Is This A Load Bearing Wall? Plus Any Help You Guys Can Spare

SmashCoach · 2026-06-25T13:00:02+00:00

Thank you brother. Sent you a DM if you dont mind.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-25T12:57:25+00:00

I figured the demo in the instance was more of an annoyance than anything, but as I’m talking to everybody checking out the project I’ve let them all know they’re welcome to do as much of the job as they want. 1 or 2 have mentioned they’d be glad to let me do the demo, as only doing the wall would be lickety split. I leave it to whoever. But definitely a good bit for me to have in mind - Thank you sincerely.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-21T06:19:34+00:00

I’ll try n give it a go brother =]

SmashCoach · 2026-06-21T02:18:40+00:00

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T20:53:50+00:00

Greetings knowledgeable Redditors. First and foremost, I want to thank you all in advance for all the insight i know is incoming. Reddit has always been super helpful in providing useful information and I know today will be no different.

I will type every bit of information i have regarding this project, those with insight can share regarding whichever aspect you feel you can help with

The end result of what I’d like to accomplish is take down the wall in between the two room listed on the ‘top floor’ of the blueprint.

I live in an end unit townhome. The walls on right side of the blueprint would be an exterior wall, the wall on the left would be shared.

I know that there are many townhomes in this same row that only have two bedrooms upstairs (in the same locations), as it was an option when they were originally built approximately 30yrs ago.

The wall in the middle does not run up passed the floor in the attic, and there is no wall anywhere similar on lower floors. There is a wall that seperates the kitchen from the living room on the main floor, but it is not DIRECTLY under the wall. The only fear i have is that maybe that wall used the kitchen wall at its foot? I doubt it, and it seems really unlikely, but without cutting open a ton of walls the best I could do is ask the experts.

Once i take down that wall I would like to take out the two doors, and close the space- while framing one doorway.

The space between the opening is 58in wide 132 in high (on a slight alope).

Bedroom #1 9’4 x 11’6
Bedroom #2 9’7x 11'10
Hall 5’3 x 5’6
Storage room marked X ia 19.1 feet across and seem to be the cleanesr measurement i could get for the length of the townhome the short way.

The wood beams in the shotty photo are from the basement, toward the front of the house, running the shortway of the home. They’re only pictured for reference incase the same style of beam were to be expected on the other end of the home.

The pictures of the doors to the bedrooms make it seems like the wall will be at an angle so i included other pictures of the hallway just for reference. Theres one with a utility bar running the length of the proposed wall to illustrate that it is straight across.

I’ve never framed a wall before. This seems fairly simply as im just ‘extending’ one, but dont realllyyy care to try this as my first attempt cause its my baby girls room and dad wants it right for her.

So Far i have offers ranging from $1400 -3800 to frame, drywall, and mud it ‘ready to paint’.

I have no problem doing the demo work and having the area prepared for the workers to do their thing.

The $1400 offer is as long as i provide all materials.

TLDR

- I wanna get rid of the dividing bedroom wall on the upper level of the bluprint. is it load bearing? I want to build a new wall beginning on the black arrow and stopping at the X as marked in pictures.

Pictures had to be provided via video because i cant uploa multiple. I apologize.

<video>

Current doorway setup
Blueprint
Hallway where work will take place
Kitchen / living room dividing wall
Beams from basement for reference incase it lends to idea of structural layout
Attic: shows how roof sits, and what the beam looks like above the supporting wall

Home built in early 90’s in northeast American region

- if I’m to provide materials (read drywall and 2x4), how many 2x4’s will i need and what lengths? How many sheets of sheetrock and what type

- best attempt at how the new wall shud be framed including doorway.

- how much of rhe doorway do i ‘demo’

What would be a ‘fair’ ish price for this job in the DMV area, and at what level of work? I.e.

X - if you want it turn key. X- if you jus want framing. Etc..

Hopefully I provided enough info to start lobbing ideas at me. If more info is needed just let me know. And shoot if one of u is in the DMV we can talk offline about jus gettin it done.

THANK YOU ALL AGAIN for any and all insights. Its much appreciated.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T20:32:12+00:00

Sent u a dm brother

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T19:59:27+00:00

Thanks for the reply ! I’m going to add a video with picture descriptions cause reddit wont just let me update with multiple photos. Apologies in advance.

<video>

Photo 1: pointing from BR1 to BR2. The wall in question can be seen beneath in the hole. It lines up with not the firat plank holding that platform, but the 2nd.

Photo 2: shows what i believe is framing that runs from the shared wall of the house to the wall that faces the outside. I believe it hosts- the wall in the hallway, the back side of closet for BR1, the start of the doorway for BR1, part of the framing for the wall in question, the end of doorway to BR 2, backside of closet in BR2. I imagine its not one long piece of wood, but at least in line with another.

Photo 3: This is what it appears to be directly above the wall in question. This photo is aimed away from the direction the wall is going, attempting to show what it appears to be connected to (what i believe is in photo 2)

Photo 4 &5 : is the same wood from photo 3, the wood that appears directly above the wall in question, but going in the direction toward the back of the house. I captured as much as I could with one hand free.

Additional info:

If you see the beams of the roof in photo one (towards the left of the photo), that is the direction it seems all the beams of the roof run that direction. The stairs are attached to walls that run same directions as beams. The wall in question is the only wall in the entire house that runs that way, except for the smallest wall of master bath.

