My partner and I are actively looking for a house, and we've now found an interesting one built in 1953.
You all seem knowledgeable here on the forum, and I was wondering if any of you might possibly be able to see if/which walls in this house could be load-bearing. We're interested in tearing down a wall between the kitchen/bedroom/hallway. However, we're uncertain about how the joists are situated or if it might be a cast joist. Unfortunately, there are no construction documents/plans available.
Could I email you some pictures or can you give me advice on how I should proceed?
[h=5]The Building[/h]Building Type: 1½-story villa with basement
Year Built: 1953
Foundation: Basement
Facade: Stucco
Windows: 2-glass
Roof: Tile
Exterior Sheet Metal Work: Metal
I hope you can see the pictures, the areas in red are the walls we would like to tear down. But the question is if these are load-bearing.
The first picture is the first floor, and the second picture is the upper floor.
Very grateful for any response. If interested, I can link to more information about the house and what it looks like.
Assuming N and S are switched between the images? In which direction are the rafters? The load-bearing wall on the first floor is likely going in the opposite direction of the rafters.
If you have a beam through the living room, the wall between the kitchen and bedroom is load-bearing.
If you have any doubts, ask a carpenter or structural engineer to take a look. Also, keep in mind that a change in load-bearing structure (e.g., replacing a load-bearing wall with a beam) requires a building notification.
I have lived in two houses from the 1950s (built in '54 and '50) and both had poured floor slabs, which is definitely the most common from that era here in Skåne. I would guess that the living room walls are load-bearing, and that the walls you want to remove should be fine. An easy way to check is if they are made of light concrete (non-load-bearing) or brick (probably chosen to support the roof or to hang heavy cabinets on).
You can usually find blueprints for free at the city planning office.
As jtl writes, the images are swapped, you can see where the stairs go from the lower floor, it goes "straight up" on the upper floor.
So the small toilet on the lower floor ends up beneath the bathroom on the upper floor.
That way you can see both how the rafters are positioned, and what the walls I want to tear down look like. (Those that are adjacent in the kitchen, that is).
Since the municipal building committee didn't have any blueprints of the house, it's a bit tricky to figure it out..
The ad also doesn't state if the house has a concrete slab or a wooden frame.
But if you look at the floor plan (images at the bottom of the ad), the basement garage looks almost the same as the living room on the lower floor, similarly on the upper floor where the wall to the bedroom is almost the same as on the lower floor and basement. That is, parallel with the rafters.
I have lived in two houses from the 50s (built in -54 and -50) and both had cast concrete floors, which is the most common from that time here in Skåne. I would guess that the living room walls are load-bearing, and that the walls you want to remove should be okay. An easy way to check is if they are made of lightweight concrete (non-load-bearing) or brick (probably chosen to support the roof or to hang heavy cabinets on).
You can usually find the blueprints for free at the city planning office.
Is it possible to tell by the naked eye if the walls are made of lightweight concrete?
I will be attending a viewing of this house in a few days.
It's possible to tear down a load-bearing wall, but it will be more expensive and you'll have to live with an unsightly steel or laminated beam in the ceiling.
It is possible to tear down a load-bearing wall, but it will be more expensive and you will have to live with an unsightly steel or glu-lam beam in the ceiling.
Yes, nothing is impossible But it would be nice to know how things stand when considering how interesting the house is, before a bidding starts.
Knock on the walls to hear/feel what material it is. If you're going there anyway, it might be easier to ask, but double-check by knocking in any case.
If the walls are load-bearing, there must be corresponding walls or beams in the basement (to support the weight).
Tap on the walls to hear/feel what material it is. If you're going there anyway, it might be easier to ask, but double-check by tapping in any case.
If the walls are load-bearing, there must be corresponding walls or beams in the basement (that bear the weight).
I have now looked at the floor plans quite a bit, and "eyeballed" a bit with a ruler.
The wall I have circled in red, which is between the kitchen and bedroom on the ground floor, seems to be in the corresponding place in both the basement and upstairs.
But does that mean it is load-bearing and cannot be torn down on the ground floor without having to put in a beam?
What I find strange, if that's the case, is why does only this wall go through kitchen/bedroom, and how can the living room/garage/and bedroom upstairs (which are all stacked over each other on respective floors) be so open? Then only half of the rafters support, I think. But maybe I'm thinking wrong?
Even if the corresponding wall exists in the basement, it doesn't have to be load-bearing, but it can be.
On the upper floor, it's the trusses/roof structure that are load-bearing. They usually handle the common spans for houses (e.g., 7-8m) without support.
Even if the corresponding wall exists in the basement, the wall doesn't have to be load-bearing, but it can be.
On the upper floor, it is the trusses/roof structure that are load-bearing. They usually handle regular spans for houses (e.g., 7-8m) without support.
Ok.
But I came to think of it, the house isn't that big, about 7x10m. Couldn't the trusses be "self-supporting"? So that none of the walls are load-bearing?
But maybe it doesn't help since the wall we wish to tear down is on the ground floor?
But knocking on the wall doesn’t feel like you get a 100% answer from that..
But if it's not load-bearing, shouldn't it sound more hollow or?
Normally, the roof trusses should be self-supporting, but you can't be completely sure without checking.
Knocking on the wall was more to determine if it was a stone or wooden wall, but even a wooden wall can, of course, be load-bearing. You can't determine this by knocking.
If it's a "catalog house," you might be able to get the plans if the company still exists, but that's probably unlikely. More likely, in the end, you will have to open up and look at the flooring and truss construction to determine if the wall is load-bearing or not.
If they are modern self-supporting trusses across the length of the house, the wall should not be load-bearing since the living room spans from wall to wall. If it holds there, it should hold at the other end of the house too (reasonably). Otherwise, you might imagine that the flooring above the living room runs in the lengthwise direction of the house, and in that case, the interior wall to the living room is load-bearing. However, this seems unlikely for a modern house from '53.
Jag förstår det så att en ramverkstakstol på ett 11/2-planshus med inredd övervåning normalt är konstruerade för att stödjas under på mitten.
Alltså borde väggen mellan kök och sovrum vara bärande.
Men jag saknar en bärande vägg tvärs över vardagsrummet.
I understand it so that a frame truss on a 1 1/2-story house with an attic normally is designed to be supported in the middle. So the wall between the kitchen and bedroom should be load-bearing. But I lack a load-bearing wall across the living room.
Or are the joists cast vaults?
Yes, I find it odd that there is then no wall across the living room or garage, or the bedroom upstairs.
Yes, the question is whether the joists are cast slabs or a wooden frame. I don't know what is to be preferred?
Hm, you might have a point there, upon further reflection. However, it is possible to make the roof trusses and intermediate beams free-standing, but it is probably a cost issue.
Vi vill skicka notiser för ämnen du bevakar och händelser som berör dig.
But it would be nice to know how things stand when considering how interesting the house is, before a bidding starts.
