Frame house: removing wall
My partner and I are purchasing a 2 story frame house in south slope. The house is 16×100 lot. Which makes the interior feel very tight. We would like to take down the interior walls on the first floor( which I am assuming is a load bearing wall) running from the front to the back…
My partner and I are purchasing a 2 story frame house in south slope. The house is 16×100 lot. Which makes the interior feel very tight. We would like to take down the interior walls on the first floor( which I am assuming is a load bearing wall) running from the front to the back of the house. I am wondering if anyone has had this done to their house before as I have seen it done in a few open houses. Any recommendations on Structural engineers, contractors? Also, any idea of how long the project might take and cost? Thanks for time and help.
I know a contractor perfect for this job! Mr.Patrick he is affordable and has done similar work at my house last year. This is his contact info: 1646-945-0112.
Dibs – you got me there! I actually combined two messages from that thread, but missed that part when reviewing it. Well, the important part is that the information got across, not to mention that I managed to answer the question before Jock!
Jim beat me to the punch and pretty much covered it all. If you’d like to discuss further feel free to contact me. We work with some great architects and structural engineers.
Constantine Rigas
bullfrog builders
718-228-0199
LOL Jim….you cut and pasted that from a response to the same question a week ago. The (yes you spelled that correctly) gave it away.
I’ve done these and Jim is right.
16′ isn’t that wide but I you need to look at what’s going on structurally above and below the wall you wish to remove.
A friend of my who does alot of spontaneous renovation thought he’d take out that wall in his Windor Terrace, 2-story frame house with cellar. He looked in the basement and didn’t find any columns or walls beneath the hall wall and proceeded to rip down the wall in the living room. He also didn’t have walls in the same spots on the second floor. He called me because them he thought his living room looked funny and I suggested he reinstall a bit of a soffit and a little wall and column near the front door for a feeling of entry. It ended up working out ok but I woudn’t go that way myself without really checking things out in advance. I’d also be inclined to pick up the load of the second floor with a beam and column configuration.
Technically the wall in question may not be a bearing walls as most of the time the joists span from one side wall to the other. However, the joists do sag over time and are often being supported by these non-“bearing” walls. Many engineers commonly refer to these walls as stiffening walls because of this. The same walls are usually bearing at the stairs as they do generally pick up the load of the joists cut around the stairwell.
We’ve done a number of these in the past few years. There are a few different ways, and picking the right one will depend upon your budget and the desired character of the space. We’ve completely removed that wall and replaced with a beam (sometimes steel, sometimes laminated lumber) within a soffit (yes, you spelled that correctly) bearing on a column or two, depending upon the length of the opening.
We’ve also managed to eliminate the wall without the use of a beam or column by beefing up the floor structure. This is more invasive and I’d only recommend it if you’re gutting anyway.
As for who does it; structural engineers or contractors, you’ll definitely need a structural engineer and/or an architect as the work will need to be filed with the DOB.
Call me if you want to discuss it directly.
Jim Hill, RA, LEED AP
Urban Pioneering Architecture
(646) 309-7259