Open up load-bearing wall 5.5m

[Sasoliz]

Hello! I have just bought a 1 1/2 villa that I am renovating and fixing up before I move in. It is a hjältevadshus from 1984. I am going to change the kitchen, etc., and want to open up the wall between the kitchen and the living room. I would say I am fairly handy, but I have no knowledge when it comes to load-bearing walls and such. The wall I want to open up is in the middle of the house on the ground floor along the roof ridge. The house has a crawl space, and the interior wall is directly over one of the “walls” in the foundation. The plan is to open up the wall about 550cm, from one outer wall where the kitchen is, to the end of the existing door opening as you can see in the picture. I am considering using a glulam beam if possible, with 3 columns. Is it possible? What dimensions?

 

[bossespecial]

Opening up the wall and shifting the joists is definitely possible. Depending on how the foundation wall is made, it may also mean that you need to make some adjustments to the foundation as you convert the line load to point loads. However, one should be aware that it can affect the stability of the house when removing so much of a load-bearing wall. I would try to keep a portion nearest to the exterior wall. The wall between the living room and bedroom, why is it crossed out?

 

[lagre]

I am about to do something similar with my house. The same length of the opening I will make but with the difference that I have a concrete slab on the house. I will not have any columns other than at the outer parts, no central support point in other words. With that span, it was impossible in my case to have a glulam beam without a center column. It would have ended up being around 615mm high, which is impractical. My solution was instead to order a steel beam. I will then embed it in the floor joists to achieve a completely smooth ceiling.

 

[Sasoliz]

Opening up the wall and exchanging the beam is absolutely possible. Depending on how the foundation wall is made, it may also mean that you have to fix a bit in the foundation when you change the line load to point loads. One should, however, be aware that it can affect the stability of the house when you remove so much of a core wall. I would have tried to save a bit closest to the outer wall. The wall between the living room and bedroom, why is it crossed out?

Opening up the wall and exchanging the beam is absolutely possible. Depending on how the foundation wall is made, it may also mean that you have to fix a bit in the foundation when you change the line load to point loads. One should, however, be aware that it can affect the stability of the house when you remove so much of a core wall. I would have tried to save a bit closest to the outer wall. The wall between the living room and bedroom, why is it crossed out?

this is how it looks under the house, the left wall is the one the core wall goes over.
The wall is crossed out on the drawing because it no longer exists, it was gone when we bought the house.

 

[bossespecial]

[image] [image]
this is what it looks like under the house, the left wall is the heart wall being referred to.
The wall is crossed out on the drawing because it no longer exists; it was gone when we bought the house.

The foundation wall is relatively high, so with load distribution, one can assume that the ground will not experience any increase in stress. Is it built directly on rock or on a footing?
Since you have continuity over the central pillar, the height of the wooden beam will be considerably lower compared to if the beam were only resting on two pillars.
Given that the crossed-out wall is gone, I would avoid tearing down the new wall all the way to the facade as there are few walls on the lower level left to stabilize the house.

 

[Sasoliz]

The foundation wall is relatively high, so with load distribution, one can assume that the ground will not experience any increase in pressure. Is it built directly on rock or on a footing?
Since you have continuity over the middle pillar, the height of the wooden beam will be significantly lower compared to if the beam were only resting on two pillars.
Since the removed wall is gone, I would avoid tearing down the new wall all the way to the facade as there would then be a lack of walls on the lower level to stabilize the house.

I actually don't know that. How can I find out the easiest way? But what if we only open up from the exterior wall to where the middle post will be? Because inside where the middle post is intended to be, a drain pipe runs from the upper floor straight down, so I plan to enclose it with a display cabinet and some cover panels. And then leave everything to the right of the middle post as it is, with a doorway like it is now and about 1 meter of wall.

 

[Sasoliz]

The foundation wall is relatively high, so with load distribution, you can assume that the ground will not experience any increase in stress. Is it built directly on rock or on a footing?
Since you have continuity over the center pillar, the height of the wooden beam becomes significantly lower compared to if the beam were only resting on two pillars.
Since the removed wall is gone, I would avoid demolishing the new wall all the way out to the facade because there are starting to be too few walls on the lower floor to stabilize the house.

would this be easier to do?

 

[16386]

Just to check - you are aware that changes to load-bearing structures require a building notification to the municipality and that you cannot make the changes before you have received a start notice? I have understood from some previous posts that not all municipalities require input from a structural engineer, but I guess that is the most common - and a good investment in your and your family's safety.

 

[Sasoliz]

Just to check - you are aware that changes to load-bearing structures require a building notification to the municipality and that you cannot make the changes before you have received a start notice? I understand from some previous posts that not all municipalities require documentation from a building engineer, but I guess it's the most common - and a good investment in the safety of you and your family.

Yes, I am aware of the building notification, but just want to check a bit here first to get some information and an idea of how it can and should be done.

 

[Niklaspe]

Installed a 270x90 glulam beam that is 2500mm; a 225x90 would have sufficed, but allowed for extra margin! Crawl space with a concrete beam on piers. Worked well!

You already have plumbing from the upper floor, so might as well place a pillar next to it and build it in!

 

[BirgitS]

When it comes to dimensions, it depends on factors such as roof angle, roofing material, and the specific snow zone of the area where you live. This means you can't just use someone else's dimensions directly.

But what if you only open up from the outer wall to where the center post should stand then?

When it comes to stabilization, it's crucial to ensure that the outer walls don't start to bow, which is why it's specifically the walls that support the outer walls that are needed. Unless bossespecial states otherwise.

 

[Niklaspe]

Year built 1975, snow zone 3 Norrbotten. 38-degree roof angle. Then you can check the design software. 90x90 glulam column.