Working with a Structural Engineer on Our Renovation
Last week we hit a big milestone in our renovation. Justin and I finally had the opportunity to meet with a structural engineer. And, even though we are waiting on his final report for this phase of our farmhouse project, there are a few things he shared with us that make us hopeful for what’s to come.
When a pick up pulled into our driveway one warm June afternoon, I had no idea what to expect. I had heard some horror stories about hiring a structural engineer. Some go like this:”after a 15 minute visit, and $500 fee, this report is unusable!”. Other stories, not so terrible but equally vague.
Needless to say, Justin and I were a bit cautious.
However, I can tell you that our initial consultation exceeded our expectations. The structural engineer who came to visit us, walked through our home (inside, out, and under), listened to our future plans, and answered questions on the spot that we had been pondering for quite some time. The total visit lasted about 90 minutes.
While we are still waiting on his formal report, here is some of the information that we garnered from our visit. Let’s just say that what he shared has us hopeful for our future plans:
5 Things We Learned About Our 1940’s Farmhouse Cottage From a Structural Engineer
The Framing in the Basement is Structurally Sound
This is great news considering that we received reports of mold remediation when we were going through the closing process. This area of the house has also experienced quite a lot of flooding during our first year here in Tennessee. So, Justin and I were extremely grateful to find out that the wood in the basement is still in good shape.
The Front Door Can Be Moved
As it sits right now, our entry door is not centered on the front of the farmhouse, and that just drives me crazy! So, I was ecstatic to hear that the front door can be positioned in between the two existing front doors, as long as it’s properly supported.
It’s Okay to Remove Both Chimneys
Yes, there are two in this 1100 square foot farmhouse. This makes me wonder what else there are two of. We were completely surprised when we found that out. At first, we were hoping to turn the interior chimney into a double sided fireplace. But, as it turns out, that would put the fireplace right in the middle of the path of the front door. So, it’s got to go!
As for the second stone wall “fireplace”, where our pellet stove currently sits, that (the stone wall) was confirmed to be a veneer. However, there is a giant chimney that sits outside of the house. And yes, that can be removed.
Which is amazing because future plans point to placing our refrigerator there, and adding an exterior door in place of the stonewall. A door that leads to a wrap around front porch. Oh, there will be a wood burning stove inside, just not in either spot.
Yes, There Was an Addition
Imagining that this 1100 square foot farmhouse was originally smaller just blows my mind. But, yes it’s true. So what is part of the addition?
The laundry room and part of the kitchen. And, this makes sense because it’s the coldest area of the entire house. What makes even more sense now that I’m thinking about it is that patio outside the girls bedroom window. There must have been an exterior door turned window at one point.
This is something that we are bound to uncover sooner or later.
The Wall Between the Girls Room is Load Bearing
Maybe the addition went a bit further than we think. Remember when we removed the wall between the girls room, and uncovered an exterior wall? Well, it turns out that said wall is load bearing. So, it was a good move that we stopped our demo.
At the moment, demo is still on hold until we receive a formal report from the structural engineer. But, we do have some small projects in mind to get back on track with renovations. Here’s a glimpse of some of the projects we hope to tackle on The Cottage Homestead over the next few weeks – remove the popcorn ceiling, create a bigger access point to the attic space, and tearing down the double sided fireplace.
No one said that this renovation was going to be easy but, Justin and I both have our eye on our goal to make this a cozy, welcoming family home for years to come. It just might take a bit longer than we expected to get there.
