GS Renovation installs RSJs and steel beams across Hammersmith, from the bay-fronted Victorian and Edwardian terraces near the River Thames to the period homes around W6. With more than 30 years of structural experience, we remove load-bearing walls safely, prop the floors above and open up these terraced houses without compromising the fabric of the building.
Steel beams for Hammersmith terraced homes
The typical W6 house is a bay-fronted Victorian or Edwardian terrace with a rear closet wing and a side return, and the walls between the front and middle reception rooms are usually load-bearing. Before any steel goes in, a structural engineer sizes the beam for the actual loads above, whether that is a single storey or the full stack of floors and roof carried by a slender terraced wall.
We install the RSJ onto engineered padstones that spread the load into the remaining masonry, then remove the temporary props once the beam is bearing correctly. Every stage is inspected by building control, from the propping and demolition through to the final steel and padstone detail, so the finished opening is signed off and safe for the life of the house.
Party wall notices on shared Hammersmith walls
Because Hammersmith terraces sit in continuous rows, the dividing wall between you and your neighbour is almost always a shared party wall, and the chimney breasts and stacks often sit within it. Cutting a beam pocket into that wall, or removing a chimney breast, brings the work under the Party Wall Act, so notices must be served on the adjoining owner before we start.
you serve the correct notices in good time and coordinate with any party wall surveyor appointed for the neighbouring property. On these older W6 walls we also allow for soft lime mortar, rubble-filled construction and hidden flues, which is why the engineer's design and our controlled, staged demolition matter so much on a terraced home.
How far ahead the job needs booking
The steel itself takes a day to install and the calendar around it takes considerably longer. The engineer needs a site visit and then time to produce the design. The beam is cut to length and fabricated to that design, which is not something a merchant keeps on a shelf. Building control needs notice, and where a party wall is involved the statutory notice period runs for two months before work can begin.
Run one after another that is a slow start. Run in parallel it is not, which is why we get the engineer booked at the point you decide to go ahead and serve notices while the design is still being drawn. Owners in W6 working to a fixed date usually want the wall out and the plaster dry well beforehand, and the honest answer is to start the paperwork a couple of months before you want the work done.
- Access and lifting plans for restricted London sites
- Structural engineer's calculations arranged and followed
- Structural openings for open-plan living
- Goalpost frames where two walls meet at a corner
- Flitch beams where a slimmer steel and timber solution suits
Why Hammersmith Homeowners Choose GS Renovation
Homeowners across Hammersmith choose GS Renovation because we handle the whole steel job as one accountable team, from the engineer's calculations to propping, demolition and building control sign-off. With 30+ years working on W6 terraces, we understand how these Victorian walls carry load and how to open them up cleanly and safely.
- Temporary propping in place before anything is cut
- Building control applications and inspections coordinated for you
- Dust screens and floor protection in occupied homes
- Founder-led team with 30+ years of hands-on experience
- Aftercare and snagging support once the job is finished
- Beams boxed and fire protected to the approved detail