Project overview
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Demolition
Drywall removal goes quickly.
The best way to make small or cramped rooms larger is to remove a wall between adjoining rooms. You'll not only create a larger, more useful floor area but also give your home a feeling of spaciousness. You'll wind up with an area that seems absolutely huge compared with the sum of the individual rooms. With this project, you can create a cavernous master bedroom from two moderately sized ones, join a kitchen and a dining room to make them feel larger (our project) or create a “great room” by joining the dining and living areas. The framing materials for a typical 12- ft. opening are relatively inexpensive. The bigger expenses will come after you complete the framing, when you restore the trim and redecorate.
In this story, we'll show you how to remove nearly any wall and tell you how to add a structural beam if it's needed. It may be scary to think about tearing walls out of your house, but don't be intimidated. You can do it if you've done any basic carpentry work like framing in a wall or building a shed or deck. In fact, removing the wall and replacing it with a beam will only take a half day or less.
We'll show you how to build a temporary support wall to hold up the floor above while you tear out the old wall (Photos 1 – 7). Then we'll show you how to create the beam supports at each end (Photos 6, 7 and 11). Finally, we'll demonstrate a foolproof method for installing the beam itself (Photos 8 – 10). You'll need a helper for about an hour to help hoist the new beam into place (Photo 9), but you can do all the other work solo. Round up basic carpentry tools, including a cat's paw (nail puller) and a flat bar, a sledgehammer, a circular saw and a reciprocating saw. Be sure to pick up a couple of 8-in. coarse-tooth bimetal blades for the reciprocating saw to cut through framing and nails during demolition of the old wall (Photos 6 and 7).
Sizing up the situation
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Installing the beam is a two-person job
You'll need a beam when removing a load bearing wall.
The first step is to determine whether the wall you're tearing out is a “bearing” wall or a simple “partition” wall. A bearing wall carries weight from floors and/or roof above, while a partition wall merely separates two rooms. When you remove a bearing wall, you have to add a beam to carry the weight the wall supported (Figure A). A partition wall can simply be torn out with no worries about temporary support walls or beams, but you'll still have to go through the same repair work afterward as you would with a bearing wall.
To tell if a wall is bearing, first check the joist direction with a stud finder. A bearing
wall almost always has ceiling or floor framing (joists; Photo 3) running perpendicular
to it. If you're unsure, ask a building contractor or your local building inspector for advice. If it's a bearing wall, the inspector may help size the beam or recommend that you have a structural engineer or architect size it. The inspector will check the size, issue a permit and check your work when you're finished framing (before you start any drywall or finish work). Sometimes a full-service lumberyard will size the beam and sell it to you. In rare cases, you may be required to enlarge existing footings beneath the support columns as well to handle the additional load. That can get costly!
Know what's in the wall. In most cases, electrical boxes and switches can be moved or rerouted relatively easily. But plumbing pipes and heat ducts inside the wall are cause for concern. If that's the case, contact a plumber and/or heating contractor to find out exactly what's involved in eliminating or moving pipes or ductwork before you start tearing out drywall. Apply for an electrical permit if you have to move electrical boxes or cables.
Buying Materials
Any lumberyard will be able to furnish the beam and other materials. Our 12-ft.-long beam was made from doubled 11-7/8-in.-wide x 1-3/4-in.-thick “LVLs” (laminated veneer lumber), a very common, strong type of beam that looks exactly like thick plywood boards.
The beam system we show will work for nearly any opening up to 12 ft. wide. But your beam could be made from other materials ranging from simple doubled 2x12s for shorter spans to more exotic beams consisting of glued and compressed stranded wood fibers or laminated 2x4s. Don't worry—our techniques will work for whatever style beam your situation calls for.
For constructing the temporary support wall, buy three 2x4s the length of the wall for the plates and enough 2x4 studs to space them every 2 ft. (Photo 4). Also pick up a couple of shim packs and a 1-lb. box each of 8d and 16d nails.
Strip the Drywall
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Photo 1: Remove the drywall
Bang holes in the wall and check for obstructions. Remove any trim, slit the tape joint along the ceiling and adjoining walls, then remove the drywall from both sides of the wall.
