As you go forward with any remodeling job, you’ll begin to see your home in a new light. The things that once appeared to be permanent structures don’t seem that way at all anymore and you’ll soon be able to see that any alteration is possible if you’re willing to put the work into the job. However, it is crucial that you understand a few things about those walls before you start knocking then down indiscriminately.
There are two kinds of walls in any home and these are the bearing and the nonbearing walls. The bearing walls, as the name suggests, help carry the weight of the building and its contents to the ground. The nonbearing walls are also called partition walls and these simply divide up the space. Of course it is far easier to remove or relocate a partition wall than it is to do the same with a bearing wall. In fact, in many cases it is better to rethink an entire project before moving a bearing wall.
One of the first things that you’ll want to do is determine if the wall that is part of the renovation is a bearing wall or not. Here’s one the best ways to decide if the walls in question are bearing or not. If the wall runs parallel with the ceiling and the floor joists, it is more than likely not a bearing wall. However, if the wall runs perpendicular to the floor joists and the ceiling it is more than likely a bearing wall.
It’s important to tell which way the joists run. Most of the time they run perpendicular to the roof’s ridgeline. If you find that the wall is under an attic, go up there and see if the joists cross over the wall. If they end on top of the wall, you know for sure that it’s a load bearing wall. If the attic has floorboards, they run across the joists and you’ll see lines of nails where they are fastened to the joists.
If the roof is supported by trusses, the answer is easier because they have diagonal pieces that run from the attic floor to the ceiling. They transfer the weight of the roof only to the outside walls so that all the interior walls in the story directly under are more than likely partition walls. Remember that if you can’t check above then look below. If there is a wall directly under the one that you want to modify, then it is more than likely a bearing wall. If you’ve done everything that is suggested here but still have doubts, it’s best that you hire a professional contractor to help you.
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