Lintels

[AlanM]

Depends on the size of beam you need. The heart is ok, depends how you mill the wood. Normally you would cut a beam "boxed heart" which means the heart remains in the middle of the beam and you have removed the four sides . If you saw through the middle there is a tendency for each side of the beam to bend away from the heart (sometimes).
 Quite agree with sentiment about regs being pointless in case like this. Have just been  involved with rebuilding of 16th C Z-type castle, walls all done with lime mortar, and roof composed of massive oak beams/posts. Building control officer just wandered about not quite knowing what to look at.

[guydewdney]

I bloomin hate the BR officer. Idiot told me I need regs to move a sink. Told me I needed regs for a 100+ year old window. Called me a liar. Cost us thousands to prove a 25 year old door was already there. Told me to dig a 4 foot hole in rock to prove that the base of a garage is stong enough (it has 3 foot deep re-enforced steel foundations, and a 4" re-enforced mesh steel slab as the base...)

so we had a word with his boss, after he started looking through the windows ("you have a lot of computers, dont you") - and got the git 'talked to'... hes been suspended already for being unprofessional, and has allegedly been punched by another punter.

Since then, he has been into my motherinlaws house - said Hi to the builder, walking in, went straight up the stairs (no chat, no ID, no hard hat, not hi viz etc).... we shall be having a word.

[tony.]

didnt see this thread earlier.

anway, i had 2 cracked stone lintels in my house, previous owner had filled them with silicone and painted, so it was missed on the survey.

So 2 lintels about 1.4metres long 300mm deep.

My builder used acro props inside the house with scaffold boards to spread the load.
He then cut 6 normal concrete lintels, 3 and 3 and mortarted them in, they were set back 1/2" from the front for a cement render, which was then stippled with a tool to match the other lintels.
as all the quoins and lintels are painted you never notice any difference apart from the slightly different style between the 2 tradesman, but only i notice that!!.

tony

[charlieb]

Thanks a lot guys . Been away for a bit and there's been masses of posts in my absense. Sadly I am definitely not competent - I'm definitely not going to go pulling anything out of a 2nd floor flat in an ancient 3 storey tenement myself. Always useful to understand what I'll be paying someone else to do, though. 
Tony, can you remember how much you paid for that concrete lintel (total cost for work and materials, inc plastering etc)?

[emacinty]

During these repairs, when the new lintel goes in, how do they pack the inevitable gap between the lintel and the material directly above which it is supporting? I assume there is a clever way to avoid sag. Or is the lintel so accurately sized it's not an issue?

Ewan

[MR GUS]

a concrete lintel is from around the £15 mark (size dependant of course) from ANY builders yard .although we found there was an RSJ in place where we were tinkering we popped the lintel in also, we had it, we'd specced it for the job & the hole was pretty much ready to receive it!

BTW my stihl disc cutter saw (big orange job) is still available to established members of the forum (I have a few blades of different types ..actually around 30) so if anyones near me save hiring one.
warning to the houseproud,they kick up ALOT of dust, our house looked like it was bleeding through the windows & chimney from the red brick dust.

ALWAYS seal off the room if using it inside & protect floors.

Anyhow back on topic...

[Tigger]

Just spotted Heatherw's pic of Chesterfield's 'Crooked Spire', I grew up in a nearby village and still go back there every month or so to catch up with family.

The crooked spire has got nothing to do with the timber moving, it's all to do with a visit from Beelzebub himself who landed on the spire and wrapped his tail around it.  At least that's what we were told as kids.......

I seem to remember there were lots of other 'reasons' as well but that one sticks in my mind

[tony.]

Ewan,

You pack it up/ hammer in slate to the required level, as this material cannot be compressed anymore.
My builder then used my mortar gun to ensure the mortar was placed as far as possible into the cavity.
My mate did it for me for £200 cash

[heatherw]

Just spotted Heatherw's pic of Chesterfield's 'Crooked Spire', I grew up in a nearby village and still go back there every month or so to catch up with family

Where are you from, Tigger?  I'm from Matlock Bath.  Went back just last week for a little visit.

[northern installer]

I bloomin hate the BR officer. Idiot told me I need regs to move a sink. Told me I needed regs for a 100+ year old window. Called me a liar. Cost us thousands to prove a 25 year old door was already there. Told me to dig a 4 foot hole in rock to prove that the base of a garage is stong enough (it has 3 foot deep re-enforced steel foundations, and a 4" re-enforced mesh steel slab as the base...)

so we had a word with his boss, after he started looking through the windows ("you have a lot of computers, dont you") - and got the git 'talked to'... hes been suspended already for being unprofessional, and has allegedly been punched by another punter.

Since then, he has been into my motherinlaws house - said Hi to the builder, walking in, went straight up the stairs (no chat, no ID, no hard hat, not hi viz etc).... we shall be having a word.

oh dear Guy,allegedly,all this trouble could have been avoided with a little private meeting at the lodge,and a suitable brown envelope to focus the mind.....

[desperate]

Hi all

I sympathise Guy, building control have the power to make a builders life hell if they want to. I find it helps to submit the notice in plenty of time and arrange a meeting with a surveyor before any structural work goes ahead, talk through the plans and ask for their opinion, they often surprise me with their knowledge. I have to say I am lucky with the 2 local authorities that i mostly deal with, they are very helpfull, I cant imagine they would querey the repositioning of a sink, your fella musta been stoned.

Desperate

[Tigger]

Where are you from, Tigger?  I'm from Matlock Bath.  Went back just last week for a little visit.

Not far from Chesterfield is a small town called Staveley (nr jct 30 M1) and just outside Staveley is a small village called Woodthorpe which is where I was born and grew up.  We were in Matlock Bath a few weeks ago too, good to see the streets still lined with Bikes at the weekend.....