Bricks, Masonry, Asphalt and Concrete - Cutting Brick for Walloven Opening

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Kellydee
10-15-05, 01:55 PM
My house was built in 1958 and the wall oven is a very old model. The opening in a brick wall is too small for newer models and i need to increase the opening. My question is; Can i reduce the 3.5" width of the brick down to two inches and still have a strong bearing wall? or is it too risky cutting that much of the brick? Any advice is appreciated.

Concretemasonry
10-15-05, 02:25 PM
Are you sure your brick are really loadbearing. They may be a veneer on a wood stud or concrete block wall.

Just because brick are very strong does not mean they are loadbearing.

Dick
Kellydee
10-15-05, 05:40 PM
they are difinetly full bricks. You can see the full brick and that is what i have to cut down and i was worried that two inches of brick would not leave enough brick to be stable and sturdy. Let me know what you think,,i sure appreciate it.

rdn2113
10-15-05, 09:06 PM
concretemasonry was not really talking about the size of the bricks, he was pointing out that cutting into the brick wall (or any wall) that is "load bearing" - meaning there is weight (i.e., a "load") pressing down on the wall such that if you weaken it, it could cause a portion (or more) of the house to collapse.

check the wall to make sure it is not load bearing. If not, enlarging the oven slot is fine. If it is, you'll need to make sure the re-sizing will not affect the strength of the wall.