Load-bearing or non-load-bearing, two structural engineers say different

[Vrana]

Hello! We have a long, narrow single-story house with a basement made of brick. Between the floors, there are concrete slabs. According to the original drawings from '67, only the outer walls are load-bearing, but there are 8 meters between them. The roof has a low slope. On the ground floor, a wall runs along the entire length of the house according to the drawing.

We asked a construction engineer + designer if it was possible to demolish the wall between the kitchen and living room, and they said it wasn't load-bearing. Our neighbor happens to have an identical twin house and has been thinking along the same lines, but the engineer they hired says it is definitely load-bearing and even advises against using a glued laminated timber beam, insisting on a steel beam instead.

How can the opinions differ so greatly? Anyone with similar experiences?

 

[Daniel 109]

How are the roof trusses constructed?

 

[Kane]

Spontaneously it feels load-bearing. But more information is needed. Construction drawings of the house? Section drawing? Roof truss drawing?

 

[MrDizzy]

That almost looks like my house from '62.
Not sure if that's a load-bearing wall though.
Let me know here if you find out.

PS I'll check with the neighbors who have similar houses and see what they say... some of them have renovated theirs quite extensively.

 

[Viktor.J]

If someone is to say something, one needs to have the basis on which each party has based their decision.

So the neighbor's "engineer"'s basis
Your "construction engineer"'s basis
Your "constructor"'s basis

Only then can a third party determine who is more likely to be right.

Alternatively, you hire another one, and another one, and another one...

 

[13th Marine]

I interpret it as we are not in the basement but the floor above?

Then I would say it depends on how the roof trusses are dimensioned.

We have a similar house and have free-standing roof trusses, it is built with an opening corresponding to the one you want to remove, no beam.

 

[Tinototem]

I had been eager to have a conversation with both civil engineers and pit them against each other a bit so they could reason together and arrive at a common view.

 

[Vrana]

Spontaneously it feels load-bearing. But more information is needed. Construction drawings of the house? Sectional drawing? Roof truss drawing?

Unfortunately, there aren't any! The only thing I have been able to dig up from the municipal archive is this: it still states self-supporting truss and that the outer wall is load-bearing.

But it's worrying when the neighbor hears that the roof will collapse if they tear down the same wall.

 

[Vrana]

I interpret it as if we are not in the basement but the floor above?

Then I would say it depends on how the trusses are dimensioned.

We have a similar house and have free-standing trusses, it is built with an opening corresponding to the one you want to remove, no beam.

Yes, sorry, ground floor or whatever it should be called. Not basement.

 

[13th Marine]

Yes, sorry, ground floor or whatever it's supposed to be called. Not basement.

It explicitly says free-standing truss, so I agree with your designer that it is not load-bearing. Then you might get some sagging there, but it's nothing I've noticed with us.

 

[Vrana]

I interpret it as we are not in the basement but the floor above?

Then I would say it depends on how the roof trusses are dimensioned.

We have a similar house and have self-supporting roof trusses, it is built with an opening corresponding to the one you want to remove, no beam.

Can't find any drawings of the roof trusses. However, it is a solid low-pitched roof with a 6-degree angle. It's hard to see anything at all in the tiny attic, plus it's full of kutterspån. However, we are planning to vacuum it out in the spring and install cellulose insulation, so hopefully, more will be visible then.

 

[13th Marine]

Ah, I missed the part about low-slope, I was thinking of traditional trusses.

I would double-check the trusses to ensure they can be free-spanning with acceptable deflection.

Drawings may be available at the municipality's building permit department.

 

[Nissens]

If the roof trusses are free-spanning as described, only the exterior walls are load-bearing.

 

[Grannens Häck]

Hi! We have a long, narrow single-story villa with a basement made of brick. Between the floors, there is a concrete joist. According to the original drawings from '67, only the outer walls are load-bearing, but there is an 8-meter gap between them. Low-pitched roof. Through the ground floor, a wall runs along the entire length of the house according to the drawing.

We asked a structural engineer + constructor if it was possible to remove the wall between the kitchen and the living room, and they said it was not load-bearing. The neighbor happens to have an identical twin house and has thought about the same, the engineer they hired says it is absolutely load-bearing and even advises against using a laminated wood beam, insisting on a steel beam instead.

How can there be such a stark difference? Anyone with similar experiences?

Did you pay two for an investigation of your case or just call and ask two for arbitrary opinions?

There is a difference between hiring someone who conducts a thorough investigation with site visits and calculations/expert assessments versus calling and asking someone what they think.

 

[Vrana]

I paid for assessment based on existing documents and measurements, no visits. I don't know about the neighbor's engineer.