Expert: Bruce E. Johnson - 3/5/2010

Question
i,m thinking abouttaking out the center wall between the kitchen and living room ilooked in the attic and it looks like an eng. truss because of the staple plates on all joints . i,m taking out 14 ft. the room is20 ft.  the remaing 6 ft.was always open sincethe house was build in the 60,s i don,t see a problem but i like to here from you. do i need to put a 2 by 10 header across that 14 ft. span

Answer
Hi henny, if the trusses look like they span from outside wall to outside wall then the interior kitchen wall is probably not a bearing wall and can be removed.  It wouldn't hurt to have someone familiar with roof construction, a framing carpenter or structural engineer to verify.  But it sounds to me like you have free spanning trusses that do not require this kitchen wall for support. I hope this information helps, please feel free to write again regarding this or other matters, sincerely bruce e johnson..bejohnsonconsulting.com