You may have heard horror stories or know of someone who had a bad experience during a home remodel or upgrade. While it is a reality that life will not be “routine” by any stretch of the imagination, there are some proactive steps that can be instrumental in making the experience less eventful or perhaps… Read More »
Before you can consider that extra room in the basement as a legal bedroom, several requirements of the 2015 International Residential Code and NFPA 101 need to be met. Start by considering the following questions: Is my ceiling at least 7 feet tall? Does the room have adequate insulation in the walls? Is there sufficient… Read More »
So many great things came out of 2020. One of the many is that our long-time friends at 101-103 School Street Condominium in Concord said yes to proceeding with needed structural improvements to this “multi-level” garage. For many years, the cars on the upper level would drip salt and sand through the old wooden floor… Read More »
As engineers, we often get the call to inspect and design improvements for structural members that are close to failing. Building owners often catch these deficiencies before the worst-case scenario comes to life. Surprisingly, we rarely see any that have actually failed, but this is one of them. The age of this home is unknown,… Read More »
A common concern we receive from owners of older homes is a sagging/sinking floor. Sagging floors can occur for several reasons and might be scary for homeowners, but a qualified engineer knows exactly what signs to look for to determine how to fix it. All structures settle over time (especially in the first few years)… Read More »
Around here, most residential garages, whether attached to the house or detached, include a concrete slab-on-grade. Concrete slabs-on-grade are strong, durable, and easy to maintain. To provide more usable square footage, garage floors are sometimes built elevated – we’ve designed a few ourselves using framing systems like cold-formed steel joists, pre-stressed concrete plank, and structural… Read More »
Structural engineers design buildings to withstand loads of all types. The building’s frame must be designed to withstand a combination of all those loads with some being more present than others, such as snow or seismic, depending on the geographic region of the building. The most common loads we address within New Hampshire and Massachusetts… Read More »
Team Engineering represents a condominium community on an exciting project while their contractor replaces all the siding, doors, windows, and exterior decks on their buildings. The service is called Construction Administration (CA) and in laymen’s terms we are working as an intermediary between the contractor and our client to make sure the project is performed… Read More »
Take a look at this metal deck and open web steel joist floor structure. As you can see, the metal deck and the open web steel joists are severely corroded. If you zoom in, you might be able to see where the steel is starting to flake and can easily be pulled apart with bare hands.… Read More »
Whether you are looking for a lower cost retaining wall to enhance your yard or to support your driveway, the Interlocking Concrete Block (ICB) (a.k.a. segmental concrete block) retaining wall may be your best option. Up to 4 feet tall (base to top of wall), it can be designed and installed by a qualified landscaper. … Read More »
Latest from our blog
NAVIGATION
LATEST FROM BLOG
CONTACT US
