Load-Bearing Wall Removal in St. Matthews, KY
Opening up a mid-century St. Matthews plan is one of the most common renovation projects in the area, and the engineering is generally straightforward — conventional stick framing, moderate spans, a well-understood load path. The complication is that these houses have often been modified before.
That means the wall you want to remove may not be carrying what the original plan suggests. A previous renovation may have transferred load onto it, or removed the wall that used to share the load with it. The design has to start from what the framing is doing now, not from what the house looked like when it was built.
The deliverable is a sealed drawing specifying the beam size and species, the bearing required at each end, and how that bearing gets to the foundation. That last part is what building departments look at, and it is where undersized posts most often turn up.
What We Look At Here
- Whether the wall is bearing, and what it carries — including roof load where applicable
- Tributary width and the resulting load per foot on the proposed beam
- Beam sizing across the clear span with deflection checked, not only strength
- End bearing: post size, and a continuous path from beam to footing
- Whether the existing footing under the new post is adequate for the concentrated load
- Temporary shoring sequence so the framing is supported during the work
More on the service itself: Load-Bearing Wall Removal. More on the area: St. Matthews.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to remove a wall in St. Matthews?
Removing a load-bearing wall requires a permit in Louisville Metro, and the application generally needs a sealed structural drawing. Confirm the current requirement with the building department, since local processes change.