Expert: Dan Griffin - 11/15/2007

Question
i have a solid brick wall (load bearing?) with a window (45"wide).  I want to knock out the window and put in an entry door (french) approx 7'H x 68" wide.  This is on the ground floor and there are 2 storeys above (solid brick house).  Once I have the opening, I can install the door myself but I'm a little hestiant when it comes to knocking out the brick.  How do I go about this while ensuring safety and solidness?  What size lintel do I need (wood/steel)?  Anything else to be aware of?

Answer
What vintage is your home?  I seriously doubt that it is solid brick or load bearing.  Almost anything built in this century will be wood framed with a brick veneer.  This being said, you still can't just beat a huge hole in the brick work without carrying the load of brick overhead.  I don't have the correct books here to indicate the size of the lintel, I'm guessing it will be a 3x6x1/4 angle to carry the brick load.  The headers and framing on the inside should be done first, assuming I am correct about the house.  I would plan on double 2x12 for the header in a 2x4 wall.  The interior drywall will need to be removed.  If this really is a load bearing wall (is this a gable roof with the rafter tails and 2nd floor joists bearing on this wall overhead?) some special shoring must be done on the inside while this opening is made in the framing.  If there is a basement, you may need to make some extra provisions there too until you can get the load transferred back to the wall framing.  Pinning masonry can get a bit technical, but basically you need to support the brick work several courstes above the proposed opening, break out the brick work being careful to save as many whole brick as possible, tooth out and re-lay the sides, install the lintel, and re-lay the header courses back up to the pinning.

If you are not prepared for this, contact a local builder and a local brick layer or let the builder organize the whole thing.  In my humble opinion, let a good builder/remodeler handle the whole thing.  If you are quite adept at the above trades, have at.  The fact that you think your house is solid brick makes me wonder.  If it is truly solid brick, most of the above does apply.  The pinning becomes much more serious, the lintel iron gets much larger, and I think it is  time for a structural engineer.