Hi. I'm thinking of creating a small "window" in this load-bearing wall. (I assume it's load-bearing since it runs through the house perpendicular to the floor joists and there's a basement wall underneath it.) I was thinking of an opening just under a meter wide and 70 cm high or something like that. It's an old house and the walls contain a lot of wood, so to speak, which I assume might be relevant here.
However, there's a sliding door to the left as you can see in the picture, so maybe the wall isn't as substantial as one might think.
The opening should be between the cabinet and where the sliding door ends in the wall. How do I go about this? Do I need to reinforce with some kind of beam, etc.? I have never dealt with this kind of thing before, so detailed descriptions are appreciated. I can add that there's a doorway in the basement wall right below where I plan to make the hole.
Impractical tips about contacting engineers and the municipality are not welcome.
However, there's a sliding door to the left as you can see in the picture, so maybe the wall isn't as substantial as one might think.
The opening should be between the cabinet and where the sliding door ends in the wall. How do I go about this? Do I need to reinforce with some kind of beam, etc.? I have never dealt with this kind of thing before, so detailed descriptions are appreciated. I can add that there's a doorway in the basement wall right below where I plan to make the hole.
Impractical tips about contacting engineers and the municipality are not welcome.
You might rather need to think about what rests on the wall above. Floor beams? Truss? What is the spacing of what rests on the wall? c-c 600 or c-c 1200 or something else? There shouldn't be any problems transferring the load from what rests above. In American tradition, something called "jack studs" is used to support the transfer. It feels reliable. I have a book called "Graphic Guide to Frame Construction" from The Taunton Press. It's my bible.