Brick Vener Lintel- No bearing available 4

[SleeplessEngineer]

[URL unfurl="true"]https://res.cloudinary.com/engineering-com/image/upload/v1703094696/tips/IMG_7034_lrbkxh.heic[/url]
The penthouse wall was added with brick veneer by the architect at the last minute; we were not informed of this change. I was already not happy about this since this wall is setback from the front wall and supported by LVL beams; so, the brick veneer is supported by the wood beam.
I went to check on site and found this lintel support. Top level of door opening, and window opening is off by about 10". So, the Contractor provided two separate lintels which apparently have no support at that point. Currently a wood member is attached to support this temporarily. Any suggestion on how to support and still look not ugly?

Thank you for reading my post! I appreciate your time.

 

[XR250]

1) Add more temporary support immediately. Are you sure the lintels are not bolted to a beam behind the brick?
2) I understand why you are Sleepless.
3) This is a total CF. Is the LVL capable of supporting the additional load?

 

[phamENG]

Yikes. I second XR250. They need to shore it up right away and then rip out enough brick to install a single lintel all the way across with a competent and code compliant load path for all of it.

 

[Tomfh]

The old load bearing window suite. It’s when the glazing starts to bulge that you really need to worry.

 

[SleeplessEngineer]

Thanks XR250,
1. Yes, GC said it is a loose lintel.
2. no words, haha.
3. Yes, the beam is sufficient to carry the load. I asked them to add additional two plys. Originally it was just (2) 14" LVL aligned with wood wall.

Thanks phamEng, I have asked them to replace with single lintel. The reason I did not want them to tell this right away was beacuse we are waiting for the owner to sign us up on another project. So I thought I could find an elegant solution to make everything ok without a big disruption to the work on site. But it is not worth worrying about any more minutes..

Tomfh, I definitely don't want to get sued by whoever is buying the condo haha...

Thank you for reading my post! I appreciate your time.

 

[phamENG]

we are waiting for the owner to sign us up on another project.

I haven't been doing the business side of this too long, but one of the first things I figured out is how much this does NOT matter. The kind of client that would withhold work because you are requiring the building to be built in a safe manner is not the kind of client I want to pass on the street much less do business with. I've also had several come to me with the "I have a couple big projects for you, they should be starting next month. Think you can handle this particularly nasty problem for me?" Solve the problem, the other projects don't materialize. Or they do, but your competitor's sign is out front when they break ground. What's in front of me right now is what matters. If the deal is I do something now to benefit you and you'll give me something to benefit me later, the NTP on the latter better happen before my deliverable for the first half.

 

[GeorgeTheCivilEngineer]

It's a bit bonkers the contractor thought that was OK.

Sky hooks from an architectural plan is one thing, but for brick layers to not point the lintel was floating seems odd!

 

[dik]

...and the GC may be a loose cannon...

-----*****-----
So strange to see the singularity approaching while the entire planet is rapidly turning into a hellscape. -John Coates

-Dik

 

[ChorasDen]

Yes, the beam is sufficient to carry the load. I asked them to add additional two plys. Originally it was just (2) 14" LVL aligned with wood wall.

How is the lintel attached to the LVL? I hope it's loaded above the neutral axis? If not, you have more problems on your hand with the performance of the wood beams now in question.

 

[SleeplessEngineer]

It's a bit bonkers the contractor thought that was OK.

The contractor said they had installed the brick tie like we've shown on the detail and asked if that is not enough... smh.

How is the lintel attached to the LVL?

Sorry my post was bit confusing- 2 items were discussed. LVL post is below the wall; not at the lintel level. It's a penthouse wall starting from the from the lower roof framing.

Thank you for reading my post! I appreciate your time.

 

[kipfoot]

Could you use an HSS 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 in the plane of the brick placed to support the offset ends of both lintels (or under a single continuous lintel)? The architect would have to devise cladding around it. This post might help you if distributing the load is advantageous for the framing below.

 

[SleeplessEngineer]

Thanks kipfoot. I believe they have already started working on it. That is a good idea; but not sure if we have enough space to provide a base plate to connect the HSS to wood beam below.

Thank you for reading my post! I appreciate your time.