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Customer service is one of our top values here at Ouellette Engineering. We love hearing from happy clients about their experience working with us. 

Ouellette Engineering is a great firm to work with–Jay is all about building partnerships for referrals of quality designers, architects, and builders. Jay is very easy to communicate with and he always delivers professional and well constructed plans that line out safe, quality structures and buildings. I highly recommend his work.

-Caleb Kearns

Ouellette Engineering has helped us with multiple foundation projects over the years. Jay is awesome to work with. Friendly, honest, and dependable. Jay knows his stuff!

–Ashley O’Halloran

Ouellette Engineering is our go-to for all our structural engineering needs. Jay is so easy to work with, professional, thorough and always delivers as promised. We highly recommend this company, you will not be disappointed!

-SKS Pools & Patios

We are a General Contractor and have worked with Jay on many construction projects.  Jay is great to work with.  He consistently delivers a quality product for us as well as the end user.

–Dave Saalfeld

As a local architect, I’ve worked professionally with Jay Ouellette on multiple projects over the past 15-20 years. His work is always professional and thorough, he listens and keeps the client’s needs and preferences in mind as he designs structurally and cost effective structural support for buildings.

–Marcia Mikesh

Ouellette Engineering, is a very professional company that works very close with his clients, to get them exactly what they’re looking for.  His is very easy to work with, while he is turning you out a five star project

–Rick Condon

If you are a former or current client and would like to submit a Google Review of Ouellette Engineering – here is a link: ouellette engineering google reviews.

Customer service is one of our top values here at Ouellette Engineering. We love hearing from happy clients about their experience working with us. 

Ouellette Engineering is a great firm to work with. Jay is all about building partnerships for referrals of quality designers, architects, and builders. Jay is very easy to communicate with and he always delivers professional and well constructed plans that line out safe, quality structures and buildings. I highly recommend his work.

-Caleb Kearns

Ouellette Engineering has helped us with multiple foundation projects over the years. Jay is awesome to work with. Friendly, honest, and dependable. Jay knows his stuff!

-Ashley O’Halloran

Ouellette Engineering is our go-to for all our structural engineering needs. Jay is so easy to work with, professional, thorough and always delivers as promised. We highly recommend this company, you will not be disappointed!

-SKS Pools & Patios

We are a General Contractor and have worked with Jay on many construction projects. Jay is great to work with.  He consistently delivers a quality product for us as well as the end user.

-Dave Saalfeld

As a local architect, I’ve worked professionally with Jay Ouellette on multiple projects over the past 15-20 years. His work is always professional and thorough, he listens and keeps the client’s needs and preferences in mind as he designs structurally and cost effective structural support for buildings.

-Marcia Mikesh

Ouellette Engineering, is a very professional company that works very close with his clients, to get them exactly what they’re looking for.  His is very easy to work with, while he is turning you out a five star project.

-Rick Condon

If you are a former or current client and would like to submit a Google Review of Ouellette Engineering – here is a link: ouellette engineering google reviews.

Since 2001, Ouellette Engineering has been providing professional services to contractors, architects, designers, and homeowners. 

Most building projects require a building permit before construction can begin. Ouellette Engineering specializes in preparing structural plans and calculations that meet the current building code, as required to obtain a building permit.

We have structural engineering design experience in wood, steel, concrete, and masonry. We also have experience in designing and preparing construction documents for:

• Retaining structures
• Decks
• New buildings, additions, remodels
• Existing buildings, additions, remodels

Our particular expertise is challenging residential engineering remodeling projects. Other services include engineering reports for structural investigations, inspections and consultations.

1. If your deck is 30” or lower, you don’t need your deck engineered or a building permit, and you can do it yourself.
2. Pressure-treated wood is required for deck framing.
3. Plastic-composite decking vs. traditional wood is preferable. Plastic composite decks require more joists, but little to no maintenance, unlike traditional wood decks.
4. For handrails, we recommend using pre-engineered metal – due to longevity. 
5. If you do decide to go with wood railing – there are specific requirements for its strength and attachment per code, that have to be detailed correctly. 
6. You need adequate support for your deck. This means properly sized beams, posts, and footings. 
7. If your deck is anchored to your house, it has to be done correctly. 
8. Lateral bracing is necessary to keep a deck from swaying. 
9. If you intend to put a roof cover over your deck, or a hot tub on your deck, make sure the deck framing and footings can handle that additional load. 
10. The deck fasteners need to be hot-dip galvanized.

