This was the first major step in the remodeling project after replacing the kitchen window.

Between the north dining room wall and the stair case was a "hallway". It was wasted space. However, the wall was load-bearing, so I couldn't just knock it out. So we replaced it with posts and a beam.

To do this we built a temporary wall on each side of the existing wall to carry the load until we got the beam in place. Then the temporary walls were removed (and the boards were reused for two other wall projects).

A closet next to the front door was also removed. The post on the east end is embedded in the wall, allowing for a flat surface. Squash blocks were installed adjacent to the box sill to transfer the load to the foundation.

To support the load on the post at the west end, a post was installed in the basement with squash blocks to transfer the load through the floor to the concrete basement floor.