A beam weighing more pounds per foot might have allowed for greater column spacing. A taller and heavier beam – like the 10 by 31 ones I put in my last house – would have allowed you to span ...

The columns that support the beams must be rated to hold the weight and they must be connected properly to the beams. What’s more, you need solid bearing from the bottom of the column to the earth.

Q: I’m getting ready to build a large room addition that needs a beam to support the floor joists. I’ve been told that a wood beam will work, but I’ve always seen steel I-beams in other houses.

Some support columns are easy to move. Others are so hard it makes your brain hurt to think about all that needs to be done. (Tim Carter) Perspective by Tim Carter Q: I have this load-bearing post ...

Last week, I began a series of columns on age-specific issues that may confront homeowners or prospective homeowners. For example, a home built in 1953 may have different problems from one built ...

In the basement of my home, there is a single concrete beam below the intersection of the living room, dining room and kitchen walls. I’d like to remove the wall between the dining room and kitchen.

Q. I’m getting ready to build a large room addition that needs a beam to support the floor joists. I’ve been told that a wood beam will work, but I’ve always seen steel I-beams in other houses.