Straight answers on extensions, lofts, basements, steel and surveys, from a practice that does the work across London week in, week out.
If you are planning to knock through a wall, extend at the back or convert a loft in Ilford, sooner or later someone will ask for structural calculations.
If you're knocking through for a rear extension or opening up a side return on one of East Ham's Victorian terraces, sooner or later you'll need a steel beam sized correctly to hold the house up.
If you're planning a side return or rear extension on a Walthamstow terrace, you'll need a structural engineer before building control will sign anything off.
If you are planning an extension in East London, the structural engineer's fee is one of the smaller lines in your budget, but it shapes how much steel, concrete and labour you pay for later.
If you are planning a rear or side return extension in East London, your builder and building control will ask for structural calculations before much work can start.
Most cracks in the walls of a British home are harmless, but a small number are the first visible sign of foundation movement, and the difference is not always obvious to the eye.
If you are planning to knock through a wall to open up a kitchen or living room, the short answer is yes: if the wall is load bearing, you need a structural engineer.
If you are planning a rear extension, loft conversion or a knock-through in East Ham or anywhere across London, Building Control will want structural calculations before a single brick is laid.
If you are knocking through to open up your kitchen or supporting a new rear extension, the honest answer is that no one can tell you the beam size without doing the calculations.
Removing a load bearing wall is one of the most popular ways to open up a kitchen or living space, and one of the jobs where guesswork gets expensive.
Almost every loft conversion in the UK involves structural work, so in nearly all cases the answer is yes, you will need a structural engineer.