No support when knocking down reception room - HELP

6 years ago

Hi,

The builders just knocked through the two reception room walls (we are making a though lounge), they havent fitted an RSJ in yet and it looks as though there is no supporting framework for the existing walls right now for before the RSJ gets fitted in. Is this safe? If not, do you know how long the walls will last before causing damage?

My builder said that they left 80cm of the wall which helps act as support but I dont think that its enough.

Please if anyone knows what needs to be done and how long i have to do it that would be great!

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Comments (7)

chief_brody
6 years ago
First thing would be to inspect your builders liability insurance. If he can't produce it then sack him. Not easy to tell how safe the work is but I presume you are following building regs and the wall was previously inspected by an engineer before being removed.
kikiamack
6 years ago
I would think at the very least they should have put up supporting poles, that's what our builder did.
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Hi, Are all the walls you want to knock down supporting walls? (Ie solid brick) or are they just partition walls? (Hollow sound when you knock on them). We just had a single solid supporting wall knocked through our kitchen diner and it was a lot of work. You need building regs and we had to have a structural engineer even for a small wall as it was supporting a lot of rooms above it. All together - to remove one 7', it cost £1200 (that was cheap!). Your ceiling has to be supported so they would need to leave in posts (can be either side of the opening or in the middle as a feature). An alternative is to have a partition door put in between the rooms so that you can open them up with bi fold doors to get the feeling of space when you want it but to keep it cosy when you don't.
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mayfly182
6 years ago
They should absolutely have put acro props in. These are steel props which look flimsy but carry a surprising amount of weight.

My
mum's just doing this with her flat. The buildings inspector came
round and specified how many props and where they had to go before
anything was touched. The RSJs were specified by a structural engineer
and also passed by the building inspector. It's a vital part of getting
it passed by building regs without which you'll have serious problems
when you come to sell, even if it is safe.

If there are acro props up, get in touch with building regs before it goes any further.If there are no acro props up, phone another builder and ask them if they can put some props up ASAP. A good builder should automatically prioritise it over any other jobs they have since it's a super quick and also urgent job but will probably want it in writing that someone else took the wall down. Also get in touch with building control (building control is the department which issues building regs and will send a building inspector).

The exception to all this is if the wall is not structural but that's unlikely if there's a floor above it and impossible if there's another wall directly above.

Also, your builder must by law have public liability insurance for if this sort of thing goes wrong.

I can't give any sort of time frame for this. It's likely that any damage is already done but possible that cracks are propagating over time and may cause more damage if you leave it. It's entirely possible everything will be fine even without props. I've seen some awful things including a case where a man with obvious mental health problems took out all the walls in the basement of a 3-story building without using props and it somehow still didn't fall down.
Daisy England
6 years ago
It works on a cantilever basis so if anything dropped it would only be a minuscule amount.
I'm sure they know what they're doing. If they say it's fine, then you'll have to assume they're right.
Jonathan
6 years ago
Was it definitely a supporting wall? It might not need support.
Is there a wall upstairs above this one? If not it is unlikely to be a structural wall that has been removed so no need to worry.
PRO
OnePlan
6 years ago
Bring in a structural engineer if you fear for your family's safety. Of at least speak to one in the phone.
PRO
OnePlan
6 years ago
( sorry for typos - on a small screen ! And coffee not kicked in yet !!)

No support when knocking down reception room - HELP

Comments (7)

chief_brody

kikiamack

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