Technical

thestructuralengineer.org Level 2, No. 20 | Technical Guidance Note

Technical Guidance Notes

Level 2, No. 20: Design and detailing of
lintels in masonry walls
Chris O’Regan Technical Guidance Notes are published by The Institution of
BEng(Hons), CEng, FIStructE, FICE Structural Engineers to provide guidance to engineers in the early
stages of their careers. This note has been prepared by AECOM on
Associate Director, Building Engineering, AECOM, London, UK behalf of the Institution.

Introduction
ICON LEGEND
A significant-sized opening in a masonry wall will always require a lintel of some
sort to bridge over it. A lintel is considered to be a secondary structural element
whose purpose is to support the masonry that arches over the opening. It does this W Design principles
by spreading the vertical load of the masonry – and any other vertical loads being
applied to the wall – away from the opening to either side of it.
W Applied practice
This Technical Guidance Note offers advice on the different types of lintel that
are available, the detailing requirements of lintels, and the way in which they are
designed. W Further reading

W Resources

Design principles

Definition Detailing
A ‘lintel’ is a beam element that is designed Two materials are commonly used to make
to support a portion of a wall which has an lintels: precast reinforced concrete, and
opening within it. The actions supported by structural steel formed from thin folded
the lintel can be assumed to be a triangular plates.
formation of units above it, as the bonding of Concrete lintels are heavy and can support
the wall will cause it to arch over the opening. long spans. They are also durable, but visible
Figure 1 indicates how the load is applied to when placed into walls with no render finish.
lintels. They are easier to install into existing walls,
In instances where stack bonding has been e.g. when placed within the course of the
used to construct the wall, the arching action
does not apply and all the masonry above the
 Figure 1
Load distribution onto lintels from masonry
masonry.
Steel lintels are lighter and can be bent
lintel must be assumed to be supported by it. into complex shapes, such as arches, which
The arching of masonry over a lintel is allow for unique openings in walls. They can
also impacted by the presence of other also incorporate a cavity tray. Steel lintels are
openings, as these prevent the load from easier to conceal, giving the impression that
being distributed across the masonry. they are not present, as they are placed in
Additionally, the presence of floor joists and such a way as to rest within a mortar bed joint
principal beam elements within the interaction of the masonry. However, they deflect more
zone described in Fig. 1 will result in the lintel than their concrete counterparts, which limits
supporting more load. For examples of these their viability for longer spans.
phenomena, see Figure 2. Figure 3 shows examples of steel and
CIRIA Guide G2: Design of deep beams concrete lintels in different configurations.
in reinforced concrete provides further  Figure 2
Examples where
arching action
The supports of lintels require careful
explanation of arching action where it occurs detailing, as they are a common cause of
in masonry is
within deep structural elements. interrupted failure if not detailed properly. The minimum

