Do I need a structural engineer for a sagging floor beam?
Paying for a structural engineer feels risky when you are afraid of wasting money if a contractor's reinforcement recommendation is already sufficient for a visibly sagging, deteriorated beam. Additionally, major structural fixes like adding a steel L-shaped beam require a complete rebuild, which stalls out when an HOA refuses to approve the engineering work.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Hiring a structural engineer for a professional evaluation
- 2Installing temporary support posts
- 3Building a plywood box beam reinforcement based on contractor advice
- 4adding an aluminum edge trim
- 5staining the deck and exposed portions of the beam
- 6Calling foundation companies
- 7Having the middle of the house jacked up
- 8Asking for recommendations on community forums for structural engineers or general contractors.
- 9Gluing the removed wood pucks back into the holes with construction adhesive.
- 10Installing commercial metal joist reinforcement brackets.
- 11Stopping use of the shower immediately
- 12Ripping up the tile to inspect and replace the shower pan and waterproof membrane
- 13Calling the installation company back to fix the connection
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“The seals between the tiles are breaking and the surface is lifting up. Why might this be happening and how would we fix it?”source ↗
“I'm in the process of trying to get a report from an engineer, but I'm also afraid of spending a lot to find out the contractor's recommendation is a fine reinforcement.”source ↗
“All beams had quite visible sag even 10 years ago!”source ↗
“I'm observing a lot of delamination along a particular line (@ ~1/3 height), also overall condition is pretty deteriorated (e.g. check the chipping on the underside).”source ↗
“I would add a steel L -shaped beam under the composite one; problem is - it's a major rebuild, and our HOA doesn't want to hear this (I raised a question of hiring a structural engineer several times).”source ↗
“In my crawlspace, a company installed this post thing. I noticed my floors started shaking more and this is what I found in my crawlspace. How do I fix this?”source ↗
“What kind of company would I contact to actually figure out what’s going on with my floors?”source ↗
“I’m physically unable to get into the crawl space myself to really inspect everything and don't even know what to look for”source ↗
“In one of the rooms we’ve started noticed some sinking. We don’t know how long it’s been sinking but it’s a big enough gap where it’s caught our attention.”source ↗
“Does anyone have any suggestions for a structure engineer? Or general contractors?”source ↗
“I had some electrical work done and the contractor drilled 2 holes not up to code through my floor joists.”source ↗
“I had a structural engineer come out to my house today and he basically said to just glue the wood pucks back into the holes with a little notch for the wire. This seems... wrong.”source ↗
“And would this bracket need to be for oversized holes or is this essentially a notch because of how close it is to the top?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2Should I add plywood to a flexing subfloor or replace it?
- 2Why is the plywood roof decking sagging on my new house?
- 2Fascia board pulled away from rafters
- 11How to fix concrete cracks near garage foundation
- 4How to fix a door that is sagging or rubbing against the frame
- 5How to fix squeaky flooring joints along the wall