Advice for hiring a Structural Engineer

papermate

Hi All

I was wondering if anyone has had experience with Structural Engineers in the context of house building works etc?  I will soon be moving to a bungalow and I’m in the unique position of being able to sort a few things out before moving in.  I’ve already cleared the loft out and installed decent lighting and I hope to board it out before we move.  In the process of doing this, I’ve seen a couple of things structurally that I could do with knowing a bit more about, e.g. there’s a 9M purlin in 2 sections, but what holds the sections together is just a couple of nails etc.  Could be that it’s just how they built them in 1930 : - )

However the main reason I’d like to spend some time with an SE is to ascertain what loads various ceiling rafters are capable of (what internal walls will bear a load etc).  The goal is to gain some usable storage space in the loft.

I was envisaging an hour with an SE to clear these queries up on more of an informal basis.  However, if they advised that a to-do list for inspection needed to be raised then I suppose that would have to happen.

Has anyone had this sort of chat with an SE as opposed to having them launch straight into drawing up a schedule for a battery of tests and creation of technical drawings.  I’m just trying to keep costs down at this stage.  Not even sure they would take on such a small request.

Any thoughts would be welcome, thanks.

Doozergirl

That's exactly what the initial meeting is if you have the old fashioned type of SE who actually likes to look at structures first.  

Having a look.  Having a chat about it.  

Then they go back and do drawings.  

So you can pay the right kind of SE for just their time spent talking things through with you, no reports or drawings needed. 

tacpot12

Yes, we had a structural engineer come out informally to view a tall garden wall that had a crack in it. The deal was that we would pay him £250 to come out to give us his opinion on whther the wall was safe, and it it wasn't we would pay c£400 for a report that we could supply to the builder that had erected the wall in order to persuade them that it needed to be rebuilt. If it was safe, he would tell us there and then, if it wasn't, he would go away and write up a full report of his findings. 

Luckily he gave it a clean bill of health. I found him by ringing around, explaining the situation and sounding him out as to whther he would be open to this style of engagement. He was an older gentleman, and seemed very relaxed about being paid £250 to come and look at a wall... 

papermate

Doozer, thanks, that's reassuring.  I'll ring around a try to find that guy.
Tacpot - a relaxed £250, nice.  Still, better than it haunting you.
Cheers

kdotdotdotdot

As a fellow bungalow owner, you do need a structural engineer if you're planning to do things upstairs.  I can't give you the technical terms, but it was pretty common for bungalows to have ceiling joists set wider apart than was usual for a house, as they weren't needed to support the weight of rooms above.  

A structural engineer is needed to check that it's safe to build upstairs and whether your builder needs to install additional joists/support first.  Of course it depends on what you're planning - if just boarding out a loft for storage, you probably don't need to worry, but if you're planning to build living space, then best to get an SE to confirm it's safe to do so.

papermate

Thanks kdot.  I only intend to use the space for storage but what you have said make a lot of sense.  This is a bungalow whose main pitched roof is of Purlin type, with 4 x 2 joists running at 90° to rafters and there are purlin struts and ties at each end of the main pitched roof.  The joists are 4 x 2s and are spaced an average of 13" which seems quite chunky to me.  There also seem to be solid internal walls rather than stud type which I'm hoping are load bearing, but as you say, an SE seems the way to go.