Whether a wall is load bearing is a question for a structural engineer, and it is answered by opening up and inspecting, not by tapping the plaster. Once the answer is known, the removal is a sequence: temporary support, the opening, the new beam and its bearings, then making good. We appoint the engineer and run that sequence for you in Esher.
The Esher stock where a wall removal is straightforward
The simplest removals are in ordinary two storey houses. Elmbridge records the residential part of Lower Green, sub-area ESH06, as two storey inter-war or post-war housing, some of it terraced. Above a ground floor wall in that stock there is a first floor and a roof, so the load path is short and the beam is modest.
Terraces bring a second question. Esher residents identified a strong Surrey vernacular in the town through its arts and crafts heritage, its churches and its small terraces. Where a new beam bears into a shared wall, the Party Wall etc. Act applies and notice is served on the neighbour before work starts. We plan the programme around that notice period.
Larger houses where the load path is longer
In a bigger house the wall you want out can carry more than one floor. Esher Place, sub-area ESH05, is a 1930s urban extension to the north of Esher made up of large houses in generous plots. In sub-area ESH02 the housing ranges from early 20th century Edwardian houses on Hillbrow Road to post-war houses on Lakeside Drive.
Two houses of the same footprint can behave differently. Floor spans, wall construction and foundation depth all vary with the decade the house was built. The engineer opens up and inspects before sizing anything, and we do not price a beam before that inspection has happened.
Getting the removal onto the record
Removing a load bearing wall is notifiable work, so it needs a building control application. EBCS accepts full plans applications, building notice applications and regularisation applications for work already carried out. A full plans application is the safer route, because the calculations are checked before the wall comes down. Where a wall was removed by someone else without approval, regularisation is how it is put right for a future sale.
- Downstand and flush beam options priced at quotation stage
- Structural engineer's calculations arranged and followed
- Assessment of whether a wall is load-bearing
- Lintel replacement where an existing opening has failed
- Knock-throughs between front and rear reception rooms
Why Esher Homeowners Choose GS Renovation
Wall removals go wrong in the temporary works, not in the finished beam. We set the propping and needling before anything is cut, keep the load supported through the whole opening up, and only then place the steel onto its bearings. The structural engineer is appointed by us and the calculations are theirs, not ours. We coordinate the building control application and the inspections, and one person stays your point of contact throughout. Fully insured, free no obligation quotations, rated 4.9 from 31 reviews on MyBuilder.
- Props and strongboys set out to a temporary works plan
- Party Wall notices handled where the opening reaches a shared wall
- Joist ends properly supported once the masonry is out
- Dust screens and floor protection in occupied homes
- Our own trades on site rather than a chain of subcontractors
- A written scope and programme agreed before work starts