What to do with this old chimney?

[JP_]

This weekend I finally had the courage to look inside this chimney. Cleared out about a foot of black dust and rubble. Cannot decide what to do with it though, remove (and put a tall cabinet there) or just box in and forget about it.

This is what I don't understand though - the bottom of the chimney is covered with a bit of wood - but it was full of dust, almost up to the bottom of that hole - so presumably the dust accumulated after the chimney was sealed up. It was dry in there, and only sign of life was one small old feather. Could all the dust and rubble be from falling offer the internal wall of the chimney? I assume this has all been sealed up for a long time, I think it must have been the original boiler (oil based in old days?). There was an old door on it that was completely rusted, as well as a newer door in good condition. Maybe all the dust and rubble came down when the builders were knocking through the 9 inch wall.... I really don't understand how all that dust would have got in there after that wooden board was fixed to the bottom ...

anyway, the chimney is half in the wall (goes in about 14cm, was once an external wall I think) and it looks like the lower part might have been removed already, going by the broken bricks on the wall on the left. It veers off to the left in the loft.

Can I remove these bricks up to ceiling level? Will that be OK? I do I need to get a builder in to remove and brace the bottom of the chimney.

It looks OK on the roof as far as I can see, and as said, very dry inside, and not sign of a draft either, so it must be sealed up.

Photos!

 

[blup]

I'd be tempted to chop off the tiles first to see if there is any ironwork, or other means of support to the base of the flue. The brickwork on the left of, and beneath the flue, looks new(er), so maybe some work done at the time of decommissioning.

Blup

 

[Mottie]

Is it/was it a proper chimney for a fire? It’s not very sooty. We had one like that in the kitchen of our house and it was for the central heating boiler and it had a flue going all the way up. I removed the section in the kitchen and also the section in the loft and through the roof. I just felted and tiled over the hole in the roof. I left the middle section on the upstairs landing. It’s been very handy for getting gas, heating pipes and wiring up to the boiler in the loft. It’s been hanging there for nearly thirty years now. No brackets or anything. The way I saw it with mine (and yours looks no different) is that there’s nothing supporting it now, it’s just 'hanging' there, so removing weight can only be a good thing.

 

[JP_]

Yeah, must have been a boiler chimney at some point. Although, I still don't understand where all the black dust came from ...

I was thinking it might be useful to run the pipes down too... I'll remove the tiles at the bottom to see if it is supported.

 

[JP_]

This is what's behind the tiles.
Looks like a big concrete block?
Can i remove....

 

[cdbe]

I'd consider gallows brackets in the loft for that. Or even a steel across those two walls.

 

[Terrywookfit]

It looks like it was the flue for a wash boiler.

The normal way of supporting them was a R/C lintel across the corner.

Unless the house collapses it will never move as it is keyed into the brickwork at 2 points every course.

 

[Tigercubrider]

Pretty sure that's like the one in my house- was an oil boiler when new in the 50's and later (before me) was gas. Mine goes to the ground.
My boiler is now balanced flue but the chimney /flue remains. It's in a corner of the garage

I helped a mate clear his late dad's house. It was an identical house to mine, his dad had removed the chimney from ground to ceiling in the garage but it continued up through a box room and through the roof

 

[JP_]

Unless the house collapses it will never move as it is keyed into the brickwork at 2 points every course

It's that with the lintel across the corner?

 

[Terrywookfit]

It's that with the lintel across the corner?

Yes diagonally from wall to wall with a Debris plate.

 

[JP_]

starting to think I might have to do this myself, struggling to find a local builder that wants to do a small job.

although, not sure if that is sensible!

 

[JP_]

It's all gone! Builder came and said I'd need structural engineer to design a steel, then get steel made, then they can quote for the work.
So decided to get the whole lot taken out, as removal + scaffolding worked out about the same, and much quicker.

Tis gone. Quite an expensive space, but will be useful to have an extra storage cupboard!

 

[cdbe]

Hmmm. Might still need a structural engineer unless that "stick" holding up your roof tiles is supported somewhere we can't see from the picture!

 

[JP_]

Looks OK, didn't wobble.