I did this in my attic and kind of regret it. I had wide pine boards in my 1845 farmhouse attic. I thought I could "salvage the old pine" and then put down a subfloor (and some of that soundproofing insulation, too). I didn't salvage nearly the quantity of wood that I thought - too brittle. I put in the soundproofing, and I think it has improved the noise. I replaced the pine with 5/8 plywood and it's very noisy and bouncy - should have gone 3/4 or more. We were thinking of carpeting over, but it's too bouncy now, so thinking of hardwood now. I would consided putting something over what you have. 1/4" underlayment if it is already a solid floor, or a thicker plywood - like 1/2" - if it is unstable. More floor is better, I think.

I agree that it wouldn't be an aesthetically pleasing addition. Nor would it be a financially sound one for the amount of square footage that would be gained. However, in for a penny, in for a pound. If the regs would allow it, since you'd have to do a complete tearoff and rebuild anyway (and possibly rebuild the foundation) why not make adding even more square footage for the money a priority. Add a third floor master suite. Yeah, it's probably another 75-100K, but now you're actually adding real square footage that adds value to the home. And all the hard work will be for the second floor part. The third floor part is a piece of cake once the logistics for the second floor are worked out.

Thanks for all the help guys. We had the big box store come out on a whim just to get an idea of the cost and sq ft that would be needed in case we decided to add insulation ourselves. We were NOT wanting to have them put new insulation on top of the old since is was full of dirt and debris regardless if it were blown in or batt. We have unfaced insulation on the attic floor, not sure what the vertical install on the outside walls are. We are taking the good advice given and will be looking into getting a reputable insulation company come to give an estimate soon. The gable vents were put in after the 15yr old roof failed so we are a little more optimistic that this recent roofing job will last longer than the last one.

Kippy - thanks for the suggestion but the really pales and anything greenish just does not work in this house as much as I like them. I had a story board with 12-15 colors painted on it; a 3 X 5 foot piece of drywall, I carted that thing all over the house and NOTHING looked good. especially in the natural light. Everything just ended up looking gray anyway or washed out. I was so disappointed but did find that Simply White worked and a medium gray, the Sparrow, and a light silver. Annie I love all those rooms and my first choice would be like the first room you posted. The Weathered White looks similar in my house. I was going to paint my walls in the bath, the gray for my SIL, but have now decided to tile everything. Maybe just do the one sloped ceiling in the bath the darker gray? Everything else white tile? Rory- WOW hold everything!!! I used to wallpaper everything...;) Linelle you are so right about how light changes colors. I can't really do greens so much and since we are on a bare naked hill it is all sky. I think that's why the silvery grays work for this house. I think I will just wait til I prime everything and then paint the room in weathered white. I have lots of that paint left over. I will take pictures and post here. Once we get the tile finished in the bath and maybe do the one sloped ceiling in there in Sparrow and see what you think.