Removing a Portion of a Load Bearing Wall

Determine what loads are being held up by the wall you're planning to renovate. Most partial wall removals involve interior rather than exterior walls, so this reduces the chances that you will make your house collapse, since exterior walls are more likely to be load bearing. However, interior walls frequently are placed beneath the joints of ceilings joists that have been created from lumber that was too short to span the width of the house. With the wall removed, these joists are in danger of sagging. To be sure, consult with a structural engineer to determine the viability of your plans.

Support all of the joists that are being held up by the wall with temporary supports. Place a 2-by-4 horizontally against the ceiling on both sides of the wall and prop these 2-by-4s up with vertical 2-by-4s placed every 16 inches. Set these supports back from the wall about 24 inches so you will have room to work.

Cut away the drywall in the portion of the wall that you are planning to remove. You will need to cut the drywall back farther than your planned final opening so you will have room to install the new header and beams, which will then be covered by the new wall.

Add the finished height of the planned opening to the thickness of the new header. This is the distance off the floor at which you need to cut the studs out of the wall. Add the finished width of the planned opening to the width of the new supports times 2: this is the width within which you need to remove all the studs.

Install the new supports in their planned positions. These can be made from studs that are nailed together or from solid beams. Consult with your structural engineer about how beefy they need to be to be adequate. Define the width of the new opening by installing the new supports so that their inside faces equal the width of the new rough opening.

Lift the new header and place its ends on the tops of the supports. Get help to do this to reduce the risk of hurting your back.

Remove the temporary supports after the new header and supports are securely nailed into place in the newly configured wall.