Moving a wall stud a few inches

[Rob3D]

Hi. I'm remodelling our bathroom and have come up against a snag. I'm trying to hide all pipework and don't like the look of boxing in. Waste from the basin will have to share a run with the bath waste (probably using an air admission valve) but I have to get the basin waste beneath the bath, which is alongside, either under the floorboards or behind the drywall.

Under floor is out because the joists in the bathroom change direction to run perpendicular halfway across the room. There is no scope for notching or cutting the joists.

There is a wall stud precisely where I would have exited the 32mm waste from behind the drywall, beneath the bath and behind the bath front panel. The wall is not external but I'm not certain whether it is load bearing or not. The house is mostly block and brick with some hefty timber beams in the framework.

The simple question is; can I move the stud 3 inches to one side without compromising the structure? I'm guessing the answer is 'no' but I have to investigate all options before committing to ugly visible pipework.

Thanks
Rob

 

[thomp1983]

Pictures would help, it's unlikely moving it 3 inches will have any effect but if your worried about strength can you insert 2 new ones either side of the one you want to remove at the required spacing to allow your pipe to come out?

 

[^woody^]

This drywall, is it an American job? Not sure about their regulations.

Anyway, plasterboard stud walls are very unlikely to be structural.

 

[Rob3D]

Thanks for the replies. I've not taken the board off yet, if I can't move the stud I'd prefer not to disturb the plasterboard, just one more unnecessary job to add to the ever growing list. Pictures wouldn't show a lot at this stage I'm afraid :-\ . The wall depth is only 2.5" and the width of the stud in question appears to be only 2", seems unlikely that a 2" x 2.5" piece of wood would be used for anything other than supporting plasterboard (?)

It's not USA, no. I'm in the UK. House was built in the early 90's, for some reason the housebuilder decided a proper shower wasn't necessary, hence I'm moving stuff around in the bathroom for a walk in shower - it's plenty big enough for a full size bath and 1600 x 800 walk in shower.
Thanks, again.

 

[frutbunn]

Moving a non load bearing stud wall does not require B Regs in most situations providing there are no means of escape issues, ie creating an additional bedroom.

 

[RonnyRaygun]

Should be fine. I’d put the new stud in place and then cut out just enough of the old one to facilitate running the pipe through. You could put some noggins at 600crs, between the existing stud and the new one to assist with load transfer, just to be on the safe side.

 

[Rob3D]

Sounds like good news then - apart from the additional work. Of course it's the mrs. who's making a fuss about not seeing the pipes. I'll pull the boards off and report back if there's anything unexpected.
Thanks guys!

 

[Rob3D]

Right, I've pulled the board off and now I think the news is less good please see the following images:
Image #1 shows the wall with the plasterboard cut out. Note that there is a sloping ceiling. It's the middle stud that I need to move 3 - 4 inches to the right (towards the cables). There is a bedroom on the other side of the wall.
Image #2 shows a closer view of the cut out area.
Image #3 shows the actual section (on the left, needs to move to the right, closer to cables) that needs to be moved.

I expected the upright would have been in 2 sections, a lower piece I could easily move and an upper piece which would stay put. Please note that the poor looking workmanship is nothing to do with me! Splintered wood, badly fitting cross members and inaccurate nailing make me shudder, I guess that's 1990's new builds for you (?)

Hoping for some inspiration. Thanks..

 

[cdbe]

I can't figure out what your trying to do but you can easily reinforce any hacked out studwork with some plywood or steel plate. And pull that polystyrene out and put some decent acoustic insulation in if there's a bedroom next door.

If you look at this picture it's an 89mm stud wall with 2 x 40mm waste pipes and a 225mm x 25mm fan duct stuffed inside it and it's solid as a rock.