceiling, main roof slope factor, dormer width, dormer depth, on plan, windows in the dormer face, window width, each, window height, each, doors in the new partitions, new stud partitions, height of the eaves above the ground, shower room length (0 if none), shower room width, tiled height in the shower room — run through the same calculators as the takeoff, so the two give the same figure for the same job.

Reading a loft conversion quote

A loft conversion quote joins three trades' prices into one: the structure, the roofer's dormer and the fit-out. The structural lines are priced before the engineer's calculations exist, so worth asking whether the steels, the joists and the stair are fixed sums or provisional until the design arrives, and whether the calculations, the building control fees and any party wall notices are part of the price or left to you.

The dormer is the part that is open to the sky, so worth seeing named which waterproofing goes on its roof and whose guarantee covers it, how the cheeks are clad, and what keeps the rain out while the rafters are cut. Inside, this check boards every surface of the new room, the partitions included; a quote that boards fewer of them reads lower here. Whether the fire doors, the alarms, the shower room's tanking and the electrical test certificate are inside the figure is worth settling at the start.

How the new boards are finished changes with the units, the same way the takeoff opens: a plaster skim with metric showing, joint compound and paper tape with imperial showing. A skim quote read with imperial showing, or a taped one with metric, finds no finish line to sit against; switch the units and the same room is checked against the other finish.

Three steps

  1. Give your measurements. The page opens on a typical job so it has something to show.
  2. Paste the quote's lines as they came, or add them one at a time. Leave the prices in — they are taken out, never read.
  3. Read the report: what is left out, what is added, what sits outside the range, and one list of questions to send.

Your quote

The loft conversion quote you were given

Paste from an email, or open or drop a PDF, Excel, CSV or text file, or a photo of the quote. Amounts of money are taken out before anything is read — this page compares quantities, never prices.

Nothing you paste or open leaves this device.

or one the job needs:

The reading

What the quote says, against the job

Loft conversion · Loft length, wall to wall 19.5 ft · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 18 ft · Sloped ceiling, on plan 4 ft · Knee wall height 4 ft · Floor to flat ceiling 7.5 ft · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 16.5 ft · Dormer depth, on plan 10 ft · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 4 ft · Window height, each 4 ft · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 19.5 ft · Height of the eaves above the ground 17 ft · Shower room length (0 if none) 6.5 ft · Shower room width 5 ft · Tiled height in the shower room 6.5 ftLoft length, wall to wall 6 m · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 5.5 m · Sloped ceiling, on plan 1.25 m · Knee wall height 1.2 m · Floor to flat ceiling 2.3 m · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 5 m · Dormer depth, on plan 3 m · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 1.2 m · Window height, each 1.2 m · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 6 m · Height of the eaves above the ground 5.2 m · Shower room length (0 if none) 2 m · Shower room width 1.5 m · Tiled height in the shower room 2 m

  • What it leaves out

    Every line the job needs that nothing on the quote reads as, with the quantity your measurements produce.

  • What it adds

    Lines this job's takeoff does not measure — labour, removal, hire, fees, anything else — each named for what it is.

  • What sits outside the range

    Quantities above or below the computed range, by how much, in the quote's unit or converted and shown.

  • What to ask

    One list of questions, in the quote's order, ready to copy and send. Questions, never a verdict.

Paste the quote above, or add its lines one at a time. The reading appears here as each line is read.

Outside what this takeoff measures

10

Nothing in the reading measures these. Whether the quote covers each is worth asking in its own right: a scope missing from a quote tends to become a cost after work has started. Why each is left out is on the takeoff.

  • The structure
  • The stair and its balustrade, made to the loft's rise and headroom and listed as items
  • Party wall matters
  • Drainage beyond connecting the shower room to the existing soil stack, a new stack, and whether the boiler or heat pump can take another radiator
  • The tiles on the cheeks and in the made-good slope round the dormer, the cladding on the face beside the windows, and every fixing for them
  • The floor deck over the new joists, listed as work
  • Ventilation of the cold roof spaces left behind the knee wall and over the flat ceiling, and the insulation of a gable end wall facing outside
  • The shower room's floor finish, its tray, basin and WC, and the tiling above the height you give
  • Render on the dormer's cheeks or face, where they are rendered rather than tiled or clad, with its primer, mesh and beads
  • Undercoat and gloss (trim enamel) on the new woodwork

