You can't beat a good Fire !!!!!

Most blokes I know are mild pyromaniacs and love sitting by a roaring fire and are also a bit partial to a fire pit!. So first project is to sort out the seven fireplaces and 3 massive chimneys. One of the massive chimneys is already sealed off with a concrete plinth and guess what .. no damp on that side of the house . The other two chimneys service eight fire places with 4 being shared with my neighbour. Each chimney has four open flues made by the open space of two 9 inch bricks side by side to allow any rain water to pour down the open chimneys and seap into the brickwork causing damp.

First job is to follow the building surveyors required actions and get scaffolding up to investigate the state of the two chimneys and while you are paying for scaffolding hire it would be rude not to drop two log burning stove flue kits down two of the chimneys .

The chimney stacks needed the first eight layers of bricks removing , cleaning and where possible replacing back with the collapsed internal brick divide rebuilt and then 3 chimneys per stack sealing off and the correct one ready to drop a 6" stainless steel flue liner down it. .

Temporary logburner fitted to test chimney and flue

The flue liner kit needs to be 6" diameter to comply with building regulations and will need Local council planning officer building control sign off . Order a kit that has a nose cone and gaffer tape it to the fire end of your liner . Drill a hole in the nose cone and fit a 2 metre piece of strong electrical wire to the nose cone so you can attach a rope to the nose cone end and collectively pull the liner from below at the fireplace while a friend eases the liner in from the open chimney stack shouting instructions to each other until the liner is as below

The liner kit will have a top plate and a holding bracket so the liner is held like a cross down the chimney so you can then fix the steel plate to the chimney top with concrete/sealant and fix the rain cover by drilling two holes in the liner and bolting the rain cap securely against inclement weather and pesky birds trying to get down your chimney. Chimney insulation can be dropped down the chimney if you have a bottom plate and sufficient space around the liner depending on the size of your chimney.

End result