Vent out of side of chimney breast?

[fathertobe]

Bear with me on this one - would really appreciate the help.

We have had a partial chimney breast removal with a new SE-specified lintel installed to support the sides of the chimney. The chimney takes a range cooker.

Now comes the tricky part... having explored extraction options, I'm thinking that up the chimney is a no-no due to the length of the run and so forth. An obvious alternative would be to extract to the side of the chimney breast and the out of the house (about 1m away) but that involves drilling a hole in the side of the breast (125mm duct) which would lie slightly higher but behind (in depth) the edge of the lintel.

My builder doesn't seem concerned and I trust him. However, I'd just like the wise opinions/experience of anyone here on whether such a hole of this size - in the vicinity of the lintel - is a complete no-no.

Just to say again, the proposed hole is not durectly above the lintel - rather, it's behind the lintel but slightly higher than the height of the lintel.

Thanks

 

[nada75]

Hi, many years later probably you don't have an account any more. I have this same exact situation in my kitchen just now and can't find any conversations about it. No one seems to have replied to you either! But it must happen quite a bit with all of our victorian houses here. I wonder how you got on with it?

 

[tomm12]

nada75 why dont you post a pic of the side of the chimney and mark where you will have to core drill through? Why must the hole be exactly where you are saying?
And why cant you use a flue liner to take the extraction fumes up the flue? How many floors does the house have?

 

[nada75]

Basically, the original chimney flue going up to the roof is to the right but was closed way back whenever. I can't open it because there is parquet on the ground floor. This is basement level and there are 3 floors above.
The wall to the left in this pic is an external wall, so quickest route is to duct out through side, or up into floor joists and then out to the side.
But inside the chimney above the lintel is the smoke stack (or whatever its called)- basically the brickwork that guided the smoke and we're not sure about drilling through there. We have sort of decided to drill rather than core..but not sure whats best!
The pic with grey square shows the flue which is blocked. The next photo shows the existing brickwork above the lintel (all due to be swept next week!)

This is my extractor model. Ducting is dictated by the hole in the top...

 

[blup]

There doesn't seem to be enough height and width to fit the extractor in. The corbelled brick above the lintel seems to be supporting the flue, so maybe better to take liner straight up and out from the ground floor and disguise it where it hits the parquet floor. Or get a made to measure plate and put flue through it so it fits the existing opening and can exit left as planned. Probably requires HETAS/BC approval

Blup

 

[tomm12]

Three floors of flue liner are nothing to a modern extractor.
Each fireplace has its own flue to the chimney stack on the roof. Sometimes there's three flues in a single chimney breast but they are all separate.
Dropping a liner down the flue from the stack and connecting it below to the extractor is basic unless you are saying that at some floor level the chimney breast has been completely removed? Could you post a pic of the ground floor chimney breast?

Are you also saying you might have difficulty fitting your unit up the flue into the chimney breast?
How wide is your cooker? The opening you show is about 40" wide.

 

[nada75]

The extractor itself fits, we have enough height and width. The ducting would need room made for it. I will share your comment with my partner. Thank you.

 

[tomm12]

If the liner goes up the flue there's probably no need to alter anything.
If you end up piercing the side of the chimney breast then no need to drill, just knock a few side bricks out.

 

[nada75]

Three floors of flue liner are nothing to a modern extractor.
Each fireplace has its own flue to the chimney stack on the roof. Sometimes there's three flues in a single chimney breast but they are all separate.
Dropping a liner down the flue from the stack and connecting it below to the extractor is basic unless you are saying that at some floor level the chimney breast has been completely removed? Could you post a pic of the ground floor chimney breast?

Are you also saying you might have difficulty fitting your unit up the flue into the chimney breast?
How wide is your cooker? The opening you show is about 40" wide.

The little grey square in the second photo is where this flue is blocked up from above, the grey tile sits above the brick. All of the chimneys above are in tact, nothing has been removed. I've seen lots of advice not to duct extractors up a chimney flue due to water condensation running back down. The shortest route is through the side of the chimney to the outside wall, versus going up about 11m to the roof.

I think we will start at the top left side, remove the plaster and see about removing a few bricks to make an opening for ducting.