At Ouellette Engineering, we specialize in designing all shapes and sizes of decks, from simple to complex multi-story decks and stairs. 

We often get questions about floor settling.

A minor amount of floor settlement is not uncommon, and is generally considered minor/cosmetic (¾” settlement in a foundation is not unusual).

When is floor settlement or unlevel floors a problem? Floor settlement becomes an issue when you can see it, it bothers you, and you want to get it fixed.

If your floor is uneven and does need to be fixed – first we need to determine the cause. Is the wood rotten and needs to be repaired? Has the foundation settled and needs to be repaired? Is the foundation inadequate or does it have undersized footings? 

In extreme cases, there are companies that can re-level the foundation for you. But in minor cases, it may be a matter of just shimming the posts in the crawlspace to re-level the floor. If your floor is bouncy – additional supports can be added to a crawl space relatively easily to fix the issue. 

One thing to note: if you do have to relevel your foundation/floor you’re likely to have interior doors that will not close or stick, which will have to be adjusted. Windows may have issues with opening and closing as well. Additionally, cracks in finishes are not uncommon. 

If your floor needs to be releveled, we are happy to refer you to qualified contractors that specialize in floor releveling issues.

Recent kitchen/dining room trends favor a more “open” design concept. At Ouellette Engineering, we often get these requests. One simple way to change your floorplan to an open design is to take out the wall in between the kitchen and dining room. If you decide to go that route, you must first determine how to make that happen; from a structural integrity standpoint.

In these situations, the question you might ask is: “Can I take the wall out between my kitchen and dining room?” But what you actually need to determine first is: “Is the wall I want to remove carrying a load?” or “Is the wall I want to remove a ‘load-bearing’ wall?” It’s also important to find out if you can remove the wall safely.

The first thing to determine is what is above the wall you want to remove. Is there a 2nd floor? Are the floor joists parallel or perpendicular to the wall? Is there attic space above the wall? Does it have engineered trusses in the attic space? Is the roof stick-framed? 

The next step is to determine what is below the wall you want to remove. In the crawlspace, are the beams and footings aligned with the wall which suggests it is load-bearing? All these things factor into determining whether or not it is a  load-bearing or partition wall.

If it is a partition wall with engineered trusses above it, can I remove it without engineering approval? The answer is: maybe. Sometimes you will get sagging, or cracks that you didn’t have before. Sometimes you will get settlement – but it may be structurally adequate. However, some partition walls still require a structural engineering sign-off.

If it is a bearing wall, can have it removed? Yes, but we will need to replace the bearing wall with an adequately sized beam, posts, and footings that are designed to support the snow/occupancy load and the weight of the materials. With all bearing wall removal projects, we will help engineer a solution. 

One of our specialties is expertly evaluating walls for potential removal. We’re happy to help with your next wall-removal project, be it small or large.

So you’re buying/selling a house, and the home inspector identifies cracks in the foundation/basement wall/slab. The inspector advises you to hire a structural engineer to investigate. What do you do?

First, don’t panic. Next, give us a call or email – and we’re happy to help. 

If you send us your inspection report, we can review the issues the inspector is concerned about. After reviewing the report and any photos, we can quickly determine if a site visit is necessary. If so, an engineer will visit in person. 

Cracking can be very minor – just due to concrete shrinking – when it shrinks it cracks. Small vertical cracks are usually not a concern. A horizontal crack in a foundation wall suggests that the wall is bowing inward – which could be a big deal. Horizontal cracks are more critical than vertical cracks. If a vertical crack is wider at top then the bottom, that means the wall is rotating, and is an indication of soil settlement.

Foundation cracks occur for a number of reasons. Older concrete foundations are often under or un-reinforced. Over time, foundations will naturally settle. A settlement of ¾” is not uncommon and considered acceptable. Large settlements may be due to inadequate soil bearing strength, such as building on a fill. 

Some soils are prone to expand and contract, like clay soils, which will often crack a foundation with changes in ground moisture content. Tree roots are notorious for cracking foundations. Water infiltration from clogged downspouts, poor grading around the building perimeter, or natural springs can all be the cause of foundation settlement. 

In cases of foundation cracks, the engineer can determine if the cracking needs to be fixed and how to do so. The type of fix for a crack in a basement wall or foundation is all dependent on what is going on. Multiple methods are available. Whether cosmetic – or elaborate (caulking the crack, or designing a structural fix). Every situation is different. 

Regardless of what is causing a crack in your foundation, we can expertly deduce the problem and find the right solution.