Load bearing wall removal across Irving

Irving has two very different kinds of houses. South and central Irving are full of mid-century ranch homes, while Las Colinas and Valley Ranch are mostly newer two-story homes and townhomes. The wall you want gone behaves differently in each, so we look at the house first and the wall second.

Mid-century ranch homes in south and central Irving

Neighborhoods like Plymouth Park, Irving Heights and Grauwyler Heights grew in the middle of the last century, and many of their homes are single-story ranches built in the 1950s and 1960s. Their kitchens tend to be small and closed, tucked behind a wall that separates them from the living room.

In a one-story ranch, that wall usually carries ceiling joists and sometimes part of the roof. Taking it out turns two small rooms into one usable space, which matters more in a modest house than in a large one.

Low roofs and what the attic tells us

Many Irving ranches have low-pitched roofs, which leaves less room in the attic for a beam to sit above the ceiling. Before we quote, we go into the attic to see how the ceiling joists and roof braces land on the wall.

Sometimes the beam can be hidden flush in the ceiling. Other times the engineer calls for a dropped beam, and we talk with you about where it will look best before anything is ordered.

Carports, garages and room to grow

Some older Irving homes have a carport instead of an attached garage, and others have a garage that was closed in years ago. If you want to enclose a carport, extend the house or open a converted garage into the kitchen, the wall between the old garage and the house is often part of the structure. We handle garage and home extensions with the same engineer, permit and inspection as any other wall.

University Hills custom homes

University Hills was developed mostly in the late 1960s and 1970s, with custom homes on larger lots and winding streets. Custom homes rarely repeat a floor plan, so we don’t assume anything about where the loads go.

Long spans, sunken living rooms and rooflines that change direction are common in this kind of house. The engineer traces each load to the ground and sizes the beam for it.

Valley Ranch and Las Colinas two-story homes

Valley Ranch was built mostly in the late 1980s and 1990s, and much of Las Colinas’s housing is newer. In these two-story homes, the wall between the kitchen and the family room often holds up the floor above, including bedrooms and bathrooms.

That means a beam sized for floor load, posts at each end and a check of the slab where those posts land. When the slab needs help, we add a footing before the beam goes in.

Townhomes and zero-lot-line homes

Las Colinas and areas like La Villita include townhomes and zero-lot-line homes that sit close to their neighbors. Interior walls in these homes can still be load bearing, but the walls shared with the next unit are a different matter and we leave them alone.

If your home is part of an association, we check whether it wants to see plans before work starts and provide them if it does.

Offices and shops in Las Colinas

Irving is also a business city, with offices around Las Colinas and shops along corridors like Belt Line Road and MacArthur Boulevard. We remove walls in commercial spaces too, with the same engineering and permit process, and we can plan the work around your business hours.

If your house sits on pier-and-beam

Many Irving homes sit on a slab, but some older houses may sit on pier-and-beam with a crawlspace underneath. If yours does, the new posts need support all the way down to the ground, so the engineer may call for new piers under each post. We check from the crawlspace before we quote.

Permits in Irving

The City of Irving requires a building permit for structural work like removing a load bearing wall. We file it with the engineer’s plan, schedule the inspection and close it out, so the change is on record when you sell.

What drives the price in Irving

Every project includes engineering, the city permit, the beam and posts, and the drywall, ceiling and floor patch. A flush beam in a two-story Valley Ranch home with a bathroom above costs more than a dropped beam in a one-story ranch. Plumbing, gas lines or ductwork inside the wall also add to the job. You get a written price before any work starts.

From first photo to finished opening

It starts with photos or a visit. Then the engineer designs the beam and we file the Irving permit, and those two steps set the overall timeline. Once they’re done, most walls come out in one day of work.

Pipes, gas and ducts inside the wall

Kitchen walls in Irving homes often hide more than studs. In a ranch, a gas line may run to the range or a vent pipe may rise through the wall to the roof. In a two-story, ductwork for the upstairs rooms or a drain from an upstairs bathroom may pass through. We look for all of it before we quote, and any rerouting is listed in your written price.

A typical work day in an Irving home

On the work day, our crew builds temporary walls on both sides of the opening to hold the ceiling, removes the old wall and sets the new beam and posts. The temporary walls come down only after the beam carries the load. Then we patch the drywall, ceiling and floor, and the Irving inspection is scheduled.

Staying home while we work

Most families stay in the house. We seal off the work area, cover the floors, keep a clear path through the house and clean up at the end of every day. In a smaller ranch, we plan the setup so you still have a working bathroom and a way to the bedrooms.

HOAs in master-planned Irving

Many homes in master-planned areas like Valley Ranch and Las Colinas belong to an association. Interior wall removal rarely needs approval, but exterior changes like removing porch columns often do. We provide drawings and a description of the finished look when the association asks for them.

Questions Irving homeowners ask us

Is the wall in my ranch house load bearing? In many one-story Irving ranches, the wall between the kitchen and living room carries ceiling joists. Text us photos of the wall and the attic above it and we’ll tell you what we see.

Can you open a converted garage into the house? Often, yes. The engineer checks the old exterior wall, and we pull the permit for the change.

Do I need to move out? No. We close off the work area and keep the rest of the house livable.

Where we work in Irving

We work all over Irving, from Plymouth Park, Irving Heights and the older central neighborhoods along SH 183 to University Hills, Valley Ranch and Las Colinas near SH 114 and I-635.

Book your estimate in Irving

Call or text (469) 436-5680 with photos of the wall and the attic above it, or book a free on-site estimate. We serve every part of Irving, plus Coppell, Grand Prairie, Farmers Branch and nearby cities.