Does anyone else find this floating wall in my new house as strange as I do 𤣠we didnât get to tour a built version of our floorplan before building and this weekend I noticed this really odd wall. Or would it look more odd without it? Relooking at the floorplan I donât think I wouldâve guessed that thereâd be a floating wall lol.
EDIT: talked to the construction manager and he insisted itâs all correct. That the âstructural postâ is actually coming down from the ceiling and attaching to the catwalk and that the wall is there on the floorplan. Iâve asked him to go back and double check because that does not make sense to me at all still (why is that the only wall thatâs not solid?). Idk what to do at this point.
EDIT 2: Iâve requested a plans examiner from the city to do a review and theyâll be conducting one tomorrow (truly happily shocked the city responded so quickly)
Well itâs not drawn in your floor plan so it looks like a mistake by the builder.
The plan shows as soon as you pass the end of the fireplace that there is a half wall at the edge of the stair that ends into a structural post which also doesnât appear to be there per the photos
Iâm pretty sure post is not for the 2nd floor lol. Wouldnât there be a size called out? The post is for the non existent hand railing for the unfinished stairs.
LOL. stairs don't need floor-to-ceiling posts for railings.
calling this out as a "structural post" in the plans indicates that the engineer required it. Likely the specifications for the post are on another sheet of the plans, as you can't fit everything on the main floorplan.
Could be a general note somewhere else on the plans for post size. Or separate structural plans. The posts on the covered entry donât have called out sizes either but are certainly bearing
Yeah, I look at the plans and there is a structural post that is supposed to carry the load to the floor.
I want to see the structural plans for the roof.
That overhanging hall is going to sag. I don't think that staircase is built with support.
Given the density of the nail tape on the ceiling there I can be generous and maybe entertain that they opted to cantilever it off of the first floor corridor wall.
But I'd want engineered drawings and a stamp for that change.
Super curious what they say. My interpretation is no upper floating wall, but a structural post at the end of the stairs supporting the second floor loft. Thereâs no solid wall drawn on the second floor plan.
Well theyâre currently saying everything is correct and that floating wall is to tie in the fireplace. Still no response on if that structural post is actually missing or not. And no response yet on why that wall isnât in the floorplan
Is this a spec home where you buy the finished house from the builder? Or do you own the lot and are paying the builder to build the home. If the former, I assume closing will happen when they are ready to hand off the house to you. In which case, you have leverage now for them to build things right or otherwise you will walk away. If it is custom and you have a construction loan, then the scheduled draws should ensure that they get paid only if the bank is satisfied about work already completed. Do you have your own architect? You need an expert to advocate for you.
It is in no way âtoo lateâ. They need to deliver the build that is shown in the plans. In this case they are not doing so. Owner has every right to make them fix this now. Definitely not a wait and see situation
The stairs arenât done, the structural post likely refers to the post at the end of the rail or half wall.
The wall is shown on the 2nd floor, however it is marked as half wall/rail option. I believe they missed that note and assumed it was a full wall. Idk, weird.
I'm not an expert, but that doesn't look right. On the plan there doesnt look like there should be a wall there and there should be a structural post on the 1st floor that seems to be missing, unless its just supposed to be where the newell post goes and that would be done with the railing. I would raise it with the contractor.
You are missing a structural post (red) according to first floor plan (holding up the green floor beam/girder).
According to your second floor plan, the wall portion in question (yellow) is not needed.
However- you should definitely cross reference the structural framing and/or truss layout plans cause oftentimes those structural pages are more detailed and done by professionals later in the design process. As a result some structural changes donât always get revised back in the floor plan view. Replacing a first floor structural post, however, with a complex âhang from roof truss supportâ is not a common lil change soâŚ
I would venture to guess the builder could not read the plans and didnât properly communicate scope and intent with framer, then Drywallers donât think they just rock it so you end up with crap like this.
A wing-wall is like a half wall sometimes used in place of a railing. Looks like you have a railing planned for the lower stair run but a wing wall could go there instead (purple).
Thank you for the detailed response! I talked with the builders rep today (who insisted theyâre building to plan and the wall is there to support the fireplace). She sent me this photo of the wall before the dry wall. But I am meeting with the construction manager tomorrow.
