Full Home Remodeling in Rolling Hills
Rolling Hills whole-house remodels that carry the weight of a removed wall through new beams, posts and piers to the ground. Aspenwell Construction.
"Will the floor feel solid once the walls between these rooms are gone?" For a Rolling Hills house, that turns on the girders and posts under the floor and the joists above it. Removing a bearing wall shifts weight onto a new beam, and the structure beneath each new post has to carry it to the ground. We look at both levels on the first visit before giving an answer.
Following the weight down
When a bearing wall comes out, its load does not vanish. It moves to the ends of the new beam, into posts, and down through the floor to a footing. If a post lands between existing piers, a new pier or footing is poured below it. Under a raised floor, the girders and posts are checked for size and for rot where they meet the concrete. Floor joists that span too far are stiffened with added blocking or sistered lumber, and that is what stops bounce in a newly opened room.
Bracing and damp air under the house
A raised floor on a coastal lot can stay moist underneath, and that moisture reaches the sill and the bottoms of the cripple walls. During the survey both are probed for soft wood. New bolts and plywood bracing go in once sound wood is confirmed, using galvanized hardware suited to damp conditions. Vents stay clear so air moves through the crawlspace. The building department reviews the bracing and beam details on one set, and the inspector sees each connection before it is covered.
About our full home remodeling serviceEverything we do in Rolling Hills
Full Home Remodeling in Rolling Hills: questions
Interior partitions with nothing bearing on them are the easiest to remove. A wall supporting ceiling joists, rafters or a floor above needs a beam and posts first, and the posts need a solid path down to footings. Walls that brace the house sideways are kept or replaced with equal bracing. Each wall's role is confirmed from the attic and the crawlspace.
The bracing comes first in the build. Anchor bolts and cripple wall plywood are installed from below while that space is free of new work. Settling this early also means any rotted sill found along the way is replaced before new posts and beams put weight on it.
Footings, piers, girders, posts, the sill, its bolts and the cripple walls are examined from the crawlspace. In the attic, rafters, ceiling joists and the roof's bearing points are recorded. Floors are checked for sag and bounce, and cracks are measured. That gives the engineer what is needed to size beams and plan footings for a more open layout.
Full Home Remodeling in other cities
More we build in Rolling Hills
Book an inspection in Rolling Hills
Describe the house and what it needs. We look at the structure first and send the quote in writing.