Possibly unsuported soildier course

[Gazman16]

Hello guys

I have posted this topic in the building section:
//www.diynot.com/forums/building/possibly-unsuported-soildier-course.386925/#2971939

Have any other window fitters here come across this before and what did you do?

 

[54er]

Wessex101 is absolutley correct. However if it is an unsupported head.
We have fitted windows where the original soldier course has been built directly off the old wooden frame. The main trick is to pick up on this before you start, which you have clearly done. We supported the bricks with 3 or 4 acrows/strongboys set close to the face of the soldiers, cut the old frame out very carefully, inserted a 70m/m x 70m/m angle iron with slate to pack. Fit the new window and pack up to the new angle iron, seal off at top of window and trim to cover. We would normally make the window 15m/m under size. The largest span we have done was about 2.4m and touch wood we haven't had any call backs.

 

[Gazman16]

Thanks
Good to see someone else has come across these situations. That is what I had originally planned to do, Only problem is if it was build like this:

Which is what I suspect, Then the internal concrete lintel is not only tight to the brick soldiers but fully bonded to it too.I may be able to disc cut a small channel out of the back of the bricks but I dought Id get anything bigger than a 30mm up-stand and most likely no up-stand at the corners where I would be trying to get my 150 bearing on either side.

 

[54er]

If its built as per the diagram, I wouldn't worry about any additional strengthening, those soldiers ain't going anywhere.

 

[Gazman16]

Thats what I'm hoping, I am probably just over worrying about it

 

[pinenot]

There are many ways to support a suspended soldier course above a window. One used about your houses age was to use the holes in the bricks to put a steel rod with threaded ends through, the rod extending beyond the the opening width. The steel rod provided the lintel and large "L" shaped washers were also sometimes made up (depending on the adjacent wall courses in relation to the holes in the brick) to provide the support. The bricks were laid up on a form and when the mortar was dry nut tightened against the washers, the form was then removed and the brickwork pointed in the normal way, you then had a suspended soldier course without any visible support...pinenot