Wall removals and RSJ beams

What this covers

Taking out a load-bearing wall and putting a steel beam in its place. The ceiling gets propped and needled first, then the wall comes down, the steel is lifted in and bedded on padstones at each end, and the opening is boxed in and made good.

Who signs it off, and who does what

A structural engineer calculates the beam and the padstones. We install to those calculations. Building control inspects the work before it gets covered and again at the end, and you keep the completion certificate.

That certificate matters more than people expect. It is the document a buyer’s solicitor asks for when you come to sell, and an opening without one is a problem you inherit rather than a job you finished.

What changes the price

Three things, in order. The span. Whether the wall carries the floor above as well as the ceiling. And what is buried in it, because pipes, cables and a soil stack all have to go somewhere else first. We tell you which of those apply to your wall before we start, not after it is open.

What the week actually looks like

Day one is dust. The room gets sheeted, the doorway sealed and the ceiling propped. The middle days are the loud ones. By the end the opening is plastered, the props are gone and so is the skip.

What we need to know first

• Whether you are opening between two rooms, or into an extension, because they are different jobs

• What is in the wall. A soil stack, a gas run or the consumer unit all change the order of work

• Whether the property is listed or sits in a conservation area

• Access, because a steel beam has to physically get into the room before it can go up

Common questions

Do I need planning permission to remove an internal wall?

Usually not. You do need building control, and that is not optional. A listed building or a conservation area changes the answer, so check with the council first if either applies to you.

How do I know whether my wall is load-bearing?

Some are obvious and some genuinely are not. Which way the joists run above it is the usual tell, and a wall that lines up with one below it is a strong hint. The only safe answer is that a structural engineer confirms it before anything comes out.

What is a padstone and why does it keep coming up?

The steel bears on a padstone at each end, a solid block that spreads the load into the wall underneath. Undersizing them, or leaving them out, is one of the most common faults in this work and it is not visible once the opening is boarded.

Can we stay in the house while it is done?

Usually, but that room is out of use for the duration and the middle of the job is loud and dusty. If you work from home, plan to be somewhere else for a couple of days.

What happens if it costs more once the wall is open?

What is inside the wall is the main unknown, so we look before we price wherever we can get a look. Anything we cannot see gets flagged to you at the measure-up as a possibility, rather than appearing on day three as a surprise.