Start the project by shutting off the circuit at the main panel. Remove the baseboards on both sides of the wall and any electrical cover plates. Then slice through the tape at inside corners at the ceiling, and at any adjoining walls. If there aren't corners nearby, make a vertical slit just beyond the wall (Photo 1). Next, tear off the drywall.
Take off one side first by driving a hammer claw through the drywall and simply pulling a chunk free. The first side will come off in small pieces. Loosen the drywall from the other side by rapping on the backside near the studs to free it from the screws. That way you can take off large pieces and minimize the cleanup.
Now remove any outlets or switches, and disconnect the wires. Then pull the wires through any holes in the framing and cap the ends with electrical connectors to ready them for rerouting (Photo 3).
Caution!
Turn off electrical circuits in the wall.
Build the temporary support wall
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Photo 2: Cut a slot in the ceiling
Snap a chalk line about 12 in. out from the wall and cut a slot. Strip 1 ft. of ceiling drywall from one side of the wall. (Use shallow strokes to avoid nicking any electrical cables hidden in the ceiling.)
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Photo 3: Remove cables from the stud wall
Examine the ceiling framing to determine the beam design. Turn off the electrical power and remove electrical cables, outlets and switches and pull the cable free of the studs. Cap the ends of the exposed wires with electrical connectors.
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Photo 4: Build a temporary wall
Tack a single top 2x4 plate under the floor joists and another directly below it to the floor. Add a second top plate, then tap in and toenail temporary studs every 2 ft.
Cut a 1-ft.-wide “observation” slot in the ceiling drywall next to the wall, look for overlapping floor joists and note how far their ends lap over the wall (Photo 3). If the ends of the joists from one room overlap 2 in. or more, build one support wall, making it close enough to the bearing wall to support the joist ends.
If the joists are single continuous boards, one wall will work as well. But if the joists are spliced end to end or if some ends don't project far enough to be supported by the temporary wall, you'll need to build two support walls, one on each side of the bearing wall. If you need a second wall, build it at least 2 ft. away from the bearing wall to leave room to work and to slide the beam into place. The second wall can be mounted directly under the drywall; there's no need to cut another slot.
To assemble the support wall, cut three plates (2x4s) 1 in. short of the full length of the wall. Tack one plate to the underside of the joists parallel to the wall and another to the floor directly below it. Tack another plate to the underside of the ceiling plate. Then cut studs to fit snugly and tack them to the plates every 2 ft. with two 8d nails at each end. Light taps from a hammer should drive them into place. If it takes serious blows to drive the studs home, you're liable to lift the floor or crack drywall joints somewhere above. If you cut a stud a little short, just drive a shim beneath it.
Full Scope of the Work
As a contractor, I opened up quite a few rooms by ripping out walls and replacing them with beams as needed. Two things always amazed my customers: how quickly and easily the beam part went and then how extensive the rest of the job was. That work generally includes drywall patching, respraying textured ceilings, entirely repainting the new room and replacing sections of wood trim. Usually electrical outlets and switches need to be repositioned, which calls for rerouting cable and rewiring devices. If the wall contains plumbing pipes or heating vents, a plumber and a heating contractor have to be called in. And the finished flooring always has to be replaced. Be sure to consider all of these secondary expenses when calculating the cost of your project. Most of the materials for those items are fairly inexpensive if you do the work, but it's best to get bids ahead of time for whatever work you plan to hire out.
Tear out the bearing wall
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Photo 5: Hammer out the old studs
Knock out the bearing wall studs with a sledge and bend over the leftover nail shanks in the bottom plate to protect your feet.
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Photo 6: Cut off nails that are sticking out of the framing
Cut continuous plates and pry them free. Cut off the leftover nail shanks with a reciprocating saw.
Tearing out the old wall studs is just a matter of smacking the bottom of the studs with a sledgehammer (Photo 5) and then wiggling them free of the top plate nails. Removing the end studs is a little tougher. Use a cat's paw to pull the nails that hold the studs to adjoining framing. Then cut through the nails between the ends of the studs and the top and bottom plates with a reciprocating saw, and pull the studs free. The top or bottom plates may carry past the beam location. If so, cut them flush with the end of your desired opening (Photo 6).
