# Looking into removing a load bearing wall



## IRuehl (Jul 1, 2011)

:thumbsup: New to this. I am thinking it is a load bearing wall, but before I call in a structural engineer, and am out 500, I thought I would see what others thought. From being up in the attic it looks like it may be. But it also has an air duct running in it, I don't know it they do that in a load bearing wall or not.
Anyhow, Its a ranch from the 1970 on a concrete slab. The wall I am looking to take out runs down the center of the house, dividing the living room-'den' and also seems be run the length of the hallway. The section I want gone is 14' long, and would thus be an opening of 19' The living room has a lower ceiling than the den, that has a slope celling and sits about 3' taller and what I think is the load bearing wall. Well, hope the pics work, maybe you can give your 'opinion' if it is or isn't, and maybe an 'opinion' how much it would cost on average to remove it ourselves, and how much a contractor would charge? We are also in South East GA.

Thanks guys, gals.


Interior wall in drawing with the measurements are the 2 I want gone...









And a few as it looks. Sorry they are dark, the crappy wall I want to remove blocks all the light to the den.





























And now from the Living room






























If I didnt not give need info, or left out anything I should have said, please let me know. Thanks!


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

I would say that the wall in the red line is a load bearing wall. It can be taken out but it will need support in another way and will be complicated. If you aren't really experienced and seasoned in construction you do not need to attempt to take that wall out.


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## IRuehl (Jul 1, 2011)

jiju1943 said:


> I would say that the wall in the red line is a load bearing wall. It can be taken out but it will need support in another way and will be complicated. If you aren't really experienced and seasoned in construction you do not need to attempt to take that wall out.


 
Thats what I was thinking! :laughing:


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## Daniel Holzman (Mar 10, 2009)

A load bearing wall by definition is a wall that supports more than its own weight. You stated you have a ranch, by which I assume you mean a single story house, with an attic. In that case, the wall could potentially be supporting joists in the attic that bear on it. This should be relatively easy to tell from the attic, which by your post you were able to access. So what you need to do is to go up into the attic and determine if the attic joists run across the wall, and are supported by the wall.

It is possible that you have trusses that do not bear on the wall, although this is a little unlikely for a 1970 house. It is also possible that the joists run parallel to the wall, although this seems unlikely from the drawing. But the only way to tell is to get up into the attic and draw a sketch of what you see.


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## IRuehl (Jul 1, 2011)

Ok, I can have my husband go up and take photos, I am too scared of spiders to go in there!


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## Gary in WA (Mar 11, 2009)

Just show us a picture of the over-hang ends (low) of the rafters or trusses at the exterior (if open soffit), I'm guessing rafters-from the pic of the rake (cathedral) ceiling in the den resting on your *bearing wall*. An Engineer may want you to shear plywood (depends on house location) the "D" room walls with the round-frame pictures on them because of removing the proposed, let us know the outcome.

Gary


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