A general contractor took us around the back of a home in Riverton Utah. He explained his vision for installing a stairway and retaining wall beneath the middle floor’s porch, leading to a future basement entrance. This experienced contractor asked thoughtful questions to determine the proper dimensions for a lintel that would evenly distribute the load from above to the 41 inch wide doorway. It was determined that a ¼”x4”x4” lintel should be inserted above the doorway, and extend a minimum of 4 inches on either side of the doorway, to properly distribute the weight. Also, the stairs must be placed far enough from the porch to ensure there is enough room to walk down without anyone hitting their head. New glass would need to be installed near the basement entrance, and reinforced concrete would be required for a structurally sound retaining wall. Cutting a large hole into the downstairs wall didn’t seem to faze him at all. While he had tackled projects like this before, he still sought expert advice and guidance to turn his vision of a basement entrance into reality.
Structural questions? If you need a foundation evaluation, or need to know if that's a structural wall, or need a beam sized or a basement converted to a rental space, we can help. If your roof collapsed, or might do that tomorrow, we can help. If there was an explosion or fire, or somebody hit your house with a car, we can help. We speak the language of joists, columns, beams and rafters and collar ties.