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 Technical
Technical Guidance Note | Level 2, No. 20
bearing length for
a lintel is typically
150mm. However,
where the lintel spans
less than 1.2m, it is
possible to reduce
the bearing length
to 100mm. This only
applies if the wall is
non-loadbearing and
has full arching action
above the lintel.
The bonding of
the masonry can
also impact on its
performance as a
 Figure 3
Typical concrete and steel lintels
bearing. The lintel
should not rest on a half masonry unit, as this
will not be sufficiently affixed to the rest of the
wall. A tension crack may develop between
the half-unit and the adjacent masonry unit
as the bearing stress is applied, potentially
resulting in a localised failure.
Instead, the lintel should rest on a
monolithic masonry unit (i.e. without a joint
between it and the adjacent masonry unit at
the point where the lintel bears onto the wall).
This is illustrated in Figure 4.
For more information on bonding patterns
within masonry walls, see Technical Guidance
Note Level 1, No. 27: Introduction to masonry.
Creation of openings in existing
masonry walls
When creating large voids in existing walls,
temporary propping to the wall must be
provided to facilitate both the formation
of the void and the installation of the lintel.
This takes the form of ‘needling’ – a series
of temporary props placed through the wall
before the opening is formed within it and
the lintel is installed. For more information on
this methodology, see the Temporary Works
Toolkit. Part 10: Propping and needling.
Design guidance
As lintels act as a direct support to masonry,
their design is typically governed by
deflection. Excessive movement of the lintel
 Figure 5
will result in cracking above the opening.
It is therefore recommended that the
deflection at mid-span of the lintel, due to
both characteristic permanent and variable
actions, as well as creep, is limited to
span/500 or 5mm, whichever is the lesser.
When a lintel is installed into a loadbearing
wall, careful consideration must be given
to the way in which the applied actions are
distributed onto the lintel. The arch action
within the masonry depends on the type of
bonding within the wall. Where a stretcher
bond is employed, no further modifications
28
TSE85_27-29_Technical Guidance Notes.indd 28
 Figure 4
Bearing requirements of lintels
are required. However, if a stack bond is used,
then arching action can only occur if bed
reinforcement is present.
Concentrated and universally distributed
actions from the floors above must be taken
into account when designing a lintel. The
spread of concentrated loads through the
masonry wall is taken to be 60°, whereas
universally distributed loads transfer directly
onto the lintel with no spread. This is
illustrated in Figure 5.
The design of a lintel to be installed within
a loadbearing wall must allow for the self-
weight of the masonry it is supporting, any
point loads whose spread encroaches upon
the lintel, and the actions from any floor
immediately above the lintel.
Lintels are specified based on the
manufacturer’s technical details, which
include load tables. These are compared
against the applied load that the lintel is
expected to support during its design life.
It is therefore important to understand how
to read these tables and what they should
be compared against. For example, are the
loads specified characteristic or ultimate?
This should be explained within the guidance
notes of the lintel manufacturer.
When specifying a lintel, the designer
Applied actions to lintels
within loadbearing walls
March 2019 | TheStructuralEngineer
thestructuralengineer.org
should refer to the magnitude of load that the
lintel is to support, as well as to the precise
model number of the lintel. This is to avoid the
possibility of a reinforced concrete lintel being
used instead of a prestressed concrete lintel;
the latter are typically stronger yet have the
same outward appearance.
If the design of the lintel relies on arching
action, temporary supports will be required
until the mortar reaches sufficient strength for
the arching action to take place. This usually
occurs after around 24 hours, but may take
longer depending on the type of mortar used.
Lintels may be subject to torsion forces.
If arching action occurs over the lintel, the
magnitude of these forces will be negligible.
However, if no arching action is present within
the wall, then torsion must be included in the
design of the lintel. This will require the use
of either hollow sections in steel lintels or
precast concrete lintels, as they are resistant
to torsional forces. Where significant torsional
forces are present, it is recommended that the
rotational displacement should not be greater
than 1.5mm from the horizontal support.
Applied practice
BS EN 1996-1-1:2005+A1:2012 Eurocode 6:
Design of masonry structures. General rules
for reinforced and unreinforced masonry
structures
NA to BS EN 1996-1-1:2005+A1:2012 UK
National Annex to Eurocode 6: Design of
masonry structures. General rules for
reinforced and unreinforced masonry
structures
BS EN 1996-2:2006 Eurocode 6: Design of
masonry structures. Design considerations,
selection of materials and execution of
masonry
21/02/2019 10:13

thestructuralengineer.org
NA to BS EN 1996-2:2006 UK National Annex
to Eurocode 6: Design of masonry structures.
Design considerations, selection of materials
and execution of masonry
PD 6697:2010 Recommendations for the
design of masonry structures to BS EN 1996-
1-1 and BS EN 1996-2
BS 5977-1:1981 Lintels. Method for
assessment of load
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Manual for the design of
plain masonry in building
structures to Eurocode 6
(Second edition)
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TSE85_27-29_Technical Guidance Notes.indd 29
Glossary and further reading
Glossary
Arching – the tendency for masonry to
spread actions within it to create an arch over
openings.
Bearing – the area over which the support of
the lintel rests.
Needling – a method of temporary support to
a wall as a new opening is formed within it.
Further reading
The Institution of Structural Engineers (2013)
‘Technical Guidance Note (Level 1, No. 27):
Introduction to masonry’, The Structural
Engineer, 91 (6) pp. 24–26
The Institution of Structural Engineers (2018)
Manual for the design of plain masonry in
building structures to Eurocode 6 (2nd ed.),
London: IStructE Ltd
TheStructuralEngineer | March 2019
Technical
Level 2, No. 20 | Technical Guidance Note
Filip R.K. (2017) ‘Temporary Works Toolkit.
Part 10: Propping and needling’, The
Structural Engineer, 96 (4), pp. 30–35
Morton J. (2011) Designers’ guide to
Eurocode 6: Design of masonry structures: EN
1996-1-1, London: Thomas Telford Ltd
Ove Arup & Partners (1977) CIRIA Guide G2:
Design of deep beams in reinforced concrete,
London: CIRIA
Resources
Brick Development Association:
www.brick.org.uk/
Concrete Block Association:
www.cba-blocks.org.uk/
Steel Construction Info:
www.steelconstruction.info/Facades_and_
interfaces#Support_to_brickwork
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