- Joined
- 30 May 2022
- Messages
- 6
- Reaction score
- 0
- Country
We are replacing a 150cm uPVC window and a 2m uPVC french door in our kitchen, with a similar 150cm uPVC picture window and a sliding upvc door.
The house is a 50s-60s semi, cavity walls with a 60mm or so cavity. There are no lintels on the outer walls, and HUGE poured concrete lintels on the inner, which seems to span the entire cavity. We have had fun already with one of these monster lintels. Externally there are soldier courses above all windows/doors.
The brickwork above the 150cm window is flawless, no cracks of any type etc and the bricks don't appear to be touching the window anywhere, so even though there is no lintel nothing appears to have ever moved.
Above the door there has been some kind of lintel fitted previously, presumably when the current doors went in. It's only about 3mm thick and appears to be an angle iron, albeit not 100% sure as I can only see the outer edge. Could be a galvanized lintel. It's been installed with the bricks in place, I can see where the bearings have been made as the mortar is a different colour. I'd say bearings of 100mm each end. Above this door there is some cracking in the brickwork, albeit only 1mm or so and could have occured before the existing lintel was installed. The bricks don't appear to bow and aren't touching the door.
What would you do here? Disrupt the solid brickwork on the window to install a lintel, or just swap the windows over as clearly it's holding just fine as is. Then on the door do I get the existing lintel ripped out and another fitted or just swap those doors over as well?
The house is a 50s-60s semi, cavity walls with a 60mm or so cavity. There are no lintels on the outer walls, and HUGE poured concrete lintels on the inner, which seems to span the entire cavity. We have had fun already with one of these monster lintels. Externally there are soldier courses above all windows/doors.
The brickwork above the 150cm window is flawless, no cracks of any type etc and the bricks don't appear to be touching the window anywhere, so even though there is no lintel nothing appears to have ever moved.
Above the door there has been some kind of lintel fitted previously, presumably when the current doors went in. It's only about 3mm thick and appears to be an angle iron, albeit not 100% sure as I can only see the outer edge. Could be a galvanized lintel. It's been installed with the bricks in place, I can see where the bearings have been made as the mortar is a different colour. I'd say bearings of 100mm each end. Above this door there is some cracking in the brickwork, albeit only 1mm or so and could have occured before the existing lintel was installed. The bricks don't appear to bow and aren't touching the door.
What would you do here? Disrupt the solid brickwork on the window to install a lintel, or just swap the windows over as clearly it's holding just fine as is. Then on the door do I get the existing lintel ripped out and another fitted or just swap those doors over as well?
Last edited:
