I need to figure out whether an internal thermalise wall is load bearing or not.

If it’s a wall made out of Thermalite blocks it probably won’t be/shouldn’t be.

Try contacting Carol Kirkwoods corsetmaker.

thermally blocks are load bearing they usually 3.5 Newton the same as the blocks used in cavity walls, most internal walls are built out of 7 Newton concrete blocks because they are stronger and cheaper

what is above the wall ? is there another wall ? do joists sit on the wall

Verbal are you qualified to answer

That’s what I’m trying to figure out, it’s a kitchen wall and I want to open it out. Above it is my Concern. There definitely isn’t an upstairs wall above it, the nearest wall up there is a foot away.

I’ve done a couple of rough sketches to give you an idea. The house by the way is 12 years old. Typically 4 bedroom modern house.

If there is nothing above it then there is no load. It’s just like a partition and could be made out of wood, like a stud wall.

These blocks are called “Thermalite” by the way, not “ thermally” or “thermalise”. I’m a bricklayer and although they are quick to work with and good on the back, they are weak, and I wouldn’t want them used on a house of mine - but I digress because the question is can you take a bit out of this wall, and it looks like you can but get a second opinion from a local bricklayer, someone who’s been around a bit, not a youngster.

Like most things in life you can’t beat a bit of good advice.

To be honest I was expecting a stud wall but then found these grey bricks and thought, ooh... hang on a minute.

Why would they use these instead of a stud wall by the way?

No reason really. The Thermalite blocks (if that’s what they are) would be better/stronger than a stud wall and v quick to build.

They are thermalite blocks. I was autocorrected first time I typed it.

Theyre not laid sideways, my phone was sideward!

I'm not a structural engineer no but I've been a builder for about 30 years and done plenty of taking walls out and steel work so I know a fair bit about it

I know they are called thermalite it was auto thing that done that

I've laid them for a long time and most new houses are built out of them, your wall plate and roof sits on them so they must be OK weight wise, but I know what you mean about them they crack like fuck

out of interest how old are you infidel ? are you from the town

most joists usually run the shortest length so give you a idea of if joists sit on it

mr i bashing about on his impressive portfolio of properties again? i blame the Tories for his wealth.

I’m old enough to remember Slade at number one - and I’m not from anywhere near Hartlepool although on saying that, early 90s I did build some whopping great brick manholes in the beach at Seal Sands. It was an unusual job because they couldn’t have any “perps” in them (cross joints) and this proved to be a pain because it took time to keep on cleaning them out. When the sand gets wet the water is meant to flow through the manhole, instead of endlessly putting strain on it, that’s the theory!

Hoy!! Slade! I thought we were talking about my wall!

Do joists in the loft go the same way as joists on the ground floor ceiling?

They should do, best double check though.

Unrelated to this, years ago an old joiner I worked with used to have a little catch phrase “measure twice, cut once” - it’s a good little rule to prevent you rushing in.

check twice build once !

how old is the house ?

judging by the blocks it cant be that old, so the roof joists will be trusses and they usually run back to front and have no bearing on which way tour joists will run

look at your ceiling downstairs sometimes you can see where the screws in the plaster boards are and that shows you the way the joists are

if in doubt pull bedroom carpet up and see which way your boards are running

Ceiling joists run perpendicular to this wall.

I'm no expert and have no building experience, so I will ask why have none of the experts mentioned Mr I's toilet is half the size of the bath? Big ass syndrome? This can't be true as the ass wouldn't be able to fit in the bath! I'm confused and we need answers.!!!!!!

Normal size toilet but the missus is a midget so small bath.