The reference

Every line the reading looks for

For Loft length, wall to wall 19.5 ft · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 18 ft · Sloped ceiling, on plan 4 ft · Knee wall height 4 ft · Floor to flat ceiling 7.5 ft · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 16.5 ft · Dormer depth, on plan 10 ft · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 4 ft · Window height, each 4 ft · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 19.5 ft · Height of the eaves above the ground 17 ft · Shower room length (0 if none) 6.5 ft · Shower room width 5 ft · Tiled height in the shower room 6.5 ftLoft length, wall to wall 6 m · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 5.5 m · Sloped ceiling, on plan 1.25 m · Knee wall height 1.2 m · Floor to flat ceiling 2.3 m · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 5 m · Dormer depth, on plan 3 m · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 1.2 m · Window height, each 1.2 m · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 6 m · Height of the eaves above the ground 5.2 m · Shower room length (0 if none) 2 m · Shower room width 1.5 m · Tiled height in the shower room 2 m. Each is the calculator linked under it, run with those measurements; a range is that calculator at both ends of one choice, not a margin for error.

How the ranges are taken

Where the choice is cutting waste, the ends are the site’s own allowances: 5%, the tight buffer of a crew with a planned set-out, and 15%, the wider one a first-timer orders. Where the calculator decides between patterns or materials, the ends are the options it offers. Where it adds nothing for loss, the range runs from the net quantity to 15% over it.

A minimum — the fewest hangers a spacing allows, the least airflow a room needs — has no upper end. A single figure carries an allowance the material itself needs, such as a lap, and names it.

What a reading like this cannot see

  • It does not know your prices, your market, or what the work ought to cost.
  • It does not know the building — the access, the condition of what is there, or what has to happen first.
  • It cannot check a lump sum, because there is no quantity in one.
  • A line it reads as missing may be priced under another name. A quantity outside the range is not evidence of anything. Each is a reason to ask a question.
  • Two quotes are not comparable until their scopes are.
  • It is not advice, and it is no substitute for a second quote.

The full takeoff

Every quantity for this job, with its working

The Loft conversion with a dormer takeoff runs the same calculators on the same measurements and shows what sits under each line here.

Open the takeoffEvery quote check

  • Base, allowance, order

    Each line's quantity before and after its allowance, and what to buy.

  • Every allowance editable

    Change a waste figure and the order follows, with its source named.

  • Into a project

    Add the whole job to a workspace with your own prices.

