Many properties have chimneys, although a large proportion is seldom or never used. However, chimneys are a common cause of problems.
For all intent and purposes, there are three sections to each and every chimney:
The chimney breast in the home
The chimney breast in the loft
The stack above the house
Some homeowners choose to remove the stack from above the house and leave the chimney breast in place, perhaps as a feature of the property or simply because they want to save money by keeping costs down. Others prefer to remove the chimney breast but leave the stack above the roof in place, this is usually done to free up space downstairs whilst also keeping a lid on costs. Planning permission rules may require you to leave the stack in place, this depends on whether the house is listed and its location in the UK. Some prefer to go the whole way and remove the lot, the entire chimney from top to bottom.
If you want to remove the chimney, you will need to get a structural engineer to calculate the weight of the chimney, he’ll also specify the size of the support (steel beam or timber joist) that would be needed to support the weight of the stack.
ID Structural Engineering provides Structural Designs and Structural Calculations Package for Building Control for different types of Chimneys.
Expected issuing time frame: 3 – 7 working days.