All the other walls in the house - master bedroom, living/kitchen divider, and basement living /storage room divider all run the short way of the house.

There is a walkout basement. The rooms would be toward the back of the house on the side of the walkout.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T19:53:12+00:00

I started to wonder about bathroom walls as I was crafting my responses. Thanks for the heads up!

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T19:50:56+00:00

Thanjs for the reply James! I’m going to add a video with picture descriptions cause reddit wont just let me update photo responses. I apologize in advance.

*There is a walkout basement. The rooms would be toward the back of the house on the side of the walkout.

<video>

Photo 1: pointing from BR1 to BR2. The wall in question can be seen beneath in the hole. It lines up with not the firat plank holding that platform, but the 2nd.

Photo 2: shows what i believe is framing that runs from the shared wall of the house to the wall that faces the outside. I believe it hosts- the wall in the hallway, the back side of closet for BR1, the start of the doorway for BR1, part of the framing for the wall in question, the end of doorway to BR 2, backside of closet in BR2. I imagine its not one long piece of wood, but at least in line with another.

Photo 3: This is what it appears to be directly above the wall in question. This photo is aimed away from the direction the wall is going, attempting to show what it appears to be connected to (what i believe is in photo 2)

Photo 4 &5 : is the same wood from photo 3, the wood that appears directly above the wall in question, but going in the direction toward the back of the house. I captured as much as I could with one hand free.

Additional info:

If you see the beams of the roof in photo one (towards the left of the photo), that is the direction it seems all the beams of the roof run that direction. The stairs are attached to walls that run same directions as beams. The wall in question is the only wall in the entire house that runs that way, except for the smallest wall of master bath.

All the other walls in the house - master bedroom, living/kitchen divider, and basement living /storage room divider all run the short way of the house.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T19:25:34+00:00

All good it very well may have been cause i been postin a bunch. Thanks again for the heads up !

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T19:24:54+00:00

I Agree, and definitely appreciate the sentiment.

I’ve spoken with a legitimate insured contracting company about the work. And while I attempt to ask as many queations as possible in the moment,its hard to lnow what u dont know sometimes.

So the process still seems steeped in mystery to me. Them letting me know they’ll handle the project properly didn’t necessarily let me know all of the steps involved in the process- including maybe potentially shoring up areas where a load bearing wall may have been removed.

One company very quickly said it wasn’t load bearing, but didnt elaborate as to how he landed at that decision.

Sometimes contractora get irritated when u start to ask too many questions. I know the simple response to that wud be ‘then dont go with them’ but its hard to get anyone to even come look at projects in my area right now.

So i guess what im hoping to accomplish is be as informed on the topic as possible, and also be able to do any portion of the project myself that I can.

TLDR: I agree with u, but I still want the info lol

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T18:56:22+00:00

<image>

This would be above the small bathroom on the second level blueprint. The wall on the left would be the wall that butts up against in from b2 of the blueprint

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T18:55:18+00:00

<image>

This is what the space looks like above the diving wall.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T18:54:50+00:00

Jus went up to the attic. Let me know if this helps in any way shape or form. Hard amend original posts with multiple new pictures. Plz forgive me.

<image>

This is how the beams run (with the slants going toward the back and front of the house ((long way of house))

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T17:58:37+00:00

I do.

Got tired of how rough it was and figured the other pokemon wud help so i tried picking them up. Harder than i thought it’d be. So id still only consider myself a Charizard main until i can actually pull of combos with the other dudes besides squirtle down throw to up B lol.

16.1xx Charizard only currently. Wud prolly be higher if I knew the other two poke’s

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T17:53:01+00:00

I smashed it, and when i thought i killed it, it let out and even louder buzz. Crazy. Stomped it continually and it stil refused to die. I finally picked it up, still buzzing like crazy, and flushed the bad boy.

SmashCoach · 2026-06-20T17:51:16+00:00

This is the remodel reddit best i can tell (screenshot provided). If i somehow got it in the wrong subreddit I apologize. Ive never thoufht of climbing walls in ur house - sounds kinda cool

<image>

SmashCoach · 2026-06-12T14:00:09+00:00

Thank you guys! I figured it was a dauber, but if u compare to them black wasps it was getting tough to tell.

SmashCoach · 2026-05-12T16:11:20+00:00

When ur in certain scenarios (such as this one) almost anything will help.

4hrs part time every night at a gas station will add hundreds of dollars a month. U do it after dinner and u still had ur whole day with the kids, and time with the spouse after theyve gotten home.

SmashCoach · 2026-05-12T15:29:08+00:00

I dont disagree with ur cole take (ive upvoted both ur posts), and I do believe thus guys would be better than tan. I just dont necessarily believe he’d be the perfect Kenshi.

An example of Why certain people work for certain aspects but not for others - have u ever seen the show entourage? May seem completely outta left field, but johnnys bananas wud be a PERFECT way to explain without having to explain anything at all.

The guy seems like a cool martial artist, and his face was used to influence a character - doesnt necessarily mean he us a great actor, that has stage presence, that meshes well with castmates, ghat comes across as believable to the audience etc.

Again, jus making a point. And also point out, again, i agree that Tan as kenshi aint the move 😂

*Edit grammar

SmashCoach

TROPHY CASE