Walls that are carrying weight taken out and replaced with a beam that has been sized for the load. Temporary support goes in first, the design is signed, and building control sees it.
For load-bearing wall removal the beam is sized, not guessed
A beam replacing a load-bearing wall carries everything the wall was carrying, and the size of it is a calculation rather than an opinion. It depends on the span, what is above, whether a roof load lands on it, and what the bearing at each end can actually take.
Undersize it and the floor above deflects, doors stop closing and the crack appears six months later when everyone has been paid. We have the beam designed by an engineer, we build the padstones and bearings the design calls for, and you get the calculations to keep.
Building control usually wants to see the design and inspect the bearing before it is covered, and that inspection is part of the programme. Supports during the work are covered under shoring and support, non-structural walls come out under wall removal, and the wider works run as selective demolition.
Recent work
How It Runs
Four stages, priced before stage two
Confirm the load
What the wall carries, checked above and below.
Design and size
Engineer sizes the beam and the bearings.
Prop and cut
Support in, wall out, beam set on padstones.
Inspect and close
Building control sees the bearing before covering.
Both Sides
Support goes in on both sides first
The dangerous moment is not removing the wall, it is the interval between the wall stopping carrying and the beam starting to. Everything above has to be held during that gap, on both sides, and the props have to bear onto something that can take the load rather than onto a floor that will simply move.
Where the wall runs through more than one storey, the propping runs through them too, which is the part homeowners are most often surprised by. We set the propping to the engineer s design, check it before the first course comes out, and keep it in until the beam is bearing and the mortar has gained strength.
For a load-bearing wall, yes. They will want the beam design and usually an inspection of the bearing before it is covered up. We build that inspection into the programme.
The physical work is commonly two to four days. The engineer design and the building control notice are what set the start date, so allow a few weeks in total.
Usually yes, though the room and often the one above are out of use while propping is in. Dust is contained but the noise is unavoidable for a day or two.
Then the propping runs through those floors too. It takes longer and it changes the price, which is why we check what is above before quoting rather than after.
Often, yes. Keeping a section of wall at each end retains the bracing and allows a shorter, lighter beam. We will say when that is the better answer.
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