"Beantown" wrote in message
ups.com...
My
curiousity is whether eliminating at least some of the need for cutting
the slab, pouring concrete, and so on would offset the presumably
higher price but lower level of manual labor involved in replacing the
beam w/steel. Can a steel beam hold a 24' span w/o support posts (or at
least without lots of them)?

Any first-hand experiences with such a project??


I helped a friend build a house about 15 years ago. We used a steel beam to
support a 28 foot span. The size of the beam will determine how large a
span and if supports are needed. The two ends are supported by the
foundation.

In any case, the building inspector asked that one center support be used.
We did dig a footing about 2' deep. Since is was in the center of the house,
frost line was not a concern.

I have no idea of the cost to do a replacement.