load-bearing wall
Weight-transferring partition
A load-bearing wall is a wall that supports weight from the structure above it, such as a roof, upper floors, or beams, transferring that load down to the foundation.
Removing or altering such walls without proper reinforcement can cause structural damage or collapse.
Before we knock out that wall, we need to check if it's load-bearing.
The term appears frequently in renovation discussions, where distinguishing load-bearing walls from non-structural partition walls determines what changes are possible.
- beamStructural support member
- steel beamStructural metal member
- headerTop line of document
- supportTo uphold or sustain
- weight distributionHow mass is allocated
foundation · structural engineer · truss · column · demolition · open floor plan · architecture · drywall · lintel · framing · compression · cantilever · joist · construction · structural integrity · reinforced concrete · concrete block · bracing
- constructionconstruction site, building site, hammer, building, beam
- building partsfacades, door, windows, floor, window
- wallspartition walls, retaining walls, brick walls, concrete walls, masonry walls
- masonrymason, brick, bricks, stone, mortar
- structural elementsgirder, beam, column, truss, brace
- structural supportsbeams, posts, columns, scaffold, girders
load-bearing wallpartition wall
Interior barrier between spaces
curtain wall · stud wall · room divider · dividing wall · divider wall
bear, load, wall, bearing, loaded, unbearable, bearings, walled, loading