Steel Beams - non standard?

Elli452

Hi All,


I've received the first quote for my extension (awaiting a few more) and it's come back quite a lot higher than originally anticipated. One of the builder's reasons for this is the steel is non-standard and has to be specially made. Now I have no idea what constitutes a non-standard steel so I wondered if anyone could give me a rough guide as to what sort of price would be expected for beams of this type. I have copied the structural engineer's summary below:


Beam 1 - 203x133x30 kg/m U.B with 225mm wide x 8mm thick plate tack welded to top flange
Beam 2 - 203x133x25 kg/m U.B with 225mm wide x 8mm thick plate tack welded to top flange


edited to add - I can't read his writing overly well so if kg/m is not sensible please say what it might mean :-)

Doozergirl

The price of a steel does not have much of a bearing on the price of an extension.

The most expensive amount of steel we've bought was about £1100 for a loft conversion covering 100 square metres with the steels forming a grid over the whole area.

The last steel I bought was £200.

Furts

Giving an anecdotal response, I am sure where I live in no different to elsewhere. There is a steel fabricator a few miles away that stock steel, make steel frames, make agricultural buidings etc. You ask for steel they cut to length, they will do the calculations for the Buildings Regulations, and do whatever you want.

Of course you pay for this service but we are talking much - in terms of perhaps a few hundreds - it depends what is being done.

I cannot see that your steels needing plates adding represents anything special. If the steel is not stocked nearby get a higher weight as a substitute.

My intuition is the builder is spinning you a yarn.

Kiran

You need the length for a price on the UB's. You can get ball park figures from someone like http://www.parkersteel.co.uk/ The non standard part is because you are having a plate welded on to take the inner and outer skin of the existing walls. The steel is made in long lengths at somewhere like Tata Steel and then cut to length. That is all built in to a standard steel beam cost. The plate will be added buy a fabricator and as its bespoke, albeit minor works, will increase the cost. I'm not sure that should be jaw droppingly expensive

teneighty

Those beams are standard sizes, the extra plates welded on will have to be fabricated in the steel yard but are not overly expensive.

Get a different quote from a more honest builder.

Just realised I wrote almost exactly the same as Kiran, I really should read the other posts more carefully.

Elli452

Thanks all for your comments, I thought it was a bit odd but as the builder in question has done a lot of work for my parents I wanted to check if my gut feeling was right. I have a few more quotes waiting on coming back so will hopefully see some comparison soon.

phil24_7

Another option might be doubling up the beams (1 for each skin of wall). It would likely work out more expensive for the actual beams (though maybe these could be downsized, your structural engineer could advise) but would cut out the unknown for the builder. If the beams were double up but downsized it may also make fitting quicker and easier due to the reduced weight (I have no idea of your site conditions so this may not be true).

cyclonebri1

The steels are standard, maybe the person that told you they weren't was not, if you get my drift?