You may want to remove a bearing wall...or at least, you think that it's a bearing wall. Don't assume that just because the wall studs seem a bit loose, or because the joists above the wall are continuous across the top of the wall, that the wall is not "load-bearing". We often find that older homes were constructed with continuous joists across the width of the house, yet the floor joist relies upon the extra support that it gets from the wall and supporting floor joists below. Remember, even if the floor above does not fall down after you remove a wall, you may be creating an over-spanned floor condition which is potentially unsafe !

We can usually determine whether or not a wall is load-bearing by making a site visit to inspect. Sometimes, we may need to cut a small hole in the ceiling so that we can confirm the size and direction of floor framing. In some circumstances, we can make conservative (safe) assumptions without cutting holes, however these assumptions need to be verified by the Contractor during construction.

Most jobs like this involve one site visit, and about 1 day of our work in the office to draw-up a partial plan and specify the necessary beams and posts. Design costs for these types of projects vary depending upon the number of beams required and the complexity involved in transferring loads from the end of new beams down to the foundations below. Building permit fees for simple interior renovations like this are quite inexpensive, sometimes less than $100.

Key Issues Are:

If you are carrying out a construction project on your home, you probably need a building permit. Undoubtedly you will need a building permit if you are making an addition to you home, or if you are making any changes to walls or partitions. It is best to call your municipality to find out if you need a permit. For the City of Toronto, go to http://www.toronto.ca/building/building_permits.htm

Many people don't want to apply for a building permit because of the time and cost associated with the approval process. However, you may be surprised that many small renovations can be carried out under a Fast-Track permit, which can be obtained on the same day that you make the application.

We strongly recommend that you get a building permit for your renovation, for the following very good reasons:

1. It ensures that plans for the project have been clearly documented.

In order to build anything, it is best to prepare some kind of plans in advance of construction. By going through the motions of preparing drawings for the project, unforeseen problems can be avoided, and a clear picture of the overall scope of the project is defined. Most people need drawings to help define what it is that they want to achieve. By having clear construction documents, you can get true "apples-to-apples" prices from different Contractors for the same scope of work.

2. It helps to ensure that the project conforms to minimum standards

Before a municipality grants a building permit, they usually want to check over the plans for compliance with the Building Codes and Zoning by-laws. Sometimes, the municipality puts most of the code compliance onus onto the design professionals that prepared the plans for the project. This is no trivial matter, since very significant liability is attributed to design professionals and municipalities when a building permit is issued.

3. The municipality will "checkup" on your construction work as it progresses

As part of the building permit process, most municipalities will send inspectors out to check that work is proceeding in accordance with the approved permit plans. These inspections normally visit at key stages during construction, and the site inspections are intended to ensure that the construction work conforms to the approved permit plans. Regular inspections keep the Contractor's honest and on-their-toes, and serves as an independent check that work is being carried out properly.

4. It's the Law:

In most cases, you are required by law to obtain a building permit for your project prior to construction. If you renovate your house without a building permit, then you could be held liable to all future owners of the house for creating hidden defects in the building structure. Even worse, you could be required to tear-down your renovation in the event that your construction work does not comply with the building code or with zoning by-laws which may apply to your home.

It is best to check with your municipality to see if you need a building permit for your renovation, however if your project requires the removal of any walls or other elements which may be of a structural nature, it is likely that your municipality will require you to get a permit. Try calling your municipality and ask to speak to someone about requirements for building permits. Most municipalities are very helpful in this regard. ( Don't be afraid of the Building Department - they are there to help. )

You may be frustrated because your building permit application has been rejected and you have been told that you need an engineer to review and stamp your drawings. A municipality is entitled to demand that an engineer be retained to review and approve the construction documents when a project ( or a part thereof ) does not conform to all of the requirement and limitations of Part 9 of the Ontario Building Code.

Many house designers don't know exactly when they need an engineer, and more and more home designers are hiring engineers to specify the "structural" parts of their designs. By doing so, the designer is relieved of the structural engineering "liability", and the Owner can rest assured that the structural design is correct. Often, Designers and Architects ask the Owner to hire structural engineering services directly so that the designer is "out-of-the-loop" of liability for this part of the design.

Of course, Part 9 of the Ontario Building Code is the part which applies to Housing and Small Buildings, and this part of the Code is written so that individuals without explicit technical training in Architecture or Engineering can design and construct buildings without having to engage the services of an Architect or Engineering professional. Your drawings may have been prepared by an Architectural Technologist, an Interior Designer, or a Design-Build Contractor, all of which may be well qualified to design the structure of your home in accordance with Part 9 of the Ontario Building Code.

