You need a local structural engineer to design the steel beam that it will need. Yes it’s going to be invasive. And very expensive. That’s a long distance and a lot of weight.

If you have stressed existing support walls, you have no choice but to address a stronger and more stable solution than exists currently. Yes, a steel beam and an engineer is in your future. He needs to assess the house as a whole if you’ve got support issues.

What kind of structural inspection did you have before buying?

Find a better contractor.

LVL lengths are generally available in 24, 28, 32, 36, 40 and 44 feet with special orders of up to 60 feet.

There are multiple options besides LVL and steel.

Ah Thank you PPF, you give me hope.! The guy asked his designer abt LVL lengths and he said max length is 24’. I am in the very very beginning stages of this project. So am doing research and getting a lot of education from meeting contractors too.

this renovator/contractor has awesome reviews, but his credentials include B.com CPA...Nothing about being a licensed contractor or having a background in construction. of course it’s his own company .

@ the cooks kitchen We had a typical home inspector. And DH has a lot of experience in house Reno’s. We bought the home, due to its location and very very special views and land features, and price too. . Further, this is a very hot market and many many homes are sold within hours and without inspections or any contingencies. That there are LVL longer than24’, (even if they are needed, )is a definite clue to keep interviewing.

Yes there are longer LVLs. They are going to have to be taller, and will present the same exact access issues for installation as steel. You’ll need a crane from the exterior. Steel can be smaller in size, which is why it’s preferred.

"Further, this is a very hot market and many many homes are sold within hours and without inspections or any contingencies."

And, unfortunately, a profitable situation for sociopaths.

The reason that I asked about the inspection is that the home’s construction is out of the norm. It’s much more difficult for a standard home inspector to look at a post and beam and know much of anything about it when they really might see 1 every 7-8 years rather than the standard stick framed construction that the majority of homes are built. In those specialty situations, many people would have already consulted with a structural engineer, during the inspection period. Just like a home on a cliff might consult a soils engineer. Or a low home in a flood plain consult with a house raising company.

But given the further info about the hot market, I guess a lot of people are forgoing specialty trade inspections! Which is scary to me. I would definitely want a structural engineer inspect this from soil, through, foundation, to ridge line, and environmental stressors like wind or snow. Post and beam have more visible and discrete load paths than do stick built, which helps. But because they rely a great deal more on heavy point loading, the foundations for those points become ever more critical to ensure stability. Changing or adding to those load paths through beam removals or other alterations is major complicated surgery. That requires that engineer. Please let us know what he says!

Thank you for all your advice. The roof is a metal roof and from the outside there is no evidence of movement. The house is built on solid bedrock with a slab foundation. We live in shield country. There is no evidence of saging either.

Of course, before we open up the dining room wall, we Definetly get the engineering inspection.

For those interested, here is the major reason for purchasing this home. In addition to being the right price, in the right location.

whoever built this house did not take Full advantage of the views. More windows are needed lol