How to replace two joists?
 

I suspect that this may be a "how long is a piece of string" type of
question, but thought I would seek the advice and knowledge of the
group.

We've just had the structural engineer round and the good news is that
I don't have subsidence. The bad news is that the two joists that run
directly underneath the back are rotten as hell. These joists run
between the two external walls at either side of the bathroom and one
of them butts up pretty close to the rear wall of the property. Access
to them from beneath is pretty easy as theirs currently no ceiling in
the kitchen beneath them.

So, the question is, how hard a job is it likely to be for me to remove
these two joists and replace them with new timber. Is it in the realms
of DIY, or is it really a job for the professionals? I class myself as
being fairly competent and unlikely to cut corners or do a bad job but
still...

As always, thanks for any and all advice.

Seri

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
wrote:

I suspect that this may be a "how long is a piece of string" type of
question, but thought I would seek the advice and knowledge of the
group.

We've just had the structural engineer round and the good news is that
I don't have subsidence. The bad news is that the two joists that run
directly underneath the back are rotten as hell. These joists run
between the two external walls at either side of the bathroom and one
of them butts up pretty close to the rear wall of the property. Access
to them from beneath is pretty easy as theirs currently no ceiling in
the kitchen beneath them.

So, the question is, how hard a job is it likely to be for me to
remove these two joists and replace them with new timber. Is it in
the realms of DIY, or is it really a job for the professionals? I
class myself as being fairly competent and unlikely to cut corners or
do a bad job but still...

As always, thanks for any and all advice.

Seri

It shouldn't be too difficult as long as there are no pipes and cables going
*through* the existing joists. If there are, you will have to re-route
these - or disconnect them, and drill holes in the new joists for them.

The existing joists are probably actually built into the supporting walls -
which can only really be done at the time of original construction. You can
probably get a new joist into one of the wall sockets, but you'll have to
use a joist hanger at the other end. You can bolt this to the brickwork,
after making good the existing hole.
--
Cheers,
Set Square
______
Please reply to newsgroup. Reply address is invalid.

Yup I would agree, it sounds eminently doable....


Set Square wrote:


It shouldn't be too difficult as long as there are no pipes and cables going
*through* the existing joists. If there are, you will have to re-route
these - or disconnect them, and drill holes in the new joists for them.

You will probably need to take the floor up above them as well. If it is
a pain to do that then you can probably still do it, but remember that
the boards above may be nailed to the joist you are trying to take out.

--
Cheers,

John.

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The bad news is that the two joists that run
directly underneath the back are rotten as hell.
Do you know why? If it's plumbing leak, try your buildings insurance.

On 6 Dec 2004 08:14:28 -0800, wrote:

I suspect that this may be a "how long is a piece of string" type of
question, but thought I would seek the advice and knowledge of the
group.

We've just had the structural engineer round and the good news is that
I don't have subsidence. The bad news is that the two joists that run
directly underneath the back are rotten as hell. These joists run
between the two external walls at either side of the bathroom and one
of them butts up pretty close to the rear wall of the property. Access
to them from beneath is pretty easy as theirs currently no ceiling in
the kitchen beneath them.

So, the question is, how hard a job is it likely to be for me to remove
these two joists and replace them with new timber. Is it in the realms
of DIY, or is it really a job for the professionals? I class myself as
being fairly competent and unlikely to cut corners or do a bad job but
still...

As always, thanks for any and all advice.

Seri

What I would do is think it out, step by step, for example

How to I hold up what is there when the joist comes down ...

How do I get it down

How do I put it back up again, how do I get a bit of wood longer than
the gap into the gap ?

How do I stop the same thing going wrong again ?

If any bit looks too scarey get a quote, if quote looks too high,
rexamine scariness ......

Personally I'd DIY it, but then I am DIYing a build, from foundations
to roof, minus a few bits I am simply not any good at - plastering.
DIYing floor joists was one of my first strutrial DIY jobs.

Rick

On Mon, 06 Dec 2004 17:11:24 +0000, John Rumm
wrote:

Yup I would agree, it sounds eminently doable....


Set Square wrote:


It shouldn't be too difficult as long as there are no pipes and cables going
*through* the existing joists. If there are, you will have to re-route
these - or disconnect them, and drill holes in the new joists for them.

You will probably need to take the floor up above them as well. If it is
a pain to do that then you can probably still do it, but remember that
the boards above may be nailed to the joist you are trying to take out.

Not always necessary, if the joist comes down, you may well end up
leaving the floor behind, then remove the nails, however the floor
will make putting the new joist in harder.

Buildings insurance is what paid for the structural engineer to come
out. As a result they're going to be digging out all our drains at the
back of the house and relining them (different problem, but great as it
means I don't have to deal with the sheer mass of concrete out there).

The plumbing in the house is shot to hell, the job for the new year
after fitting the kitchen was going to be gutting the bathroom and
starting from scratch. Basically, the seal around the bath went a long
time before we purchased the house also the overflow wasn't sealed
correctly, this has caused the timber to rot, causing the bath to sink
slightly, making the seal even worse, etc etc.

I'm just unsure whether I want to make two claims at the same time or
let building insurance deal with the bigger job and I tackle the
smaller one myself.

Seri

I'm just unsure whether I want to make two claims at the same time or
let building insurance deal with the bigger job and I tackle the
smaller one myself.

Very valid point - I'd work out what it'll do to your premiums and for
how long. Its often cheaper not to claim.

Joist replacement is a fairly straightfoward diy job if youre a
generally handy person, read and understand the job first, and you
appreciate that the load on the floor must be supported, and in this
case jacked up slightly, by a prop (aka lengths of 2x4 about 2" longer
than floor to floor height).

And NEVER let anyone fill the bath with the joist gone! A falling bath
can kill.

If its a modern build it just might use high grade timber, such as C24,
but probably not, just C16.

Finally, if someone is genuinely incompetent they could cause a serious
accident, so
a) ensure you know what youre doing first
b) legally I dont recommend doing anything. Sue the other posters ;)
NT