A building which complies with all parts of Part 9 does not need to be designed by either an architect or and engineer, and a municipal building department can issue building permits for this type of construction. It is only when parts of the project do not conform to the limitations of Part 9 that the municipality requires professional design by an architect or an engineer.

As of January 1, 2006, Ontario's new Bill 124 will come into effect, and this will mean that most building permit applications which are made to a municipality will need to be "stamped" by a "designer" who has passed certain building code examinations. The new requirements are an attempt to improve the quality of building permit submissions, and to place much more responsibility on the shoulders of individual building designers (who now will need to be insured). In return, the public can expect building permit waiting times to drop from an average of about 8 weeks, down to a legislated maximum waiting period of 10 days !

The application of Part 9 to buildings is generally limited to building which are 3 stories or less, and have a building area (footprint) not exceeding about 6460 square feet. However, even if your building conforms to the above restrictions, there are many other parts of the building which may not conform.

Common examples of construction which may not conform to Part 9 include:

Designs with large open areas - designs where clear spans of floor systems exceed approximately 20 feet or about 6.0 m commonly do not conform to Part 9 and require engineering to ensure sufficient strength, or to ensure that floors are sufficiently rigid and do not "bounce".

Designs which incorporate vendor engineers products, such as Engineered floor joists ( commonly called I-Joists ) and engineered wood beams ( commonly called LVL's, Microlam or PSL beams ).

Designs with basement foundation walls which are more than 8'-2" high cannot be designed with Part 9 and require engineering. It is currently popular to have 9' ceilings in residential basements, and these types of foundations cannot be designed with Part 9.

Designs which include few or no interior walls and also incorporate large window openings in the front, rear, or both. Homes such as this often require steel portal frames to be designed to carry lateral wind or seismic loads around window and door openings, even if they are "shielded" from wind by adjacent houses.

Designs where exterior walls exceed approximately 11' - 10" high without any lateral support. This condition commonly occurs in exterior walls, beside large stairway openings, where the stairway itself provides no lateral support for the exterior wall.

Designs which are to be constructed on soil which is incompetent ( typically where the soil bearing capacity is less than 75kPa or 1500 psf ) Many builders don't know when the soil is not sufficient to support the load of the house until such time that a building inspector arrives on site and stop's work. Unfortunately, many homes get constructed on poor soil, which leads to foundation settlement, cracked foundation walls, wet basements, etc.

You may have identified a crack in a foundation wall, or a sagging or uneven floor, and you are concerned that there may be a serious problem. We can make a site visit to try to evaluate the situation.

We can also carry out an independent review of work which has been carried out on your construction project.

We often provide site visits for Realtors and Home Buyer's during the "conditional" phase of a new home purchase to review structural concerns which may have been raised by a home inspector.

For Existing Homes:

Cracked foundation walls, cracked floor slabs, cracked exterior masonry, sagging floors, uneven stairs, etc.

If you have a home which has been previously renovated, or, if you are buying a home which has undergone a major renovation, you should make sure that the work was carried out under a building permit and that the permit was "closed" following construction...we often get involved in projects where there were no site inspections during construction or situations where a construction project has run into difficulties. If you bought title insurance when you purchased your home, you may be protected if work was previously carried out without a permit or without the permit having been "closed".

For New Homes:

Poor soil conditions encountered during excavation, and the building inspector needs an engineer to certify that the soil bearing capacity is sufficient to carry the weight of the building.

As-built construction deviates from the approved permit plans and the inspector cannot certify that the as-built condition is acceptable.

The contractor makes a mistake and constructs part of the building in an incorrect or unconventional manner, and the as-built condition needs to be assessed by a professional engineer.

If you have a cracked wall in your house, you may be concerned that the crack is a symptom of a serious structural problem. You may be reassured to know that many of the cracks that we investigate are not serious in nature, and only sometimes do they indicate that there is a serious problems with your home. Please read further...

Cracks in Foundation Walls are very common. In fact, almost all concrete and masonry structures have some small vertical cracks which are usually of little consequence. Concrete foundation walls often develop some very narrow vertical cracks immediately after construction ( less than 1mm - 2 mm wide ), due to shrinkage of concrete shortly after pouring of the concrete. Long foundation walls of houses (walls longer than about 50') will almost always develop some minor shrinkage cracks after construction, especially if your foundation walls are constructed with plain concrete ( concrete which is not reinforced with steel reinforcing bars ). If water is entering your basement through a small vertical crack, you should take measures to seal the crack to eliminate the water. Harmful molds can develop in a damp basement environment which can be harmful to your health.

