"I'm remodeling an apartment that was once a 2 story garage with a gambrel roof (barn style), with a 10ft wide dormer on one side of the roof. It was originally converted to an apartment back in the fifties. The upstairs is one large bedroom. with 4ft knee walls supporting the roof rafters. The entire structure sits on a cement slab. The exterior dimensions are a standard 24'x 24' footprint. I'd like to remove (what I believe), is a load bearing wall running down the middle separating the living-room and kitchen. The wall is just over 15' long, it is made out of true 2x4 with a 4x4 top and bottom plate. One end of the beam would be support by jacks that would be part of the exterior wall on one do the gable ends, the other jack would be 15' in from the exterior wall. Does anyone know what size beam would be needed to span the 15' and properly carry the load?"

If it was once a two car garage then maybe this was not a load bearing wall. Are there rafts or joist running side to side that stop at this wall and rest on top of it? You will likely need a structural engineer or architect to calculate the load, if there is one. Will you need a permit?

Did you want to spec out metal or wood ?

not sure if my first response went through... I would prefer a wood solution. I was thinking that a triple 2x6 or 8 would be sufficient.

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ballengerb1... It looks like the joists run the entire width of the house, continuous 24' joists, and the wall I want to remove is almost directly in the middle with the joists resting on top... the joists are not side to side. I will most likely need a permit. Also, the joist are "true" 2x8, not dimensional lumber like in today's market

I am confused by this "the joists are not side to side." What did you mean. If you need a permit then you will need to meet the city spec so ask the building inspector to inspect. Doesn't sound like a load bearing wall to me so far. However, in my area a 2 x 8 joist would not allow you to use the second story as a living space.

My bad, I mis-read your statement that said "side to side"... I thought you were referring to shorter joists overlapping one another, as in they were side-by-side... no worries. I'm having a structural engineer taking a look to see what I need, if anything. Thanks for you help just the same.

Good idea, he should know