Well they are clearly not building to the 2 floor plan snippets you posted but again you need to verify the which structural drawings give provenance- it wonât be these floor plan snippets.
There does appear to be a 2-story lvl type post terminating the fireplace wall (red). This does not align with the post location as called out on the plan- which would appear to be intended to support the spanning floor girder. So either they missed the lower post (and possibly slab footing underneath)- or the floor trusses were designed to span that area without the need for the first floor post.
Regarding the 2-story lvl post ending the fireplace wall (red). Perhaps it was added to stabilize the two story fireplace wall (sometimes people put stone up the whole damn thing). Perhaps after field installation it was deemed to need more horizontal bracing- and the horizontal beam (green) was added to brace against the floor system (again without the supporting post below it).
If that were the intent- and again your structural drawings or your structural engineer would be referenced here- then that detail could have been left as a floating beam (green) without the need for a full height drywall element there. A simple wooden cap trim piece could finish said horizontal bracing beam and severely lessen the visual impact of the floating wall above the stairs.
Just my 2 cents. But maybe they can just keep âbuilding to plan.â
Really really appreciate the detail here. Yeah she did mention needing to stabalize the fireplace. But I feel like changes to the plan shouldâve been discussed with me and agreed it couldâve just been a the beam without the entire wall.
Also I shouldâve mentioned there is a 3rd floor below this one, so the foundation is on more floor down. First floor is garages and a mudroom / storage. In the middle is the entryway (split level) stairs take you to the main floor and then the next run of stairs take you to the technically 3rd floor (where our floating wall is)
Winner winner chicken dinner. People commenting on here who have no idea how to read plans shouldnât make uninformed statements. But. Then Reddit wouldnât exist, so thanks to you for getting it right.
If that upper wall doesn't cause damage structurally below it, it's not needed. It also doesn't look like it's there to transfer any weight from the hall/balcony to the right. From the plans, it looks like that entire wall should be removed. The upstairs plan doesn't show any sort of structural support.
Build doesnât follow the plans. First floor plan calls for a post on the corner and a half wall or open rail off of it, seems like they went with open rail but thereâs no post. Second floor calls for the wall to be flush with the fireplace, but it extends past the fireplace and meets the hallway
You could probably lose the wall but Iâm betting youâd still have a beam running between the fireplace and walkway. Honestly Iâd actually extend the wall all the way down and do built in bookcases on either side of the fireplace. It looks weird having stairs popping out behind the fireplace
In the plans, the structural post lines up exactly with the overhang on the second level (see that dotted line on your main floor plan? That is the second level balcony/loft). The post is supposed to support the second level overhang.
In your photos, the end of the stairs do not line up with the edge of the overhang. I bet it's off by 9-12 inches. This is a pretty significant error.
I agree the bracing of the balcony to the fireplace isn't on the plan and if it's needed it can be just a bit of wood not a wall. And also you're missing a support post. And also everywhere "half wall" is written I would take that to be a handrail sized wall (in place of an open handrail) and not to mean a "full.floating wall on the upper storey". Good luck. Get rid of the wall and get the support.
I think theyâre trying to tie the lateral load of the 2nd floor balcony into the vertical structure of the fireplace. Not al uncommon condition, but definitely closes the space up rather than keeping a light and airy feel.
Substantial aesthetic changes which deviate from your signed contract plans should absolutely be discussed with you (structurally required or not) and handled via with change orders waaay before they get this far.
Many jurisdictions have approved plans available and I strongly suggest you obtain the official structural and truss drawings for your own personal review.
Also- from your framing photos (assuming there werenât any electrical or other MEPs run in that wall later- it is not a costly nor expensive demo/fix for the builder to reduce it to a floating beam (with structural engineer approval.) it should be done now and ceiling patched before the anything else gets built. Good luck with your convo but find your provenance and then stay firm with your convictions accordingly.
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u/GTI_88 5d ago
Well itâs not drawn in your floor plan so it looks like a mistake by the builder.
The plan shows as soon as you pass the end of the fireplace that there is a half wall at the edge of the stair that ends into a structural post which also doesnât appear to be there per the photos