Is £750 for chimney lowering and repairs reasonable?

[dragonfly101]

A lot of my neighbours have had their chimneys lowered (by about half the height). In my case I don't use the fireplace so I want it capped (with an air-brick on the side). The job will include the scaffolding, repointing of the chimney, and another small repointing job on a wall elsewhere on my house.

The problem chimneys have in my estate is they are really high, and have suffered with the elements over the 50 years they've stood. I get crumbling cement and rainwater landing in my fireplace every time we have bad weather.

The job will take a day and half, and I guess it will involve two builders.

What are the going daily rates for skilled tradesmen these days?

 

[Nige F]

£150+ a day each plus scaffold, skip . Get some more quotes

 

[dragonfly101]

Thanks Nige, will do.

Does the job (lowering the chimney) sound sensible anyway? They do look ridiculously tall in my estate, and many people have lowered theirs. I would have thought just repointing the brick work and put a ventilating cap on the top would achieve the same result?

 

[tomfe]

I would have thought re-pointing would be more around the same costs than having it lowered, you still have the scaffold costs, repointing takes longer than knocking them off but you'd have skip costs.

Why not ask how much other people paid for theirs?

 

[ree]

"crumbling cement and rainwater landing in your fireplace" have nothing to do with the pointing or the heigth of the stack.

If the pointing is perished then its odds on that the flaunching will also require replacing - both will be suffering from wear and tear.

The flue lining might also have perished altho the clean air act has been in force for approx. 50 years.

What kind of fuel have you used in the fireplace - is the flue still used?

On the pay issue, FWIW some years ago it was established that £35/hr is the min. rate for a self-employed worker - larger companies charge more.

 

[dragonfly101]

It was used for gas fire by the previous owner, but originally would have been a normal wood burning open fire. The builder did talk about flue or liner (or something - wish I'd recorded him) perishing.

 

[ree]

Just look up the flue from your fireplace position, and if you have a metal liner that was used with the gas fire you should still be able to see it.

On top of the stack you might be able to recognise a liner terminal - post pics if in doubt.

What do you intend to do next with the fireplace? Dont have any work done unless you are certain of what your intentions are.

 

[joe-90]

I doubt they'll use a skip for a few bricks. They usually use an access platform too. If they say a day and a half, that usually ends up being a day. Good money for a man and a lad for a day.

 

[noseall]

I doubt they'll use a skip for a few bricks. They usually use an access platform too. If they say a day and a half, that usually ends up being a day. Good money for a man and a lad for a day.

What do you mean by an access platform? How does this differ from a scaffold? How is this platform erected or supported?

Our last chimney scaffold cost £650 plus vat. You would need to be really clever to access these chimneys via an access platform, whatever that is.

 

[Nige F]

Thanks Nige, will do.

Does the job (lowering the chimney) sound sensible anyway? They do look ridiculously tall in my estate, and many people have lowered theirs. I would have thought just repointing the brick work and put a ventilating cap on the top would achieve the same result?

Call me paranoid but after the storm of '87 I was employed making chimney flashings for a 4 pot stack that had come through a bedroom roof onto an empty bed - because the owners had woken and got themselves and children into the cellar So I say take any redundant stack down.