Then pry the bottom plate free of the floor with a flat bar and pry the top plate free of the tie plate. Leave the tie plate in place (unless you want your beam 1-1/2 in. higher), but cut off any leftover nail shanks from the wood.
Prepare the beam pocket
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Photo 7: Remove the backer stud
Cut the nails that hold the backer studs and pry them out. You may have to pry open a gap with your chisel to reach the nails. Cut the backer stud in half to remove it.
If one end of the bearing wall is perpendicular to another wall, you'll probably have to remove a stud in the other wall (Figure A and Photo 7). We'll show you how to convert this into a “beam pocket” to set the beam on later. Remove the existing blocking stud (or sometimes individual shorter blocks) by slightly prying apart the neighboring studs with a chisel or flat bar, and then cut through any nails in the gap with a reciprocating saw (Photo 7).
Be careful when cutting: There may be cables in the wall, especially 18 in. or less above the floor, so cut with just the tip of the blade there. Drive a 2-in. drywall screw partially into the stud near the middle, then cut through the blocking stud near the screw and pull out the halves. (It's easy—if you've found and cut through all the nails!) Now the beam pocket is ready for setting the beam.
Stand the temporary beam cradles
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Photo 8: Install the beam cradle
Assemble two beam cradles from pairs of 2x4s and screw them to the tie plate and floor with 3-in. screws.
Assemble two cradles out of pairs of 2x4s to temporarily support the beam (Photos 8 and 9). Make the supporting member about 1/4 in. less than the beam width so you can set the beam easily and shim it up tight to the plate on the ceiling (Photo 10).
Set the beam
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Photo 9: Set the beam in place
Cut the beam to length and cut notches to clear tie plates in adjoining walls. Then slip the beam members into place and rest them on the temporary cradles.
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Close-up of notch
Notch the beam, if necessary.
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Photo 10: Shim the beam
Drive shims between the support studs and the bottom of the beam until the beams is tight against the underside of the tie plate.
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Photo 11: Install trimmers under the beam ends
Cut two snug-fitting trimmers for each end of the beam. Tip them into place under the beam and tap them into place. Face or toenail each one with at least six 16d nails.
Cut the two beam members (LVLs) 1/2 in. short of the overall length and cut notches at the top to fit beneath the top plates in perpendicular walls (Photo 9). (Small notches in this spot won't weaken the beam.) You'll need help to slip the beam members into place (Photo 9). Then drive shims beneath both beam members until they're tight against the underside of the tie plate (Photo 10). With sagging ceilings, you may have to further shorten the 2x4 supports to get the beam to fit in. Once they're up, tack the beam members together to keep them aligned.
Now carefully measure and cut two 2x4 “trimmers” (permanent beam support studs; Figure A) for both ends of the beam. Tip the bottom into place and then drive them beneath the beam. They should fit snugly, but it shouldn't take a lot of force to drive them home. If they're too tight, trim a bit from the end. If they're too loose, cut longer ones (it's not acceptable to shim trimmers to make up the difference). Toenail or face-nail each one into place with at least six evenly spaced 16d nails.
Add floor blocking and remove the temporary wall
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Photo 12: Install the blocking at the beam ends.
Cut blocking to fit between the floor joists directly under the trimmers at the beam ends. Toenail and end-nail the blocks to the surrounding framing.
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Photo 13: Nail the beam and tie plate together
Toenail the beam to the tie plate and to the framing at the ends with 16d nails. Nail the beam members together with three 16d nails spaced every 12 in.
You may have to add blocking directly below each pair of trimmers (Photo 13 and Figure A). Beams need solid support all the way down to another beam or the house foundation. Drive nails through the floor directly in front of the trimmers and then go beneath the floor and look for the nail shanks to determine the exact trimmer location.
Use solid lumber the same thickness as the floor joists to fill the space between the subfloor and the framing below. Use at least two blocks to support the width of each pair of trimmers above (Photo 12). If the blocking falls over a bearing wall, add two additional studs directly under the blocking (Figure A).
Lock the beams tightly together with rows of 16d nails driven about every foot along the beam (Photo 13). Then toenail the assembly to the underside of the tie plate to keep it straight and to the framing at both ends. Finally, remove the support wall and call for a framing inspection.
