chimney advice *PIC*

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I've taken out an old gas fire and stripped some plaster to reveal an old fireplace / stoveplace.

It has been filled in previously in two stages, In the pic you can see the original arch and the infill.

The bit under the arch is single skin, unsupported (other than by the workbench and a lump of timber that I have just placed there to stop the bricks falling) and many of the bricks just lift out. I'm intending to rebuild the blue bit up to the arch and then replaster and put a woodburner into the alcove.

The arch seems original and sound - but how do I make sure that its OK - do I assume that at 200 years old it isnt likely to go anywhere ?

thanks

Mark

 

[Anonymous]

Mark - at my end the link is just a red cross on a white background!

I'd take the loose bricks out carefully - but as they aren't holding up the arch it shouldn't all collapse. I'm no engineer but I think it all tends to hold together in some sort of explainable manner!

 

[Anonymous]

Bugger!

image is at http://www.snowdon.org/pic1.JPG

And I thought I'd done that properly. Maybe its the site playing up again - I just got another 'file error' message as well as the ssslllllloooooowwwwwwnnnneeeessssssss

M


http://www.snowdon.org/pic1.JPG

 

[Anonymous]

The arch and original stuff all looks sound enough - I'd proceed with caution! But by the next hour or so if it was me I'd have a much larger hole...

(This is a job I like doing...)

 

[Anonymous]

I think the only way to see whether the arch is stable is to take out the bricks below, very gently and one at a time. In the photo it looks properly configured and stable enough, but there comes a time when you just have to go for it - "bit or shust"!

 

[Anonymous]

thanks.

I've got almost all the bricks in the orange section (single skin) out - going very carefully. Have to stop for a bit because my wife has just got back with the youngest and I need to help with getting tea ready.

I'm trying to assess the state of the brickwork in the red section which goes back into the alcove in places, but is not original - cement and modern brick rather than lime mortar and old bricks.

I'll post again when I've sorted the kids and tidied a bit.

thanks again.

Mark

 

[Anonymous]

Ok - do let us know how you get on. And I suggest the kids should stay out of the room!

 

[Anonymous]

The modern bit at the cheeks will just be infill to either line or make smaller the opening - it may be a bit harder to break up.

 

[Anonymous]

The arch looks sound, as long as rhe "pillars"either side of this are reasonably sound, the "cosmetic" addition you are removing offers no support at all.

If you follow the previous soot line you should be fine.

(my record so far is five additions to an inglenook.!!)

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I've got the right hand side fully exposed - the infill only went up a couple of feet above the arch.

On the left though the infill goes up a long way - further than I'm prepared to mess with anyway. So I'm going to redo the front part to tidy and leave that infill. Im intending to render the alcove anyway. I've got a couple of tubs of premixed lime mortar (assuming not ruined by frost?).

One minor disaster though - I stopped only to find that we're totally out of Ale !
Apple juice doesn't cut it.

Thanks

MArk


pic2

 

[Anonymous]

Well it sounds like it's going well - I won't tell you about the couple of bottles of Youngs we have ready to be poured, as I'm sure that won't make me popular!

 

[Anonymous]

Mark, make sure that any infill which you wish not to remove is fully satabilised in the chimney breast.

If left unsupported (or not stable) you make sure you have plenty of good ale handy to help with the shock if on a quiet evening it caves in.

Mind you, if it is an infill normally they would have had to get in there to build it, I should think it could be removed just as easy.

Have a very good look and try to figure out the original layout, as any infill should not affect its stability and can be removed if you want to.

 

[Anonymous]

The infill is also making the opening offset - which may not be what you want!

Odd though that it goes up into the flue...

 

[Anonymous]

>I've got a couple of tubs of premixed lime mortar (assuming not ruined by frost?).

We had a discussion about this in autum '04 and I left some puty out to test but we had a mild winter. This year I've left a dustbinful out again and we've been down to -7 but not for long enough to get it frozen solid. I can still see no good reason why deepfreezing lime putty should do any harm but we just don't get severe enough weather to test it. Folks often say you must protect the tubs from frost but can't actually explain why.

 

[Anonymous]

AS you know Evelyn, as the trend in open fires started to diminish, "old" chimneys were "modernised" gradually through the decades.
We ended up with the one foot square coal burning crates,not to mention tiny gas fires most of them lethal.
I know from a reasonable experience the contraptions which were added to these "intended" open log fires.
Most of them justified with contemporary thinking.

I have known inglenooks ( 10 ft wide x 6 ft high)
reduced to an opening of 1ft x 18" with a small cast grate and plastered over.

The amazing thing was that they all shared the same common denominator, as long as the original was still intact, the dismantling of the "infills" was relatively simple just by reversing the building procedure.

(just had to make sure the shower worked...!!!)

 

[Anonymous]

I'm an old hand at opening up fireplaces, large and small! Filthy but satisfying work, and as long as the original structure is intact and sound all else, I agree, is just infill.

 

[Anonymous]

Filthy but satisfying, eh?
Nudge nudge, nod's as good as wink, know wha' I mean?

 

[Anonymous]

I've even been known to visit friends and end up with half a wall demolished... and that was before the wine. But the fireplace was good I found behind the crud!

I shall ignore the smut and innuendo, Penners. Tut.

 

[Anonymous]

Well you were all correct about the infill coming out easily - It looked a lot more solid than it actually was. So I'm now out to the original size and I have slapped a coat of lime mortar on (bought last year and left outside through the winter - seems OK). I ended up doing it by hand, with the intention of limewashing it possibly with a coat of plaster on to smooth it first. I'll see how well it takes.

Did a trip to the tip with the loose rubble, and bought Ale which I am now going to go and enjoy.

Thanks All

M

 

[Anonymous]

Hope it's decent ale - you deserve it!

A job well done!