Our cellar is a very humid place and it's been so for nearly a century. I've recently discovered that all the metal (iron? steel?) beams have rusted so badly that they've shattered brick, plaster and concrete within a few cm of each beam. These particular beams apparently support the ground floor hall way. If I wanted a structural engineer to have a quick look and give me a written thumbs up or down report, how much money would I be looking at for such a 15 minute survey?
Secondly, can such beams (they're apparently only 4 or 5 feet long) be replaced "in situ", or are we looking at major works on the ground floor??