{"id":4434,"date":"2021-02-19T16:21:49","date_gmt":"2021-02-19T16:21:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/?p=4434"},"modified":"2022-04-28T09:55:26","modified_gmt":"2022-04-28T09:55:26","slug":"challenging-chimneys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/challenging-chimneys\/","title":{"rendered":"Challenging Chimneys"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chimney breasts were once a significant feature in\ntraditional homes, built with functionality in mind, they housed an open fire\nand chimney flue to keep residents warm in the colder months. Found in almost\nevery room in the house before central heating systems were created, they are a\nsignificant feature of pre-war housing. However, as central heating has become\nmore and more efficient the requirement for fireplaces has diminished and many\nhave been removed and blocked up leaving just the chimney breast in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Although the need for a fireplace may have decreased the\ndemand for space has increased, particularly in cities like London, where every\nsquare meter is valuable. As a result, chimney breast removal is becoming a more\nand more popular way of increasing your internal space. The most obvious option\nis to fully remove the chimney, but if you want to retain that traditional feel\nin your home, or the additional cost of removing the chimney is out of budget,\nthen keeping the breast and making a feature of the design is an option to\nconsider. This blog runs you through some of the design various available to\nyou. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Removing your Chimney<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

First up we of course have full chimney removal. This does\nrequire steel beams and isn\u2019t as simple as you might hope \u2013 think of your\nchimney as the \u2018spine\u2019 of your house \u2013 it supports much more than what you notice.\nIf the chimney is fully taken out the wall and ceilings around it will need to\nbe structurally supported, adding an additional cost to your Build. The cost to\nremove a typical chimney will be approximately around \u00a32000 + VAT but this does\nvary depending on the size and specification of the works required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If you choose to remove the entire chimney, from the\nfireplace to the roof stack, then steel support beams and pad stones will need\nto be incorporated into the design. This is to support any masonry above and\nensure stability within the building. The preferred method of supporting a\nstack is to use a steel beam which is then supported on suitable load bearing\nwalls. This makes a kitchen extension the perfect time to undertake a chimney\nremoval, as you\u2019ll be ripping everything out anyway and incorporating\nadditional steel frames throughout to create the new extension. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Conservation Rules<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If your property is within a conservation area, your local\ncouncil may make it a requirement that the chimney above the roof line remains\nintact in order to retain the visual heritage of the area. For listed\nbuildings, this is most certainly a requirement – unless you can argue that\nremoving the chimney enhances the functionality of the building. If this is the\ncase, don\u2019t worry we can still remove the chimney breast internally and support\nthe external feature with gallow brackets or additional steel to maintain the\nvisual impression from the street scene. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Chimneys in Kitchens<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Should you decide the cost of removing the chimney is out of\nbudget or you want to retain an element of period character in your kitchen,\nthen it is worth considering how the chimney breast can be incorporated into\nthe design. One of the most popular design trends is to create a larger opening\nwhere the fireplace would have originally been and incorporate a recessed oven.\nThis is what our clients in Camberwell SE5, decided to do, they have created a\nlittle \u2018cove\u2019 to house their oven and hob, while the remaining chimney breast has\nhelped to hide unsightly items such as the extractor fan. For more character a\nmantel can be added above to give the space a Country or Victorian kitchen\nvibe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Feature Fireplace <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Keeping your chimney as a feature is also an option, there are wondrous options available to utilise the space and decorate around it. By keeping the fireplace as it is, or reinstating it as an open fire can give the space character and charm. There is a vast array of original or reproduction inserts available in all shapes, sizes and styles so you can match your taste, the period of your home and other original features. Alternatively, for a cometary twist on the open fire, strip back the opening and insert a log burner, a multitude of styles are available for whatever look you want to achieve. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Built in Storage<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Adding shelving on either side of the chimney stack can\ncreate some slick looking storage that appears to be recessed into the wall.\nAdditional shelving and storage is always beneficial, particularly in bedrooms\nand living spaces so this is a great way to hide the appearance of a chimney; however,\nit does take away valuable floor space. Our clients in N4 have had made to\nmeasure units installed either side of the chimney to make the most of the\nspace, in traditional period homes these can add heaps of character too! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Our Design Team are always on hand to advise on all things design related \u2013 so don\u2019t panic if you\u2019re not sure what you want to do. If you are looking to undertake a Home Extension or Loft Conversion to your home then just get in touch today by emailing us at hello@buildteam.com<\/a> or booking a Design Consultation with one of the Architectural Designers by following this LINK<\/a>.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Chimney breasts were once a significant feature in traditional homes, built with functionality in mind, they housed an open fire and chimney flue to keep residents warm in the colder months. Found in almost every room in the house before central heating systems were created,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":311092,"featured_media":4435,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[214,230,206],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-design-layout-options","category-interior-design","category-planning-permission"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4434","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/311092"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4434"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4434\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5189,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4434\/revisions\/5189"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4434"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4434"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buildteam.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4434"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}