If the wall has cracked and the wall has shifted vertically across the crack, then the crack may be a settlement crack. Most settlement cracks are diagonal cracks (the area of the soil problem is usually the area below the diagonal crack), and can be an indication of poor foundation construction, or, poor soil conditions during construction. Diagonal cracks can be a sign of a serious underlying condition. In some cases, the soil which is located below the foundations of your house can expand or contract slightly, causing cracks in foundation walls.

Often people think that cracks in foundation walls are due house settlement that has " finished ", since the house is old. However, this is an incorrect assumption to make. Soils take hundreds of years to consolidate after they have been disturbed which means that foundation wall settlement in an old house may still be taking place. While it is possible that future settlement will not be large, it is almost impossible to count-on. It would not be wise to invest thousands of dollars into a renovation, only later to find additional settlement cracks taking place. In our experience, where settlement has taken place, it is very likely that settlement will continue to take place for many years, unless some very direct and tangible measures are taken to curtail the settlement once and for all. There are some very innovated methods available for stabilizing foundation walls which do not require traditional underpinning.

If your foundation wall has horizontal cracks, you should consult an engineer immediately since this type of crack could reflect a serious deficiency in the foundation wall.

Cracks in Above-Grade Walls in older homes is very common, especially those with plaster construction. Many older homes have undergone thousands of cycles of changes from humid summer conditions to dry winter conditions, which tend to cause underlying wood frame construction or wood lath to expand and contract, leading to deterioration of plaster finishes. Also, some older homes may not have been constructed properly, resulting in over-spanned floor joists and overspanned support beams. Many older homes were built before building standards existed, and before municipal building inspectors were around to ensure that homes were built properly.

When we need to attend a site, we charge a minimum fee for a site visit. Since residential projects are typically very small and total fees are not large, we cannot afford to offer free site consultations.

Sloping floors in any house are generally not a good sign, although they are very common on older homes which were built before building codes were enforced. Sloping floors likely indicate one of the following conditions:

Fixing a Sloping Floor:

Before spending considerable time and money trying to fix a sloping floor, you should consult a structural engineer to identify the cause of the problem. For example, if foundation settlement is the problem, then you may need to carry out remedial measures to prevent further settlement. Often people think that the settlement has " finished ", since the house is old. However, this is an incorrect assumption to make. Soils take hundreds of years to consolidate after they have been disturbed. While it is possible that future settlement will not be large, it is almost impossible to count-on. It would not be wise to invest thousands of dollars into a renovation, only later to find additional settlement cracks taking place. In our experience, where settlement has taken place, it is very likely that settlement will continue to take place for many years, unless some very direct and tangible measures are taken to curtail the settlement once and for all.

Once you have fixed the sloping floor, you may be able to correct the sloping floor surface by building-up a new subfloor over top of the existing sloping floor. 2"x4" sleepers which are "ripped" at an angle can be installed over top of the sloping floor joists, and a new subfloor installed on the the new surface.

Another way of fixing an uneven floor is to install a self-levelling cementitious grout, such as Maxxon's Gypcrete, and then, install a new subfloor on the new level surface. If you are considering this option, make sure that your existing floor system can safely support the increased loads.

Whenever floor leveling renovations are contemplated, you will need to maintain or modify the level of the top of the stairs, adjust the level of baseboards, window and door frames, install new finished floors, etc.

You should carefully consider the hidden liabilities which are contained within a home with sloping floors, since repairing a home with sloping floors can be very costly.

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When we need to attend a site, one of our staff will come out and meet with you to discuss the matter at hand. Typically, we visit for about 1 hour on site ( except when we need to take detailed measurements ). Our initial site visit is primarily a consultation to discuss structural engineering matters that affect the project. During our site visit, we may suggest ways to approach a problem or a situation, suggest possible methods by which a solution may be attained, etc. However, our initial site visit is a general consultation only. No actual structural design will be provided to you as part of a site consultation.

Typically, our initial site visit includes a report which describes the structural situation, and recommends a general approach which may be suitable to solve the problem at hand. Our recommendations may be that we need to be retained to design certain remedial measures, or we may recommend that further investigation be carried out by us, or by another specialty consultant.

When we need to attend a site, we charge our site visit fee (see below). Since residential projects are typically very small and total fees are not large, we cannot afford to offer free site consultations. Only in certain special circumstances do we waive our minimum site visit fee.