Raising RSJs visible in kitchen (or removing)

[eco-refrofit]

Any ideas for options for raising the height of the 3 visible RSJs on a kitchen ceiling would be helpful - especially if they can be moved to loft height or even removed - they are at 90 degree to door and span this one room only. Parallel to the RSJs is a low wooden ceiling beam which is staying.

Weirdly, they are not under any walls, they are connecting between two load-bearing walls on opposite sides of the kitchen but the only room above the kitchen is the same size... so maybe they are preventing walls from caving inwards? I presume they are there because internal ground floor walls were removed or to replace rotten beams (we had builders knock down one internal wall so that's the reason for one of them).

Previous owner fitted kitchen wall units around the wallpapered RSJs. The entire depth of RSJs seems to be visible, about 10cm/4 inches and bottom of RSJs to floor is only 1.95m. No need to stretch to touch them with your hand.

Two beams are under 60cm apart, the third is 1.7m further on.

Is a structural engineer, architect or builder best to assess what can be removed or moved and where to / how? There's a minimal budget but it sure would help not to have to design wall units and kitchen layout around all the RSJs.

Worst RSJ in pics.

 

[stuart45]

A Structural Engineer is the best person to advise.

 

[Flyfisher]

Agreed. You might also need an architect to redesign the wall/ceiling layouts but, in my experience, even they will use a structural engineer to 'prove' whatever they design and Buillding Control will also want to see that a structural engineer has approved things.

 

[eco-refrofit]

I have good news - it can be done as a recessed RSJ / flush beam hidden in the ceiling. This involves the beams being raised level with the joists above, with joists cut and joist hangers used to support them, and it sounds pretty straightforward).


Another option to add to this is that looking at the room layout upstairs, having a step up to a single bedroom and raising the floor of that bedroom would allow the kitchen ceiling to be raised further.

I spoke to a structural engineer and the cost for a report is pretty inexpensive (as far as professionals go), and he can include lowering floor level at the same time. He said that to find the floor level the best option would be to use a 1/2inch drill but and drill holes that size to check where the floor level goes soft - the structural engineer can arrange a builder to do this if we can't find one, but he also said it can be a DIY job - and they would even loan us a drill with long enough drill bit without charge!

The structural engineer also confirmed my understanding of building regs and the Party Wall Act - if you want to lower a floor level below that or an adjoining/nearby building or wall without undermining it or needing underpinning, you can just use lower at a maximum of a 45 degree angle (for instance, having a 100mm step at the current ground level and start lowering 100mm away from the adjoining wall/building). For a kitchen with an internal wall without foundations this means the 100mm "step" can be hidden under kitchen floor units (behind the plinth), although for small sizes like this you can create a false stud wall 100mm thick to hide the step by making the wall thicker (potentially opening up the lower part below worktop level and using it as a service void). Worktop would be less deep but it would otherwise lose very little width from the kitchen. So several options basically.


We had been thinking that it would have meant having larger holes dug on tue existing floor like our builders did for checking the raised patio depth, but it does need that amount of mess or size of hole.

 

[Flyfisher]

Thanks for posting the update. It's always good to read about the outcome to such challenges, especially the 'good news' ones.