GS Renovation installs RSJs and steel beams across Merton, from the bay-fronted Victorian terraces of Wimbledon to the Edwardian homes around Mitcham and Morden. With over 30 years of structural work in SW19, SW20, CR4 and SM4, we remove load-bearing walls safely and leave the borough's period houses stronger than we found them.
Removing load-bearing walls in Merton terraces
Most Merton homes are solid-wall Victorian and Edwardian terraces, so the wall between the front and rear reception, or into the closet wing, almost always carries load from above. Before anything comes down, a structural engineer sizes the RSJ and specifies the padstones it bears onto. We install temporary propping, take the wall out in safe staged sections, then seat the beam and transfer the load cleanly.
The chimney breast that so many SW19 and SW20 houses still have adds weight that the new steel must carry, and the closet wing at the rear often needs its own beam. We calculate bearings for each opening, pack the padstones properly and make good so the finished ceiling line runs level, ready for plastering.
Party walls and building control across Merton
The dividing wall between you and next door in a Mitcham or Morden terrace is usually a shared party wall, so cutting a beam bearing into it brings the Party Wall Act into play. you serve the correct notices on adjoining owners in good time and coordinate the surveyor process, so the steelwork goes in without disputes with neighbours.
Steel beam installation is controlled under building regulations rather than planning permission. We arrange building control inspection with Merton Council or an approved inspector, provide the engineer's calculations, and book the checks at propping, beam seating and completion stages. You receive the sign-off certificate that protects the house and any future sale.
Steel from order to strike
The steel is the item that sets the programme on a Merton project. Once the engineer has issued the schedule, fabrication takes several working days, longer where the beam is galvanised or needs welded end plates. Nothing on site can start in earnest before that date is confirmed, which is why the design is fixed before labour is booked rather than the other way round. Anything that has to be moved out of the wall, a gas run or a soil pipe, is dealt with during that fabrication window.
On the day itself, propping is already up and the slot has been cut at high level. The beam is lifted in, packed and bedded onto its padstones, and the masonry below comes out in sections afterwards. Props stay in place while the bedding gains strength, usually several days. Building control sees the bearings before anything is covered, and the plasterer only starts once the props are struck and the beam is carrying properly.
- Access and lifting plans for restricted London sites
- Building control applications and inspection sign-off
- Bearing checks into party walls and shared masonry
- Steel columns, base plates and bolted connections
- Flitch beams where a slimmer steel and timber solution suits
Why Merton Homeowners Choose GS Renovation
Merton homeowners choose GS Renovation because we treat structural work as the serious job it is. One team handles the engineer's design, the propping, the steel and the building control sign-off, with 30+ years of load-bearing wall removals across SW19, SW20, CR4 and SM4 behind every beam we fit.
- Restricted London access planned before the steel arrives
- Temporary propping in place before anything is cut
- Founder-led team with 30+ years of hands-on experience
- Fully insured, with cover in place on every site
- A written scope and programme agreed before work starts
- Building control inspected at the propping and beam stages