Hello!
We have purchased our third renovation project in a row, and the projects seem to be getting bigger and bigger...
Now we plan to open up between the kitchen, dining room, and living room on the ground floor, but I can't figure out which walls are load-bearing.
In the attached image, there are 3 walls marked - they are to be removed.
To the left of wall 2 is the chimneystack.
We don't want any pillars and prefer as few/small beams as possible (I-beam?).
How do you think we should place the beams?
Your experiences?
The house is made of wood on a concrete slab
Thanks!
We have purchased our third renovation project in a row, and the projects seem to be getting bigger and bigger...
Now we plan to open up between the kitchen, dining room, and living room on the ground floor, but I can't figure out which walls are load-bearing.
In the attached image, there are 3 walls marked - they are to be removed.
To the left of wall 2 is the chimneystack.
We don't want any pillars and prefer as few/small beams as possible (I-beam?).
How do you think we should place the beams?
Your experiences?
The house is made of wood on a concrete slab
Thanks!
It looks more like it might be in the basement...
All the basement walls that are beneath the walls on the first floor seem to be sturdier. I guess at least 1 should be replaced with something that can bear load.
All the basement walls that are beneath the walls on the first floor seem to be sturdier. I guess at least 1 should be replaced with something that can bear load.
Yes, wall 1 probably needs to be replaced with a beam.
However, the only solution I can think of (without pillars)
Is it possible to weld them together instead of having them resting on each other?
However, the only solution I can think of (without pillars)
- Replace wall 2 with a beam from the wall to the chimney.
- Then place a beam to support the above beam instead of wall 1.
Is it possible to weld them together instead of having them resting on each other?
You should attach a section of the house to provide a better overall view.
How old is the house? I'm not sure you can tell just by looking at the plans if the walls are load-bearing. However, I am reasonably sure that you're not allowed to have anything load-bearing in the house resting on the chimney. Welding beams together as a T shouldn't be a problem in terms of strength, but there are probably some things to consider before welding inside a living space.
The house is from 1946.A Avemo said:
Welding in the living room must be done by a professional with a certificate. I've done it before. However, unclear how much load it can take...
The chimney, good input... The chimney is not all the way forward, so the beam will rest on the currently load-bearing wall. However, this might need to be stabilized.
What kind of certificate? I can weld in the kitchen if I feel like it.
And I get to install the waterproofing in the bathroom, but it will be troublesome with the insurance company if there's water damage 
No idea, that's what svets-nisse said.
No idea, that's what svets-nisse said.
Best answer
It's not certain that you can remove any wall at all. Walls 1 and 3 definitely not without replacement. It's a complicated floor plan, and it might require columns in places where you don't want them. Around the chimney, there is likely some form of support, the execution of which is not clear from the drawings, but it complicates things as well. The house is a plank house, and it's quite possible that there is no regular floor beam above wall 2. If you want to proceed, you need to get help from a technically competent person who understands this type of building and can examine the conditions more thoroughly on-site. By technically competent, I mean someone with higher technical education in building construction.