Lintel Help

spongybobby

Im planing on moving a door within my kitchen in the next week or so.
The wall where the door is going has no wall directly above it, but does go to the floor of the master bedroom, so without getting a building inspector in.. im just going to say its load bearing.

Now, Im no idiot, so i know what im letting myself in for but im confused with the amount of choice but lack of information regarding steel / metal lintels.

Im ideally wanting a lintel where i can remove a run of bricks above the new doorway, then install the lintel in the place of the removed bricks.
Ideally i would like a metal lintel as it will be easier to lift / position.

the wall is a single skin internal wall so i dont need a cavity lintel.

if there is any information i have left out which may help you lot help me then please ask for it

Thanks very much

SB

MX5huggy

Standard practice is to use a reinforced concreate lintel for this. http://www.wickes.co.uk/concrete-lintel-100x65x1500mm-l04/invt/220332/?source=123_74

How would you plaster a steel one? Unless you are dry lining the whole wall you would have to plaster board to cover the lintel and that would crack where it joints the trad plaster.

teneighty

From memory and a very quick look on Catnics site most loadbearing internal steel lintels are 2 courses high, like the Catnic CN5XA.

For a standard single doorway you'll probably be OK with a concrete lintel, that'll be 1 course high and not all that heavy and much cheaper.

Just be careful that whatever is above doesn't come crashing down when you make the opening. You might get away with it but I'd feel much safer and less likely to get cracks in the ceiling with an acro either side of the doorway.

spongybobby

Thanks for the replies so far..

I honestly had not though about plastering over the metal lintel!

the way i had 'planned' to fit the new lintel is to remove plastering around the new area, remove 1 brick at a time above the new opening (with all other bricks still in place) and slide in the new lintle as the gap opens up from removing the bricks.
, once the lintle is in and mortared in then start to remove the bricks for the doorway.

Will acro props be necassary ? i suppose for the extra few quid of hiring some it doesnt hurt to save a world of hassle further down the line.

teneighty

Internal metal lintels have a perforated surface or sometimes a wire mesh attached for plastering, it really is not a problem. In fact metal lintels have a better plaster key than some concrete ones. But I still think concrete is the best option.

As for acros, you have said that you are not sure if the wall is loadbearing therefore I would suggest it is a risk. A builder would be able to assess the loading and make an informed choice but you are doing it virtually blind. You could probably get away with it but for an extra £10 hire plus some timber spreader plates that is cheap peace of mind. It's entirely up to you and your attitude to risk.

spongybobby

teneighty

thanks for your time to reply.
I have looked up acro props and strongboys...
it looks like strongboys you can remove a central brick and place the unit there, then remove the surrounding bricks.....

my only question is how the heck would i get the lintle in whilst the stongboy is in place.... i guess i would fit the lintle on the new mortar, then fill in the gap on top of the new lintle with new mortar leaving a small gap (where the lazyboy platform is).. leave to dry, then remove the strongboy and fill in the remaining motrar gap ?

With acroprops, you just drill a few holes above where the lintle is going and job done.... or so i think?

Gloomendoom

You don't use a strongboy on its own, it fits on top of an acro prop. The advantage is that you can do the job from one side, otherwise you need an acro prop on both sides of the opening with a needle spanning the gap and supporting the wall.

spongybobby

gloomendoom.

yes thats what i meant .

Will 1 acroprop / stongboy be pleanty to hold up the wall from one side ?

it would be nicer to work with something like that as it will give us working room on the other side of the wall.

pka_2

If it is only a single door openning you are making i.e 900-1000mm wide and it is only floor and not a wall above that you are supporting, then one strongboy should easliy be adequte for the job. You'd get the lintel in exactly as you descirbed in post #6

teneighty

As you have said there is no wall above my main concern was taking the weight of the floor either side of the doorway so I was thinking acros to the ceiling with timber spreader 2 feet back from doorway. At this stage it may just be much easier to establish which way the floor joists run and then you may realise the wall isn't loadbearing after all.

However, assuming it is loadbearing for now I'm assuming you've only got about 4 courses of brickwork above the doorway so provided they are well bonded in mortar for a single doorway should be self supporting long enough for you to get the lintel in. If it is old or loose brickwork or more than 4 courses then this wont work and they may fall out, probably on your head.

If it is loose brickwork then a strongboy set into a slot cut into the mortar joint above the brick course you are removing would be the way to go as your second paragraph. Dont worry about acros and needles unless you are taking out a much larger opening with a wall above.

One final tip, keep the mortar as dry as possible and maybe have some slate packing to hand. You'd be surprised how many builders bed the lintel on wet mortar and point the gap above the lintel with wet mortar then wonder why they get shrinkage cracks. I prefer to bed the lintel one day and dry pack above the following day with some slate packing but that is a bit old school and probably over the top.

spongybobby

Hi Again.

As a bit of an update / maybe time for some help...

Sunday i started to remove the plaster work for where the new door is going and i found out that unfortunately the block work is breeze block NOT bricks ..

this is going to make my job so much more entertaining as cutting breeze block is a wonderful task!

Now... where the top of the door is going to be is fortunately where 2 runs of the breeze blocks join.. so im hoping i can chop 1/2 depth off the breeze block and install the new lintle.

My main concern is now..... i dont think i have enough height in the wall to install a strongboy. Because it is breeze block the top of the block is pretty much where the coving is on the ceiling... and i would rather not have to disturb that if i can help it.

Can anyone possibly shed some light to make this easier ?
My only thought was to get 2 strongboys and put them either side of where the door will be going (so i can install them at the height the new lintle will be going... is this a good idea ?