Done with a steel beam and two wood or steel support columns, you don't need any "wing" wall remaining at all, nor will you have a beam hanging down from the ceiling into the space. The walls are opened up and the point loads are created from wood or steel.The amount of weight carried and the snow load will factor into whether or not wood is a possibility. Steel is always possible. Then the beam will go into the attic and the ceiling can be flush. Carrying the point loads down to the foundation has be be engineered as well. You may need a beam in the basement to carry the weight to the foundation or columns with footings directly under the wall points.

You need to have a structural engineer calculate the loads that will be carried and design the solution for you. You will also need a pretty big crew to deal with support beams, as even the wood ones are heavy. Most contractors will have an engineer that they can consult on speed dial, but if yours doesn't, then be sure to insist that he consult one and have a written report. Better yet, you do it and then you'll know what you want will actually cost.

Thanks, GreenDesigns! There is no basement, since it's a porch...and it's even a cement slab, which has been there, since the 1920s. I don't know if that's even up to code anymore, but we'll find out, when we talk to a professional.

Greendesign,
LL does not want any support columns. This makes the problem much more complicated.

Every remodel we have done, we have had structural engineer sign off on the architects design. My architect insists on this.

LL, structural stuff is expensive if you want to open up as much as possible. This is one of the big reasons why open modern houses cost significantly more than a typical traditional houses to build. Often, they have to use a lot of steel to be able to open up without columns in the middle of a large room. There is a lot of steel to make these big open rooms happen.
LL
The answer depends on the foundation and the footing that is currently in your house. You may or may not have the adequate foundation/footing that can take more loads than what you are already giving it. You need a knowledgible person to come and look. There is no way off the cuff internet answer is going to help you.

The reality is even if you 'underbuilt' the house, no one will know for several years. This is how the cheap builders get away with doing 'sub-par' work.

Then you will start to see a few sags here and there after a few years. Underbuilt house does not fall apart as soon as you move in. The day you move in, it is new and beautiful looking. Then, in a few years, the windows and doors will sag and won't shut. The dry wall will start to crack in places. The floor will slope and sag several inches. Then the builders are long gone and you have a worthless house. I have walked into so many additional that are 'worthless' because we look at a lot of open houses. All I see is an add-on/remodel that needs to be completely torn out started again if I am going to live there. I won't buy it and live there but some fool will. Then they will start look into the house and they will uncover all the subpar work that was done to it years ago. This is how the stories of the houses go.

When I look at my next-door neighbor's I see several windows that are sagging because the floor joists (or beams or something) are not strong enough. I see windows sagging several inches at the center of the house relative to the corners of the house. This is a very old house. They will live with the sagging windows that probably do not open and shut. You can always live in a subpar house. It probably won't kill you. Many people do because they don't know any better.

Kaismom- I'm sorry you've had such bad experiences. What part of the country do you live in?

An older house is going to have some structural problems, I'm sure...but this is a one and a half story house with a porch and a small addition on the back, for laundry/mud room. The upstairs is not going to be anything fancy, mainly attic space and one bedroom, we hope to turn into a 'bunk room' for the nieces and nephews, who visit. I don't even know if we'll add a bath.

it can be done with either, however a built up wood beam will most likely be easier to install since they can build it ply by ply. A 16' span can produce a deep beam depending on the load on it. Your support spots will most likely need to only be around 6"x6". 16' width your deflection will start to rule due to the span. Deflection is countered by depth. It would not surprise me if the engineer came up with a 14-16" 3 or 4 ply LVL for something like this, depending on the roof loading. A steel beam you will be able to make shallower, but I would doubt not much more then a W12 range.
chances are they will need to break some slab up, dig down and pour a spread footer to take the point loads.

A LVL beam hanging down into the space and support columns on the side will be easily half of the price or less of doing a flush steel beam and flush wall support. Maybe 10K instead of 25K. The steel will get you a room that looks like a single room, with no hint of it ever having been two rooms. The other way, you still can see that there are two rooms, they are just open to each other.

The other BIG issue is that a porch will not have a foundation that is suitable to be used for a living space. It will have to have a new foundation and possibly even be reframed entirely. Add 5-10K minimum for that.

A kitchen/keeping room remodel averages around 90K in your neck of the woods. Start adding in the structural changes and it's easily at 120K.

Lzerarc- It's a porch with nothing above it, but I think you're right about the foundation. Thanks for the response.

Hollysprings- Thanks for the info. I think you're right about redoing the foundation. However, incorporating the porch (I hope) is cheaper than an addition...and it faces south, so there's lots of light. I'm debating about putting the kitchen in this spot (especially if we need to put a new foundation in) and just figure on paying a bit more.

As for costs, that's not a big problem, but I hate buying all new, off the rack stuff. It's always more of a challenge to do some things yourself (I'm going to try tiling, to see if I can do my own backsplash or countertops with ceramic tile...or at least help). We were all raised to be creative with as little cash as possible...and that's still more fun (and unique) than going to the store and picking out everything new.

Right now, I'm on the hunt for marble pieces...one for a baking area (at least 42" x 24") and one for the bathroom sink countertop (maybe 60" x 24"). Keeping my fingers crossed I'll find something that works. And, always on the lookout for a great claw foot tub! LOL

Mama Goose has the type of kitchen I'd love to create. I'm not that talented, but I'm going to do what I can :)

LL
I don't have any problems with my house. I am trying to explain to you that if YOU get shoddy work, YOU won't know until many years have passed.

Do you know enough how not to get shoddy work done? Since you are asking questions that are beyond what internet folks can give you as a meaninful feedback, I am a bit worried that you are in over your head or that you don't really have a trusted resource for meaningful feedback.

The kind of question you are asking has to do with your current house and how it was built. For example, depending on how your porch was built, it may have to be completely torn out, including the concrete slab before anything can be done there RIGHT.

You said that your family will build... Sometimes, family members are the worst because they think they know what they are doing and you end up trusting the family because they are family.

You need to talk to really reputable/knowledgible people. Any yahoo can come and say 'yeah, i will build it for you cheap' and end up doing shoddy work, take your money and be gone. Will you know when to trust that yahoo or not? Inspections and building permits are not infallible. People do stupid things all the time.

I wish you the best.

Thanks, Kai. We won't be having family members build (I wish) but I do appreciate getting some idea of what to ask, before we talk to the professionals. If you walk in with some basic knowledge (especially as a gal) you are usually taken more seriously...than if you walk in knowing very little about the process.

When I asked about the bad experiences you had with houses...I was referring to this statement.

"I have walked into so many additional that are 'worthless' because we look at a lot of open houses. All I see is an add-on/remodel that needs to be completely torn out started again if I am going to live there. I won't buy it and live there but some fool will."

lavender, Thank you. :)

I have no advice for engineering a beam, but I'm sure you can learn to tile. I can't remember where you live, but maybe this is close enough, and would be wonderful for a baking center. If you want a kitchen similar to mine, ya gotta hang out on craigslist!

Mama Goose- Thank you! That is about an hour from my house...and if we weren't having a BLIZZARD, I'd be tempted to go in and see it. Maybe, I'll call....thanks again :)

I'm wondering how much side wall you normally need, with a steel beam vs. an engineered beam.

There is no "normally." There is only your house's particular needs (the weight of your roof and any upper story, how much of that weight is borne by this wall, etc.). You need to get a structural engineer in there to analyze your particular situation and tell you what needs to be done. We hired an engineer to figure out what to do about removing a supporting wall on the kitchen, and his services cost, as I recall, about $400. He gave us a long detailed report with diagrams showing exactly what to do--all we needed to do was give those to the contractor.