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MasterCrumble26 Jan 2017 10:51Hello everyone,
I have been following this forum for a while. Last year, we purchased an old house with an extension and are now in the process of renovating it. The main house was built around 1935 (+-), and the extension dates back to the 1970s.
I would like to block up an opening in a wall that currently has a door. Normally, this would be a straightforward task. However, instead of a lintel above the door frame, I found wooden beams (see picture).
Since I wasn’t sure about this, I temporarily supported the structure and scheduled an appointment with a structural engineer. Nevertheless, I wanted to ask here as well:
How is this holding up, especially the beam that seems to be taking the place of a lintel?
Should the wooden beams be completely removed, or should the wall be built around them?
Since this wall will later be part of the kitchen, I want to make sure it will support hanging cabinets again.
Best regards
I have been following this forum for a while. Last year, we purchased an old house with an extension and are now in the process of renovating it. The main house was built around 1935 (+-), and the extension dates back to the 1970s.
I would like to block up an opening in a wall that currently has a door. Normally, this would be a straightforward task. However, instead of a lintel above the door frame, I found wooden beams (see picture).
Since I wasn’t sure about this, I temporarily supported the structure and scheduled an appointment with a structural engineer. Nevertheless, I wanted to ask here as well:
How is this holding up, especially the beam that seems to be taking the place of a lintel?
Should the wooden beams be completely removed, or should the wall be built around them?
Since this wall will later be part of the kitchen, I want to make sure it will support hanging cabinets again.
Best regards
Do I understand correctly that the old door opening will be bricked up and a kitchen will be built in front of it later?
I would assume you won’t have any issues installing the kitchen, whether you screw into the wooden beams or the surrounding masonry.
The beam looks to be in good condition in the pictures. As long as it’s not completely soft and rotten, I would leave it in place and simply brick it in.
The only potential issue I see is that plastering might require some extra effort to avoid cracking, since wood can always move slightly.
I would assume you won’t have any issues installing the kitchen, whether you screw into the wooden beams or the surrounding masonry.
The beam looks to be in good condition in the pictures. As long as it’s not completely soft and rotten, I would leave it in place and simply brick it in.
The only potential issue I see is that plastering might require some extra effort to avoid cracking, since wood can always move slightly.
So, as it is now, is the wall made of masonry but with wooden beams, or is the wall also lightweight construction? I wouldn’t necessarily support it; it looks in the picture like the wall is as thick as the beam, so quite thin. Probably non-load-bearing, meaning you should avoid transferring ceiling loads onto it (that’s why a gap is usually left at the top of non-load-bearing walls near the ceiling, so no loads rest on them)… Warning: this is a layman’s opinion, a structural engineer should be able to answer this.
My personal approach would be a lightweight construction using wooden battens, insulation, and fiber gypsum boards, but of course, that’s a matter of personal preference.
My personal approach would be a lightweight construction using wooden battens, insulation, and fiber gypsum boards, but of course, that’s a matter of personal preference.
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