Chimney Issue

[JSR]

Hello and happy new year to all,

I am looking for some help. Approximately 6 months ago I bought my first house, one of the main reasons was that it had a fireplace, it wasn't an open fire but it was a nice gas fire and quite ornate.

However recently we have been having issues. Every time it rains we are getting small fragments of stone/mortar coming down the chimney onto our floor.

I thought that it would just be a question of having the chimney swept, however after speaking with a chimney sweep they have suggested that it may be an issue with the flue.

They said that nothing should ever come down the chimney unless its smoke, in which case get it swept.

Has anyone had any experience with this or something similar? Will my house insurance cover the flue? What kind of cost will i be looking at for a flue? Its a 2 storey victorian mid terrace property.

Thanks in advance

 

[Burnerman]

I guess the flue will be getting a bit moth eaten by now....I'm also surprised that your gas fire doesn't appear to have a flue liner installed, as you are getting debris into the room?
John

 

[Richard C]

You need to get the flue checked out by a registered installer to determine exactly what is wrong; do you know how old the installation is? The flue may or may not have an existing stainless steel liner; if it hasn’t, it’s probably the internal render lining on the original flue starting to break down. If you have a liner, it could be as simple as the pointing around the termination plate at the top has failed or it could be the liner itself has failed; no way of knowing without getting it checked.

Depends on liner specification & where you get it from but the cost of a 5 inch x 8m twin wall liner + fittings would be around £300-£400 + around £400 to fit it all, test & certify.

Fitting the liner is controlled building work & unless you use a registered installer, you must notify your LABC & they will charge to inspect the work. I’m afraid your house insurance almost certainly won’t cover the cost; it’s classed as normal wear & tear.

 

[JSR]

Thank you for your replies, does it make a difference that these pieces of stone/mortar only come down the chimney when its raining?

Thank you again in advance

 

[Richard C]

Driving rain & wind can dislodge it along with a good dose of soot in the case of my old open fire flue; it used to do it every time it rained until I recently had a new cassette fire, flue & cap fitted.

 

[RigidRaider]

You really need to make friends with a good local chimney sweep, who can answer all these questions and rectify the problem. The better they are the further ahead they'll be booked so get searching!