Is It Worth It To Raise The Ceiling Height In The House? (Pros & Cons)

I recently visited a friend, and her home had high ceilings. I was interested in high ceilings and wanted to learn more about raising my home’s ceiling. On the other hand, my friend didn’t like the high ceilings as much I did, and it made me wonder if it’s worth it to raise the ceiling height in a house?

Is having high ceilings worth it? Heigh ceilings have advantages such as fantastic acoustics, it raises the value of your home, and you have a lot of headroom. However, some of the disadvantages of raising the ceiling height in a home include being costly and increasing the heating bill in the winter.

I had no idea that the height of a home could make such a difference in your home. Some of the changes are good, and others are not so great, but I thought I would help shed more light on this topic. We will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of raising the ceiling height in your house. 

Is It Worth It To Raise The Ceiling Height In The House?

It’s one thing to live in a house that has raised ceilings and quite another to raise the height of the ceiling purposefully. For example, the standard ceiling height of new homes is 9 feet, but some homes have 10-18 feet high ceilings. 

High ceilings give any home a gorgeous and stylish look that impresses friends and family. If you add a beautiful chandelier and bright lights, it will only add to the beauty of your home.

So the question remains, is it worth raising the ceiling height? Before you call the contractor, let’s look at the pros and cons of raising the ceiling of a home.

The Pros Of Raising The Height Of Your Ceiling

Having high ceilings has a few advantages that might make you think about raising your home’s ceiling height.

The Added Value

Real Estate agents have confirmed that homes with raised ceilings sell for more money than homes with a standard ceiling height, especially in areas where apartments are narrow. In addition, homes with high ceilings sell for more because of the aesthetic appeal it adds to a home. 

When the ceiling height is appropriately raised and you add high-end finishes, it increases the home’s value as it looks elegant and stylish. Conversely, homes that have low-end finishes but high ceilings won’t fetch a higher price because it looks cheaply done.

More Natural Light

Many people add windows to their high ceilings, adding more natural light to the rooms, making the home feel warm and open. Natural light also means you will spend less money on the lighting bill, as you will use less artificial light during the day.

The Illusion Of Increased Space

In cities where the need for space is at a premium, your home with high ceilings is highly sought after. The height creates the illusion of extra space. As soon as you walk into a home with high ceilings, the area feels more extensive, and if you add a centerpiece to the ceiling, it draws the eye upward. 

The Cons Of Raising The Height Of Your Ceiling

While high ceilings are great to look at, is it worth all the effort to have your ceiling raised? Here are some of the disadvantages to help you make an informed decision. 

The Maintenance Issue

The maintenance of high ceilings can be a nightmare. You need to clean the ceilings just as you would with a traditional ceiling, but you will need a ladder to get high enough, not to mention how hard changing a lightbulb might be. If you need to do repairs, you will need to call in professionals as they have the equipment necessary to work at heights safely.

The Noise Problem

One massive disadvantage to raising the ceiling of your home is that large cavernous rooms tend to carry noise, meaning you will hear everything going on in every room. The noise might even travel to the neighbors. It might be a pro if you are having a party and you can hear the music from every room, but under normal circumstances, it can cause an issue.

The Price Point

One of the most significant issues with raising the height of a ceiling is the cost involved. You can pay up to $30 000 on average to raise the ceiling. As a result, you might not get the same added value you paid to raise your ceiling when you sell your home. In addition, once you have decided to extend the ceiling, you cannot guarantee that your home’s structural integrity won’t be affected.

Not All Homes Have The Right Structure

Many homes weren’t constructed to have high ceilings; the issue is that you will need to hire a structural engineer to help assess your home’s suitability to have the roof and thus ceiling raised. If the structure doesn’t support a raised ceiling, you have wasted time and money to find out if your home’s design can handle it.

Increased Heating Bill

In the wintertime, homes with high ceilings tend to take more energy to keep warm. It is because the warm air travels upward and the cold air comes back down, meaning you need to keep the heating on longer to dispel the cold air that is circulating and replace it with hot air. The time it takes to heat the rooms adequately will add to your heating bill.

You can add a fan to help distribute the warm air throughout the home more efficiently. Remember to run the fan counterclockwise. You can also replace low-capacity heaters with high-capacity ones to help with the heating of your home. 

Conclusion

Raised ceilings look fantastic, and they can increase the value of your home, but they also have a few disadvantages that make you think twice about raising the ceiling of your home. It’s costly and, if done incorrectly, can damage the structure of your home. 

In the end, you need to look at what will be best for your home and your budget, keeping in mind that you might need to call in professionals to help with maintenance as they have the right equipment to navigate heights safely.

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Barry Gray

Hi, I’m Barry. I’ve loved woodworking and bringing things back to life for more years than I care to remember. I hope my passion for tools comes across loud and clear in everything you read here on The Tool Square.