Walls and Ceilings - Modifying entrance, load bearing/non walls
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06-04-00, 06:18 PM
Hi there-
I live in a home built in 1975. The front door is located near the center of the house in front. Directly in front of the door is a closet. I would like to remove the closet entirely, leaving only the left-hand and rear wall of the closet. The right-hand (as you're facing it) wall of the closet is actually part of a longer wall that extends a good portion of the house- but not the entire way. Basically, the right hand wall extends down the spine of the house parallel to another wall and forms the main hallway. The left-hand wall extends the entire length of the house, although it takes a couple of "jogs" near the back to accomodate doors and a bedroom.
Having been in the crawlspace (nasty, that- full of cellulose) and looked at the construction, I am not sure which wall, or both, is load-bearing or not. I believe that at least one is, as it is about 1 foot to the side of where the main supports for the roof come down.
The roof is peaked with the point being directly above the center of the house, perpendicular to the street. In the crawlspace, I noted that the roof is supported by three sets of 2x4s, of which two are on either side of the center, about halfway between the peak of the roof and the outside walls, and one is in the direct center. The two outside are paired, coming down to rest on the joists. The center one has a third board extending straight up to the center roof peak. The outside ones do not appear to be directly over any walls. The center one, as mentioned, appears to be about a foot to one side of a wall that starts about 6 feet into the house and extends to the back, stopping about 10 feet from the rear. There is a second wall parallel to that one, extending all the way to the back of the house, but it takes several "jogs" to accomodate doors and the like.
My question is this: Is it possible to remove about 2 feet of this wall at the front of the house to accomodate my plan to remove the closet at the front of the house? Since it is, or appears to be, either the main or one of a pair of load-bearing members, I am understandably cautious about simply getting out the crowbar, as you can imagine.
Sorry for the length of this post, but I wanted to be sure I explained everything fully, and I am not well versed in construction terms. Thanks in advance for any advice. A diagram of the walls in question or of the roof structure can be provided via email upon request.
Sincerely,
Corey Snow
cyclometh@yahoo.com
I live in a home built in 1975. The front door is located near the center of the house in front. Directly in front of the door is a closet. I would like to remove the closet entirely, leaving only the left-hand and rear wall of the closet. The right-hand (as you're facing it) wall of the closet is actually part of a longer wall that extends a good portion of the house- but not the entire way. Basically, the right hand wall extends down the spine of the house parallel to another wall and forms the main hallway. The left-hand wall extends the entire length of the house, although it takes a couple of "jogs" near the back to accomodate doors and a bedroom.
Having been in the crawlspace (nasty, that- full of cellulose) and looked at the construction, I am not sure which wall, or both, is load-bearing or not. I believe that at least one is, as it is about 1 foot to the side of where the main supports for the roof come down.
The roof is peaked with the point being directly above the center of the house, perpendicular to the street. In the crawlspace, I noted that the roof is supported by three sets of 2x4s, of which two are on either side of the center, about halfway between the peak of the roof and the outside walls, and one is in the direct center. The two outside are paired, coming down to rest on the joists. The center one has a third board extending straight up to the center roof peak. The outside ones do not appear to be directly over any walls. The center one, as mentioned, appears to be about a foot to one side of a wall that starts about 6 feet into the house and extends to the back, stopping about 10 feet from the rear. There is a second wall parallel to that one, extending all the way to the back of the house, but it takes several "jogs" to accomodate doors and the like.
My question is this: Is it possible to remove about 2 feet of this wall at the front of the house to accomodate my plan to remove the closet at the front of the house? Since it is, or appears to be, either the main or one of a pair of load-bearing members, I am understandably cautious about simply getting out the crowbar, as you can imagine.
Sorry for the length of this post, but I wanted to be sure I explained everything fully, and I am not well versed in construction terms. Thanks in advance for any advice. A diagram of the walls in question or of the roof structure can be provided via email upon request.
Sincerely,
Corey Snow
cyclometh@yahoo.com
06-05-00, 12:15 AM
I suggest calling in a couple of different contractors to look at what you are thinking about doing and get estimates and ideas from them. Pick their brain while they are there as to which walls are bearing and which ones aren't. Basically, any wall that runs parallel with your ceiling joists is not a bearing wall, but any wall that runs under 2 or more joists should be treated as a bearing wall.
06-05-00, 03:34 AM
There is a good chance that this is a bearing wall, but for what you want to do, it probably is ok. I have seen a hundred homes just like your with the same floor plan. Without seeing yours though I do not want to say for sure. Do what Lefty says.
It is always good to get an opinion from someone else right there. It is free. Good Luck
It is always good to get an opinion from someone else right there. It is free. Good Luck