Installing beans won't help much, but a lintel will. I'd make one from a cross piece of angle iron with a leg on each side. Easily done if you have any friends that weld. That would keep the opening minimally larger that what is needed for the AC case. I'm sure some other ideas can work also.
I would like to install a window type A/C unit in a wood framed wall with a brick veneer. The unit will only need to cool one 14'x14' room, so I am hoping small unit/opening will suffice. The opening will be on the first floor of a two story structure, so there is a lot of brick above with no other openings. The brick and structure are in good condition.
How big (wide?) can the opening be before I have to install a lentil? Could a wood header/stud/sill frame inside the new opening suffice?
Thanks for any ideas or suggestions.
You do not need support if you remove _one_ brick, and I imagine your AC is bigger than that. Larger than that and you'll have to use a piece of steel to support the brick. Do not use wood.
Have you thought about getting a unit that only requires a 4" hole? The "portable" air conditioners have come down a lot in price, you can store them out of the way in the winter and you won't have to mess with framing and brickwork.
R
Well, you're probably going to be using a 5k to 6k btu a/c, so the opening is going to be about 18" to 24" wide. I would definitely use a lentil. Even one made of p.t. 2x4 wood would likely work well unless you get a *lot* of water on that wall.
Speaking as the current owner of a home where a previous owner did just exactly that, I can assure you that some future owner of your home will curse the day you were born. Window A/C units are meant to go into (surprise!) windows. Someday, somebody will put central air in that home. And then they'll have this fugly old hole in the wall, with a fuglier old window A/C in it, and the choices being to patch the wall, or leave the fugly stuff where it sits.
If you're really set on doing this, first find out if the brick is still being made. If not, reconsider your plans: you're about to do irreversible damage to the appearance of your home. If they *are* available, then buy enough bricks - *now* - to fill the opening back in, and store them in the garage, with a note on them explaining to the next owner what they're for. Make sure to get an extra brick for every brick you have to cut making the opening, and a couple extra just for spares. Get them now, because you have no assurance that they'll still be available in 20 years when the third owner after you wants to fix it.
Jeez, I didn't even think of a metal frame, only a lentil......hmmm...
Thanks for your suggestions.
Thanks Rico, I looked at the portable units after your suggestion, and they look like a good alternative. Smaller hole = good. Probably the way I will go. The prices are a lot less than I would have thought. Thanks again!
Those portable units were about a grand when they first came out, and prices have plummeted. It's definitely an easier way to go and has additional benefits. You'll be giving up some floor space, but you can also have the unit move around a bit if necessary.
Any money saved due to my advice is traditionally donated, at a very reasonable 50% or the savings (please don't undervalue your time when doing the calculations), to the Help Buy Toys For Big Boys Fund. Send the check to me and I'll make sure it gets distributed to where it can do the most good.
RI would love to add the room in question to the existing central HVAC, but it is not possible in this situation, without an incredible amount of work and expense. I could not agree more about your aesthetic concerns. The to-be opening location was selected to be the least visible. As for the brick, they were painted before I bought the place. So matching should not be a problem. I am thinking about RicodJour's suggestion of a portable unit using only a 4"+/- hole. Thanks for your valid points.
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