Room Additions in Monterey Park
Monterey Park room additions by Aspenwell Construction that open an old kitchen into a new family room, carried on an engineered flush beam and posts.
Cooking, homework and a television can share one open room in a Monterey Park house when the wall between the old kitchen and the new space comes out cleanly. If that wall is bearing, a beam takes over its load. Set flush with the ceiling, the beam leaves no soffit to break the room, and the posts at each end hide inside the walls where they carry the weight down to new footings.
The beam that makes it one room
A flush beam is set within the depth of the ceiling joists, which then hang off its sides in steel hangers. A dropped beam goes up faster and reads as a band across the ceiling. The engineer sizes either one for the span and the roof load above it, often in laminated veneer lumber or glulam. The posts at each end need their own footings, so a pad of concrete may go under the floor at each post. Temporary shoring holds the ceiling while the wall is removed and the beam is set.
How the room works through a day
Sight lines from the stove to the sofa and to the back door decide where the beam lands and where the opening stops. An island needs clearance on every side, and a family room needs a wall long enough for seating. Outlets along the island and the far wall keep cords off the floor. The building department that serves Monterey Park reviews the beam calculations with the rest of the set, and inspectors see the posts, hangers and footings before drywall goes up.
About our room additions serviceEverything we do in Monterey Park
Room Additions in Monterey Park: questions
Before an upper floor goes on, the engineer checks the old footing, the soil and every wall that would sit underneath. A wall removed for the open plan changes that check, since its load now travels through posts. Short footings get new concrete or added posts, built first.
Hangers, straps and bolts where the engineer calls for them. The new walls fasten to the existing studs and plate, the floor joins at the same height, and the new beam's posts tie down to their footings. Where the roofs meet, a strap crosses the seam and flashing laps over it.
Opening the kitchen wall already puts the engineer inside the house's load path. Bolting the sill and bracing cripple walls under the older rooms can join the same set while the floor is accessible. Each item is listed and priced separately, with the reason written beside it.
Room Additions in other cities
More we build in Monterey Park
Book an inspection in Monterey Park
Describe the house and what it needs. We look at the structure first and send the quote in writing.