So my adult kids started working on the kitchen-they were planning to remove a wall that runs perpendicular to the peak (along the cross-joists, so we thought it wasn't a supporting wall).
After removing the drywall it looks to us like it might be a supporting wall.
In the picture you can see the kitchen wall we were thinking of removing along the right, and the exterior wall in front. (to the very right you can see the edge of a door frame; we'd removed the actual door a while ago and turned it into an archway to get more room, since it was a pocket door, making the framing around it about 6 feet wide and we preferred to have the opening).
So, do we need a structural engineer? It looks like there's a beam running parallel to the main beam, about 2 feet from the edge of the house and in the picture, about a foot closer to the exterior wall than the vertical plumbing pipe — is this normal? It looks like we need to support it, my son suggests a pillar just under it where the wall framework is currently and then removing the rest of the framework of the kitchen wall.
I'm just nervous my kids are going to do something to completely destroy my house or create a situation that's going to cost me way more than I can affort. Restless kids in quarantine's great for Lowes', but not my nerves!
Other side of kitchen:
Closer view of support
Best Answer
The sandwich of three (probably two 2x4s and a 2x8/2x10 that run left to right in the picture are clearly carrying the load of the upstairs floor joists. (Which are also heavily compromised by the piping for the upstairs bath.). You cannot remove this wall without supporting that point load all the way to the foundation.
If you want the wall gone you'll need to contact a local structural engineer or experienced contractor to devise a replacement structure, probably just a simple header. The load will need to be carried through temporary structure while this work is being done. It is not a DIY friendly project.
Note also the door on the far right has a significant header over it, so the original framers knew the wall would be bearing a load. Then the plumber went and cut right through their top plates. ;-)