HELP!! identifying load bearing / braced wall.

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YOURICE

1 post

Wannabe Geek

#208435 12-Feb-2017 01:41

im proposing to do an interior renovation on a tiny 60sqm house built in 1950's (house was extended in 1960's) weatherboard cladding with lightweight corrugated roofing.

It is a timber framed house:

- subfloor: 4 by 3 jack studs on conc pile

-Floor: floor joist 6 by 2 at 450 crs & bearer plates 4 by 3.

- Walls: generally 4 by 2 at 450 crs

- roof: ridges 9 by 1. Purlins 3 by 2. Rafter 4 by 2 at 915 spacing. spanning 2.7m

The proposed works include removing few walls, (if possible i would like to try to avoid any openings through the load bearing walls or braced walls so that I can avoid building consent). Hence I need to locate where the existing load bearing / braced walls are. Please see attached existing plans & proposed plans.

Ive had one of the builder come to the house and advised that none of the interior walls are load bearing, mentioning that the roof has specific engineered truss system.....?? (Are they...? please refer to the photos) but in saying that when ive received the photos of the ceiling space I was abit confused as it didnt look like a truss (rather rafter/ceiling joist type). Also i saw some of the underpurlin struts supporting the truss that were being supported by the ceiling joists that span about 6.4m........? without any load bearing wall supporting the ceiling joists.....? Please refer to the photos of the ceiling space attached. The left hand side photo was taken from the bathroom looking towards existing Bedroom (towards the west) and the right hand side photo was taken from the same place looking towards the east. (towards existing lounge)...

Please help me identify load bearing / braced walls...!!

Roof!

Proposed Plan

Existing Plan

Plan on Council

froob

692 posts

Ultimate Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1718839 12-Feb-2017 09:20

I can't answer your question, but we are also going to do some minor work at our place soon, which involves removing some sections of wall.

Our roof framing looks very similar to yours. It's definitely not an engineered truss system in our case...

A difference with our roof is that it is a hip, rather than gable roof. But like you, we have underpurlins supporting the rafters, with struts underneith. Our struts are not uniform, and go to whichever wall happens to be closest. My understanding is that each of those sections of wall are load bearing, but I don't have the qualifications to confirm that.

In my case, one of the sections of wall I need to take out has a strut coming down onto it, and also has diagonal timber bracing in it to boot, so no getting around a consent for me.

This random website has a good diagram of what our roof configuration is like: http://www.boeingconsult.com/tafe/as1684/underpurlins.htm

Guide: Installing Network Cabling in New Zealand Homes

nickb800

2719 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1718844 12-Feb-2017 09:46

It's hard to tell from the photos, but my gut feeling is that load bearing isn't as much of an issue here. I'd be more concerned about bracing, particularly as you have an irregular shape.

What are the subfloor perimeter walls like, particularly downslope? Do these provide any bracing, or are they just a veneer?

At least one of the walls that you're removing will have a bracing function - given the age this will be either diagonal sarking rebated into the studs or diagonal 4x2's inbetween each stud. This function will need to be replaced - usually with a GIB bracing setup. The wall between the two bedrooms almost definitely. The walls between bathroom/laundry and bedroom/WC possibly.

Since you are proposing major alterations, I'd consider hiring an engineer, at least for a chat if not for design work.

Bung

6485 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

#1718858 12-Feb-2017 10:18

You will have to get a building consent for the plumbing changes alone (not minor shifts) so the Council will be involved.

Disrespective

1926 posts

Uber Geek

#1719235 13-Feb-2017 09:42

First off just to be clear, you will need a council consent for the plumbing which will mean you also need to comply with other related work such as ensuring bracing minimums are also enforced.

As for the load bearing wall question, you can assume that any wall which is directly connected to the roof via a stick of timber, will be load bearing. These connections can be vertical or diagonal.

Because I can't see which walls the roof pics relate to, I can't tell you which are load bearing i'm afraid.

BTR

1527 posts

Uber Geek

#1719237 13-Feb-2017 09:47

Your best bet is to get a builder in rather than relying on a forum for this sort of question, not getting it right could cause serious damage and injury.

mclean

581 posts

Ultimate Geek

Subscriber

#1719256 13-Feb-2017 10:21

Disrespective:

First off just to be clear, you will need a council consent for the plumbing which will mean you also need to comply with other related work such as ensuring bracing minimums are also enforced.

The work has to comply with the building code irrespective of whether a building consent is required.

Bung

6485 posts

Uber Geek

Subscriber

#1719274 13-Feb-2017 11:03

BTR:

Your best bet is to get a builder in rather than relying on a forum for this sort of question, not getting it right could cause serious damage and injury.

At least one builder seems to have been involved. If the line "Conventional, specific design manufactured roof trusses in hip and gable end formation" came from his report, that seems immediately suspect. There are no manufactured trusses visible in the photos. Maybe he picked the wrong description from a template list.