I live in a 70s bilelvel. There's a wall between the kitchen and living room that I'd like to open up, but it's got an air return for the living room on one side and the air return for the kitchen on the other that account for most of the width of the wall (about 9 feet).

I know it's a bearing wall, so that presents its own complications and isn't a DIY job, but just curious if it's even something feasible enough to warrant moving to the next step of looking for a contractor? I'm not sure how removing/changing those airflow would impact the airflow through the vents.

Thanks,

Mike

Your safest bet would be to bring a contractor in to examine this and provide an estimate if possible. A lot of the time they can be a lot more creative than you can and will figure something out. Good Luck!

Return ventilation in a kitchen? That's somewhat undesirable to begin with, but a much smaller issue than removing a load-bearing wall. A good, experienced contractor will know what to do for you. Proceed.