Supporting wall - how to tell?

[ATTAK Z]

You should ask for a survey by a competent structural engineer. He/she will inform which walls can come out and the structural implications. Expect to pay around £80.00 per hour plus expenses

[Simpo Two]

Generally (caveat - I'm not a builder) if the joists run at right angles to the wall it's holding the ceiling up; if they run parallel it doesn't. And you can work out which way the joists run by looking at the floorboards.

[Dogwatch]

If the bathroom, shower and toilet are on the top floor of the house it's unlikely their walls are anything more than partitions. However a look in the loft will show if there is a chimney or important roof truss being supported. Or a weighty water tank...


Some 'builders' may know little more than you do. be careful out there!

[ATTAK Z]

Dogwatch said:

.......... However a look in the loft will show if there is a chimney or important roof truss being supported. Or a weighty water tank...

or a purlin
or a UB
or a set of ceiling joists
or etc.


or the wall you wish to remove could be providing lateral restraint to an external or party wall


please get an expert opinion from someone with PI

[Jasandjules]

[PH Mode]

Knock it down, it'll soon be clear

[/PH Mode]

But other than that, as others have said, it's really a structural engineer/surveyor issue...... I would say that most builders will also know.

[ATTAK Z]

Buggles said:

Ok, so the best thing to do is to get a structural engineer in then, will do that then when we are ready to redesign the bathroom.

It's the first house we've ever bought so I didn't know if there was a way to tell on the plans is all.

Thanks for the help fellas

way to go

[Simpo Two]

If we never hear from you again we'll know your house collapsed and killed you

[ColinM50]

Buggles said:

It's the first house we've ever bought so I didn't know if there was a way to tell on the plans is all.

What plans? I've bought four secondhand houses and one brand new and the brand new one had a set of plans but the s/h ones didn;t. It's not part of the deeds you get when you buy a house as far as I'm aware.

If it's a newish house then any halfway competent builder should be able to tell you which way the joists run. If it's an older or unusual house, then I'd go for a structural engineer. If you're having a survey done for mortgage anyway, find out who's doing it and ask him to check for you at the same time.

[Jasandjules]

Buggles said:

'Right, so you know how you wanted the bathroom opened up, well it's open plan into the loft and outside now. How good is that?'

That's not going to end well for me is it?!?!?!

Ah, that's the Traditional Maldivian bathroom, she'd be delighted....

[Fer]

Jasandjules][PH Mode said:

Knock it down, it'll soon be clear

[/PH Mode]

But other than that, as others have said, it's really a structural engineer/surveyor issue...... I would say that most builders will also know.

Shouldn't you kick the back doors in at the same time, just to be sure?

[Fer]

Don't forget the can of Red Bull, and to drop into conversation how many directorships you hold!

Well played, OP.

[Busa mav]

ATTAK Z said:

or the wall you wish to remove could be providing lateral restraint to an external or party wall

I think that is the one that is overlooked more often than not.

I looked in on a property this morning where a ground floor wall had been dropped as it was " non loadbearing " .

Only to see the end of main trimmer now sat wedged next to a joist at 90' so just a quarter of the top floor sat there un supported !

Amazingly , the ceilings were down and all was plain to see , but it still went overlooked and it would have been boarded over again.

[JR]

Buggles said:

I'm new to all this. We are in the process of sorting out the mortgage/survey, so will opt for the more thorough one and get this done too I think. May as well do it while they are on site.

But they're usually done by a surveyor whereas you probably need the opinion of a structural engineer. I'd opt for the minimum mortgage survey and get your own structural engineer.