# Load bearing wall????



## Outbacker (Apr 16, 2007)

I want to remove a small section of wall between my dining room and living room, and am wondering how do I determine if it is a load bearing wall, or not?


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## cibula11 (Apr 16, 2007)

I know you want a quick "yes" or "no", but to be exact you really should have someone come and look.  
Some GENERAL rules used:
find out which direction your ceiling joists are running.  If the wall runs PARALLEL to the joists it usually is NOT.  If it runs perpendicular, the chances are very good that wall is load bearing.  

Often times a load bearing wall will have support all the way to the foundation. i.e. there is another wall directly underneath it, or some sort of beam in the basement.


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## cibula11 (Apr 16, 2007)

Are you cutting a hole in the wall or removing it completely?  If just a section you could install a header.


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## Outbacker (Apr 16, 2007)

I went up into the attic and noticed that the joists are running perpendicular to the wall, so I will assume that it is load bearing. I am having a contractor come out and look at it anyway. The section of wall that I want to take out is about 6 feet in length (take a 32 inch opening into the dining room and open it up to about 6 feet), but I may not take the opening all the way to the ceiling, which means I should not be disrupting the beam. But the contractor will be able to tell me if I can or cannot do this. Thank you very much for the reply.


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## cibula11 (Apr 17, 2007)

Getting someone is the best option.  With new truss system for roofs and other construction methods, it really become difficult to assume a load bearing wall without looking.  You're doing the right thing.  Good luck.


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