Frequently asked questions

What quantities does a loft conversion job need?
It depends on the measurements, so this page asks for yours. At the size it opens on — Loft length, wall to wall 6 m · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 5.5 m · Sloped ceiling, on plan 1.25 m · Knee wall height 1.2 m · Floor to flat ceiling 2.3 m · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 5 m · Dormer depth, on plan 3 m · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 1.2 m · Window height, each 1.2 m · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 6 m · Height of the eaves above the ground 5.2 m · Shower room length (0 if none) 2 m · Shower room width 1.5 m · Tiled height in the shower room 2 m — the lines come to: Deck on the dormer's roof, 6 sheets (2440x1220 mm); Warm-roof boards on the dormer, 6 sheets (2400x1200 mm); EPDM on the dormer, 1–2 rolls; Termination bar at the back upstand, 5.25–5.75 m; Termination bar fixings, 19 fasteners; Fascia along the dormer's front, 2 x 3.6 m boards; Breathable membrane on the cheeks, 1 roll; Flashing down both cheeks, 3–4 sheets; The dormer's own gutter, 2–3 x 4 m sections; Flashing tape round the dormer windows, 13.9–15.2 m; Studs for the knee wall and the partitions, 39–45 studs; Boards between and under the sloped rafters, 4 sheets (2400x1200 mm); Batts in the knee wall, cheeks and face, 6 packages; Sound insulation between the floor joists, 8–9 packages; Insulation over the flat ceiling beyond the dormer, 3 packages; Plasterboard (drywall) on the ceiling and slope, 13–15 sheets; Plasterboard (drywall) on the walls, 15–16 sheets; Board on both faces of the partitions, 10–12 sheets; Skim over every board, 269–295 kg; Tanking in the shower room, 32.4–37.2 L; Wall tiles in the shower room, 86–94 tiles; Wall tile adhesive, 4–5 bags; Wall tile grout, 2.79–3.06 kg; Mist coat or primer on the ceiling and slope, 3.53–4.05 L; Mist coat or primer on the walls, 6.73–7.74 L; Skirting (baseboard), 24.2–26.5 m; Ceiling and slope, two coats, 7.05–8.11 L; Walls, two coats, 13.5–15.5 L; Skip (dumpster) for the strip-out, 4.95 m³. In imperial units — Loft length, wall to wall 19.5 ft · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 18 ft · Sloped ceiling, on plan 4 ft · Knee wall height 4 ft · Floor to flat ceiling 7.5 ft · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 16.5 ft · Dormer depth, on plan 10 ft · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 4 ft · Window height, each 4 ft · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 19.5 ft · Height of the eaves above the ground 17 ft · Shower room length (0 if none) 6.5 ft · Shower room width 5 ft · Tiled height in the shower room 6.5 ft — they come to: Deck on the dormer's roof, 6 sheets (4x8 ft); Warm-roof boards on the dormer, 6 sheets (4x8 ft); EPDM on the dormer, 1–2 rolls; Termination bar at the back upstand, 17.3–19 ft; Termination bar fixings, 19 fasteners; Fascia along the dormer's front, 2 x 12 ft boards; Breathable membrane on the cheeks, 1 roll; Flashing down both cheeks, 3–4 sheets; The dormer's own gutter, 2–3 x 10 ft sections; Flashing tape round the dormer windows, 46.2–50.6 ft; Studs for the knee wall and the partitions, 39–45 studs; Boards between and under the sloped rafters, 4 sheets (4x8 ft); Batts in the knee wall, cheeks and face, 6 packages; Sound insulation between the floor joists, 8–9 packages; Insulation over the flat ceiling beyond the dormer, 3 packages; Plasterboard (drywall) on the ceiling and slope, 13–14 sheets; Plasterboard (drywall) on the walls, 14–16 sheets; Board on both faces of the partitions, 10–12 sheets; Joint compound for taping and filling every board, 3 x 4.5 gal boxes; Paper joint tape over every board, 601–658 ft; Tanking in the shower room, 8.51–9.79 gal; Wall tiles in the shower room, 85–93 tiles; Wall tile adhesive, 4–5 bags; Wall tile grout, 6.01–6.58 lb; Mist coat or primer on the ceiling and slope, 0.94–1.08 gal; Mist coat or primer on the walls, 1.8–2.06 gal; Skirting (baseboard), 78.8–86.3 linear ft; Ceiling and slope, two coats, 1.87–2.15 gal; Walls, two coats, 3.59–4.13 gal; Skip (dumpster) for the strip-out, 6.4 yd³.
Which line on a loft conversion quote varies the most?
The EPDM on the dormer: 1–2 rolls for a job measured Loft length, wall to wall 6 m · New floor, knee wall to dormer face 5.5 m · Sloped ceiling, on plan 1.25 m · Knee wall height 1.2 m · Floor to flat ceiling 2.3 m · Main roof slope factor 1.3 · Dormer width 5 m · Dormer depth, on plan 3 m · Windows in the dormer face 2 · Window width, each 1.2 m · Window height, each 1.2 m · Doors in the new partitions 2 · New stud partitions 6 m · Height of the eaves above the ground 5.2 m · Shower room length (0 if none) 2 m · Shower room width 1.5 m · Tiled height in the shower room 2 m, depending on how much is allowed for loss over the net figure, up to 15%.
What does a loft conversion quote often leave out?
The reading names every line of the job that nothing on the quote reads as — any of the 30 lines the takeoff measures. The takeoff also lists 10 things it does not measure, shown under the reading, and each is worth asking about: a scope missing from a quote tends to become a cost after work has started.The reading names every line of the job that nothing on the quote reads as — any of the 29 lines the takeoff measures. The takeoff also lists 10 things it does not measure, shown under the reading, and each is worth asking about: a scope missing from a quote tends to become a cost after work has started.
Can I paste the quote exactly as it came?
Yes — from an email, a PDF or a spreadsheet, one item to a line. Amounts of money are taken out before anything is read, headings and totals are skipped, and each line is shown with what it was read as, so a misreading is one correction. Quantities in the other unit system are converted and the conversion is shown; a count of boxes is never compared with a count of tiles.
Does this check the price as well?
No. It reads quantities, never prices, and this site publishes none: an installed price moves with the market, the season, the access and the specification, so a figure for what the work ought to cost would give you confidence in a number nobody can defend. A quantity against your own measurements is checkable, and every figure here links to the calculator that produced it.