Moving an internal wall (to make a room bigger)

[Mama Dragon]

Alright, I hope I'm making sense here. I've got a wicked migraine and am out of Imitrex refills (natural methods aren't cutting it) but I gotta figure this out...

Since my dad lost his foot, we've figured we will have to move because the bathroom is too small. I can't begin to describe how much I don't want to move. So much that I'm willing to buy the house when credit and down payment exists to make it so....

So we briefly talked with the owner's family (he died and the estate is in probate) about remodeling but the lawyer handling the estate won't go for it, so we went about getting ready for the move. Then the landlord's co-signer told me she'd put up to $1000, or half, to renovate (and I'm willing to pay for half, it's cheaper then moving).

So I'm wondering, has anyone bumped out a wall before? How long did it take and how much did it cost? We're looking at a 10'x8' section of wall that will be moved into a bedroom and that has 2 electrical outlets on one side, one on the other, a wall switch and a heating vent coming down from the ceiling. Overall, not complicated, we'd mostly be able to do it ourselves except the electrical and possible the heating duct....maybe have someone else do the part of the ceiling that will get torn down.

[2busy2clean]

Sorry to hear of the migrane -- have you tried a good colon cleanse? (dr shulze's has a good 'un) but now to the original question to keep this from being moved to health and healing.

Your description, while good, doesn't paint the whole picture. You do need to know if the wall you wish to remove, is non bearing or not structural. If it is structural, things get complicated. If it isn't than the job shouldn't be too difficult. However, for the price you want to pay (~2K) I think you will need to do much of the work yourself.

If you or a family member are handy types, I'm sure it is do-able. If you don't know what you are doing... plan at least two full days for the electrical... two days for demolish/clean up, duct removal... a weekend for reframing the wall... a week or two to drywall and paint... a day or two to redo the heating duct. Hmmm, don't mean to make it sound difficult, cuz it isn't, it is the learning curve that gets in the way, kwim?

Don't know if this helped. but
best wishes!

[2 in August]

You guys might be able to do the electrical yourselves (unless the landlord or something prevents you from doing so). When we finished our basement, my dh ran wiring for several outlets, a phone jack, etc.

[jillian+1]

What kind of access do you have above and below? Depending on how your electrical and ducting is run it makes everything easier if you have, say, good attic access or an unfinished basement.

Oh, don't forget you'll have to redo the flooring.

(Sorry about your headache. I used to get them every month after AF and now that I'm nursing and no AF, I get them, um, every day sometimes. And I can't take anything stronger than Tylenol because of nursing, so I feel your pain. Literally.)

[Mama Dragon]

Not sure if it's a structural wall.

The bedroom has hardwood floor, but yeah, the bathroom would just need all new vinyl put down.

I don't know if we'll be able to do the electrical or not. If it's just moving wires, ok, but if they are too short and needs more, someone else is gonna have to do it. We can do all the framing and sheet rocking and painting at least. And the demolition of the existing wall (which I can't wait to do )

I can do 2-3 weeks for it to be done. My dad won't be home before then, he doesn't have his prosthetic yet and it'll be weeks of PT after he gets it before he can come home.

I'm nursing too Jillian, been taking Imitrex while pregnant and nursing since #2 was tiny =) It's my wonder drug! But I don't have health insurance so I have to go to Urgent Care, rack up a bill there and get a script so I can buy one pill at a time. And UC is closed for the weekend. Thrill! I used to get them daily - talking 15-20 days out of every month, but I cut out MSG and red dye and a few other processed things and they went down to 3-4 a month. Still awful though

[BunnySlippers]

First I think you could definately pay someone to do that and I don't think it will run over a $1000. Or take too long.

I had an estimate for more than that involving some pumbing and electical stuff come to $1500- plus I buy needed materials. the guy thought this would take about 2wks. This is build wall, take out a different wall, and remove a shower. Arrange some electical and redo some pipes for my washer.


Doing yourself may or may not be quicker. When i take on a project I tend to latch onto it like a pitbull and get 'er done really quick.

I do intend to knock out my own walls and save myself some money even though $1500 isnt bad. I can't do the plumbing and I prefer to leave the electrical to someone else.

I am going to start with taking out the drywall and asessing the project from there. I think next would be the electrical, then the frame or the duct work. Then re-building. Then mudding and sanding and painting, then floor.

[thriftyqueen]

In most states, it is against the law to do electrical yourself unless it is your own home. Most likely because it is a rental, you are going to have to hire out electrical. Shouldn't be too much to move around a couple of switches and plug ins. Is there any plumbing in the wall that would be moved?

The flooring and wall moving shouldn't cost much at all if it is not a load bearing wall. Flooring is cheap especially linoleum/vinyl.

[jaidymama]

Can you ask around locally friends/neighbors or at the hardware store for a recommendation for a handy-man or find someone who does construction-- perhaps they are looking for extra work on the side and would be willing to accept a lower hourly payment.

Because since you are renting, you'll want to be informed about the legal side of things...

I know I've often thought it wouldn't be so hard to change something in a house, and sometimes it is pretty straight-forward. Other times it's tricky.

Also, can you just call a contractor to give you an estimate or even to find out if it's possible to do.

[cristeen]

The first thing to do would be to get a copy of the building plans from the city, if they have them. Then talk to the permit office. In most areas structural work, electrical work and HVAC work all require permits. I know a lot of people are disdainful of the whole permit process, and there are some instances where it's overkill, but really in a situation like this it's about A- the house does not belong to you and the landlord is the one that would get blamed (and his insurance), and B- having the proper inspections can help prevent the ceiling falling in from lack of structural support, or the house catching fire from improper wiring. Talk to the permit office and find out what permits and inspections would be required.

Then get a couple contractors out to give you estimates. Talk to them, pick their brains. Act the dumb woman if you have to. I learned a LOT just from having various contractors out to look at the house. A decent contractor will be able to look at the structure of the house, the basement the attic, whatever and tell you whether that wall is load-bearing. If it is load-bearing, it is not a DIY job. If it is not load-bearing, it's not a huge deal.

And maybe you want to do the demo and the finishing yourself, but get a contractor in to build the structure, the electrical, plumbing and HVAC. It saves you a bit of money, yet has the "experts" doing the really important stuff.

HTH