Contractor / engineer - Wake County

thelivecanary

Eight Pointer
Are there any structural engineers or good contractors on here that can come in and look at house to determine if a wall can be removed or what segment of a wall can be removed. Or perhaps someone knows someone in Wake County....I have a wall that I need to remove or reduce to open up my kitchen. I've been in the house for a year and it's got to go. I'm redoing the floors anyhow so I figure why not make a mess of the whole place...right? No time like now to reconfigure the structural integrity of house haha. Anyhow let me know because I don't want go in blind to a project like this.

Cheers,
 

brownisdown

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
How big of a house? When was it built? If it's a rectangular floor plan ranch style built using roof trusses rather than stick framed rafters then it is highly likely only your exterior walls are load bearing. Can you take a picture of the attic?
 

thelivecanary

Eight Pointer
How big of a house? When was it built? If it's a rectangular floor plan ranch style built using roof trusses rather than stick framed rafters then it is highly likely only your exterior walls are load bearing. Can you take a picture of the attic?

It's a ranch style built in 2000 what I'm also worried about is that the living room cieling goes up and follows the roof line whereas the kitchen has rafters and an 8 foot cieling.
 

brownisdown

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
It's a ranch style built in 2000 what I'm also worried about is that the living room cieling goes up and follows the roof line whereas the kitchen has rafters and an 8 foot cieling.

This is not good news for you if the two rooms are connected. Vaulted ceiling likely means either scissor truss or stick framed rafters. That means the ceiling joists are likely sitting on your kitchen walls. Probably need a post and header to nock that wall out.
 

thelivecanary

Eight Pointer
This is not good news for you if the two rooms are connected. Vaulted ceiling likely means either scissor truss or stick framed rafters. That means the ceiling joists are likely sitting on your kitchen walls. Probably need a post and header to nock that wall out.

Yup i think you are correct. Have you seen this done and does it look like crap going from one room to the next if I were to open it up?
 

brownisdown

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
done right it looks as nice as any design. There is basically two methods to do it. Put your header above the ceiling joists and hang the joists from it, this would make your posts look like they go all the way up to the ceiling and your ceiling can be flat one room to the next. The other is a drop header similar to a large door opening so to speak where you put the header in below the joists to span between posts.
 

thelivecanary

Eight Pointer
I get ya.

I was thinking of the latter, because I think the cost would be less doing it that way....but the other would look way better.

Decisions....

I'm going to PM some pics if you don't mind and take this off the forum. I really appreciate the info.
 
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