knocking down a wall

[hopetoextend]

how do i know if a wall i want to knock down and move is a supporting wall?

I have rang numerous builders-all who seem to be too busy or only do big jobs. the builders that i can come out to give me a quote or to check don't seem to know.

I want to move a wall in my kitchen about 3 feet

I have checked the floorboards upstairs and the joists run from front to back however, i can see the wall, made of breeze block in the joists.
does this mean it is a supporting wall?

any help would be appreciated as this is driving me mad.

 

[Igorian]

I'm not a builder, but are the joists running perpendicular to the wall and can you see if the wall is resting in the joists? If so, it's a good sign that it's supporting. If the wall is parallel to the joists, it probably isn't.

Try employing a surveyor rather than a builder to be sure.

 

[Mug-o-Latte]

I employed a structural engineer to check whether a wall was supporting (as well as to provide some calculations for a metal beam for another wall). I got two quotes first of all. One for about £300, the other for £1500. Guess which one I went with