load bearing wall

[ncryptd]

Hi,

Firstly, apologies if this topic has already been answered.

We had an extension built about 12 years ago. The external wall was kept and not knockec down.

I am having a new kitchen installed and would like to knock down part of the wall (roughly 3 metres) to make one big open area.

As this is a load bearing wall, I have notified the council and have put in a 'building notice application'.

My questions:

1. Do I need to get a structural engineer to come and carry out calculations and give me a plan?
My builder says that this is not necessary as this is a pretty straightforward job.

2. How much will a SE charge? I have just phoned one up and he is quoted £300 just to do calculations and give me a drawing.

My builder has told me the beam I will need is 203 x 102, does anyone know what the rough cost of this would be?

Many thanks in advance

 

[mikric]

Does the beam need to carry a floor or roof load as well as the wall above ?
Cavity wall or 9" or 4" ? Calculating beam sizes is complex and I would say BC will require calcs from an SE
You might get away with a catnic or similar but you still need an idea of the loadings involved.

 

[mikric]

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