Knock down the brick chimney ?

Duane

First I would like to thank the webmaster and various contributors who have helped keep me warm this winter... my 80 year old single pipe system runs like a top and I haven't added a drop of water all winter long... a far cry from the leaky, whistling, water-hammer circus I purchased two years ago.

My current chimney has two problems. It runs interior and the portion above the roof badly needs pointing. There is interior staining where the block can be seen but the true condition is unknown. The real issue however is that it is located abysmally poorly; with studs and plaster it is large at 24"+ each way. It basically makes it impossible to install a functional kitchen in the space I have, and further, it runs right through the middle of the space I have on the second floor for a bathroom.

Also the floor sags rather badly around the chimney (it is located in the middle of the floor span), due to some settling of the chinmey, and basically poor original carpentry. This sag would be much easier to fix with the chimney removed.

Doing a little homework tells me that the proper metal chimney replacement, taking into consideration the metal pipe wall thickness and clearance required, would come in a little over 12" square as far as space requirements are concerned. This would allow relocation to the nearest wall on the second floor, and make a world of difference as far as appearance and functionality of the two rooms affected.

The expense will be considerable for parts alone, not to mention disposal of a few tons of debris, but the rooms affected will be demolished anyway.

Is there any compelling reason not to do this?

Mark Hunt

Nope.


Get rid of the brick chimney and have a properly sized metal chimney installed.

B-vent chimneys are the norm these days.

Happy remodeling!

Mark H

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RoosterBoy

id say go for it if you have the money and want a better kitchen and bathroom. and at least you will still use a chimney so that's a good thing
better then direct venting or power venting

one thing I should advice you is before you do this check with your HVAC contractor show him where your flue will run to the new chimney make sure it can be done first. you don't want the run to be to far away and you want it sloped up.

good luck

Mike T., Swampeast MO

If anything like the old brick chimneys I've removed you won't even need any tool besides your hand and fist--the bricks remove that easily!

jim lockard

looks like

you found a summer project.

Jim Bennett

Chimney Demo

You might want to have a qualified builder or carpenter look it over before starting. I know in my house, the chimney goes up through the center of the house and some of the floor joists are carried by the chimney block. I don't know if this was a standard practice, but if you have the same situation, you probably want to know ahead time.

Good luck,

Jim

Bob Harper

factory built chimney

If you would post some info. on the fuel type(s), input BTU rate, efficiency%, approximate ht., and configuration of connector pipes in the basement, we might be able to assist you with some choices.
As a chimney and venting specialist, I agree with all the statements and advice given thus far.
Even though they should not carry loads of the house many old chimneys do. Talk to a contractor about putting up temporary pony walls as you demo. This can easily get into one of those This Old House Scale projects so plan ahead and keep a fat pocket book near.

A metal factory chimney properly sized and installed will give you better performance and contain the flue gases. You'll also have an engineered listed product with a 25 yr or more warranty. Sizing, inclusion of all required components, and clearances are critical. For instance, where this penetrates the attic, you need to install either an attic insulation shield or construct a chase, depending upon whether or not it will be accessible. You don't want to bump into the pipe either getting a burn or damaging the pipe. Do NOT pack insulation into stated clearances--extreme fire hazard! Just follow the listed instructions and you should do fine. If you have any questions on layout and what components you need to buy most all mfrs. have tech depts. to assist you.

Finally, once done, do a commissioning check. Demonstrate proper venting at draft hoods and barometric dampers with chemical smoke. Next, check for CO spillage. If still ok, perform a Worst Case Depressurization Test. If it fails this, the test can also be used to determine the house depressurization limit and guide in remediation efforts. Cheap insurance in my book. Sounds like a lot but it's mainly details. It's worth the effort.
Keep up posted!
HTH,

Duane

thanks

thanks gentlemen for the advice. the demo should be easy as the chimney does not carry any joists; if fact that's part of what i'm cleaning up here...two joists are discontinous due to the chimney, and neither are the ends supported by the chimney, nor supported off the floor. so basically, 48" of floor width was supported by friction, nails, and the subfloor. that explains the 2.5" sag.

its all original; originally foolish.

some dead men weren't all that smart

Duane

here are the specs

currently the burnham in-4 gas fired boiler has a 5" single wall pipe that rises 24" vertically, then 24" horizontally to the brick chimney. on the other side of the chimney, a conventional 40 gal gas hot water heater with 3" pipe and only about 18" both up and over, connects into the chimney about a foot above the boiler vent.

total rise is approx. 38 feet above the basement floor (basement, two 8.5 ft. floors, then a rather tall gambrel roof)

using some guides I've figured that a 6" ID class B chimney should work well. I have freedom over where I place the boiler and water heater, I'll probably move both about 2 feet which will be better for both the steam and water routing. there will be minimal horizontal runs to the new chimney.

if I'm not mistaken there must be 2" all around the pipe OD for clearance, so to minimize the box size I plan to use metal studs.










b

Bob Harper

clearances

B-vent has a one inch clearance to combustibles. The single walled vent connector carries a 6 inch clearance per NFPA 211. You should be fine with the 6 inch B-vent. No need for metal studs if you have proper clearance.

Weezbo

you post is the very uplifting....*~/:)

i like to hear someone saysomething good from time to time,and i really like to hear of someone who does some thinking and then collects some sound direction and acts on it and then says thanks for the help ...it is damm near inspirational . i even like to hear someone say this about thier car or some other aspect of thier lives that was givin them hell,Thanks for the positive view point...

jim lockard

Duane

Give us the Btus for the boiler and the Btus for the water heater. We know that the height is 38 feet and we can tell you if 6" B-Vent is correct or not. Its best to make sure. Best Wishes J.Lockard

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Supporting Framing Via the Chimney

Was NEVER a recommended practice in any of the books (many very old) that I've read.

What sometimes happens though is that structural members settle onto offsets or shifts in the chimney making you think that it was intended to support. It's the "differential settlement" thing that plagues many old homes with the outside walls settling faster than the inside. Fortunately, the process usually stops after a few decades and unless the framing is utterly embedded in the chimney there's [usually] no problem removing it.

Duane

hot water 38,000 BTU/hr

boiler 105,000 AGA rating BTU/hr

that's what I got

Dale

Nat plus Nat

From the vent tables at your vent height a 5 inch common vent is big enough, so with a 1 inch clearance you have 7 inch to frame arround. If the house has a typical wall the b vent can go in the middle of 2 stud walls so the kitchen is only reduced by 3 1/2 inches,which you may find is a plumbing wall stack anyway. If the kitchen is better off with no chimney chase you can buy a side vent kit and lose all the chimney. I would try to fit in the B vent.

Robert O'Connor_9

Never reccomended but...

I have seen a lot of chimney's with supports built into them. I have even seen a coup[le with beams running right thru them.

Regards

Robert

ME