Question for structural engineer/ builder/ surveyor?

katie_j_2

Hope you can help.

We are keen on putting an offer in on a three storey Victorian terraced house but have noticed a beam running across the middle of the ceiling and through the chimney breast (from party wall to party wall), both in a downstairs reception room and directly above in the first floor bedroom. The beam is painted white, the same as the ceiling and we don't know what it is made of. The vendors say that they have not used the fireplaces in these rooms but we would be keen to use them and probably wouldn't proceed any further if we could not.

Can anyone explain what these beams might be for? Would they be supporting rsj's perhaps (although the chimney breasts are still there) and could they cause problems for reinstating the fireplaces? What would the cost implications be?

The loft has been converted into two bedrooms, not sure if this is significant.

Thanks very much.

Doozergirl

Need pictures really as I can't think of anything I've seen like this unless it was from the removal of a supporting wall downstairs which it doesn't really sound like if it runs through the chimney breast! If there is a long span and for some reason the joists needed to run from front to back then it's possible that an RSJ needs to be there to support the joists upstairs but this would be for a very large room as the shorter span in a terrace is going to be from party wall to party wall.

Cheapest way to look at it is to get a fire installer to come out and test the chimney for you to see if it's in working order or how much it will cost to get it that way for the tpe of fire you want.

katie_j_2

Thanks for your advice. The room isn't large, no, about 13ft. I can't paste the photos as the only ones we have are the agents ones on Right Move and they are not brilliant but the beam is just visible in the photo. If anyone has the time to have a quick browse, I'd be extremely grateful (You would need to send me a message though so I could give you the details). We would obviously have a full survey done on the house but won't bother if we find that we can't use the fireplaces at all to start with.

tyllwyd

We had a house where two rooms had been knocked into one, and the fireplace had been moved to the centre of the room, directly underneath the rsj supporting the wall in the room above. You could use the gas fire because they had put in a metal flue, which went up to one side of the rsj. (Well you could have done if they had done a proper job of putting in the flue, but that's another story!)

Do you want to use the fireplaces for an open fire? It isn't easy to tell if the chimneys are suitable - they might need relining, or at the very least sweeping. Are you sure that the chimney stack is suitable - we got caught out in this house because one chimney stack had been taken down, but it wasn't immediately obvious because there was another one quite close by. If the fireplaces are a big deal, I'd get them checked out first, especially if the current owners aren't using them.

katie_j_2

Thanks for your reply. Yes the house is mid terraced and the fireplaces haven't been moved. The owner said that the chimney sweep had said that it needed a new liner but they haven't had one put in in the six years they have lived there so now we are suspicious that they can't be used. They use the fire in the other reception room but this doesn't have the mysterious beam going into the breast. With regards to type of fire,preferably an open fire but we'll settle for anything. We will happily pay someone to come along with us to view the house to have a look but I'm not sure if structural engineers/ surveyors would do that just for an hour or so.

N79

You can hire surveyors / structural engineers by the hour but they are not cheap!

katie_j_2

That's good to know, thanks, will have a look. It'll be worth it to find that out before spending out 1200 on a survey!

Doozergirl

Like I said, you need a fireplace fitter! They are cheaper than structural engineers and they will be able to tell you if the chimneys are usable. If they aren't then that is when you talk to a structural engineer - although that will be pointing you in the direction of considerable expense.

Walk into a fireplace shop, tell them that you need a survey to see if you can put a fireplace in or what type is suitable.

Simples. Should be free if you don't tell them that you haven't bought the house yet!

katie_j_2

If we can do that even though we haven't bought the house then excellent I'll give it a whirl, cheers!