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Opening up a fireplace

TopCat said:
I have loosely assembled two course of bricks on the base and have put a foil strip across the top to reduce the opening more.
A cast iron grate completes it. If it works I will cement and plaster it all in.

Here goesView attachment 354085
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No expert but I do have fires. I think you may have to remove and clean the bricks periodically else deposits will build up and eventually catch fire?
 
planetgeli said:
No expert but I do have fires. I think you may have to remove and clean the bricks periodically else deposits will build up and eventually catch fire?
Click to expand...

Yes - the gent who came and assessed ours today - commented that the 2 access points are needed as there is a need to clean properly the whole chimney - as just the one access point for brushing could lead to a build up of "carbon" at the lower point which is a fire risk. 2 access points make it very safe. Without both access points , he would not reccommend using the stove !

TC - considered a metal plate of sorts on top of your bottom bricks which would make it easier to keep clean - and again (sounding like a H&S zealot which I assure you I am not - ) a fire / spark guard of some sort. ? We get explosive sparks sometimes when burning cheap pine , which is no problem with a stove of course) - the penalty of burning last year's Xmas tree or sawn up pallets......
 
TopCat said:
I am putting down a course of firebricks on the base this weekend. Looking at putting in a lower lintel and bricking above. All in the name of reducing the opening.
I want this sorted for Christmas.
Click to expand...
Yes, make sure you do more than just singe the beard of that fat fucker in the red suit. Get your air-rifle out and you'll be able to spit-roast a haunch of venison on Boxing Day
 
davesgcr said:
Yes - the gent who came and assessed ours today - commented that the 2 access points are needed as there is a need to clean properly the whole chimney - as just the one access point for brushing could lead to a build up of "carbon" at the lower point which is a fire risk. 2 access points make it very safe. Without both access points , he would not reccommend using the stove !

TC - considered a metal plate of sorts on top of your bottom bricks which would make it easier to keep clean - and again (sounding like a H&S zealot which I assure you I am not - ) a fire / spark guard of some sort. ? We get explosive sparks sometimes when burning cheap pine , which is no problem with a stove of course) - the penalty of burning last year's Xmas tree or sawn up pallets......
Click to expand...
My sister promised me her fire guard and accoutrements. I am very wary of leaving it for any amount of time.

It's really encouraging though. I thought I had made a huge mess for nothing. Now my front room is warm and the upstairs bedroom (another fireplace, same chimney) is warmer too. Changed my plans today so I can lounge about with beer in front of a nice blaze.
 
Get on freecycle and request some proper fireplace stuff. Or get talking to tradesmen ripping out 30s houses in your area. Quite aside from your dodgy chimney and the CO and fire risks previously mentioned, your fireplace is just really shit and amateur and inefficient. It's missing the actual fireplace! But with a few skip goodies it could be really good.. and safer. There must be some good youtube videos on this if you wanna do it yourself.

Of course, the best option would be a wood burning stove and believe it or not people who have these do give them away for free or sell them cheap when they upgrade. It would be a lot safer and you could have the chimney better sealed around the pipe reducing drafts and increasing heat retention. Plus obvs way fewer (but still loads of) nasty emissions than burning coal and whatever in 2022.

If your loft looks anything like @keyboard's witch room you could sort out the existing insulation there and top it up and be a lot warmer for a couple of hundred quid max. Cheap, safe and not reducing the urban air quality quite so dramatically.
 
So the plan was all along to have the fireplace looking acceptable and reasonably safe and in operation for Christmas. I slapped on some fire cement to level it up a bit and make it tidier. I have burnt a few fires, no smoke in the loft and no screaming from next door.

I got a big fire guard today, fits the space really well. I have a grate and got a dustpan and brush. My big sister has ordered me about 100 KG of some smokeless fuel as a very welcome Christmas gift, I think she is worried as she saw me servicing the chainsaw.

All set. :)

I will post a pic when I light it on Friday night.
 
TopCat said:
So the plan was all along to have the fireplace looking acceptable and reasonably safe and in operation for Christmas. I slapped on some fire cement to level it up a bit and make it tidier. I have burnt a few fires, no smoke in the loft and no screaming from next door.

I got a big fire guard today, fits the space really well. I have a grate and got a dustpan and brush. My big sister has ordered me about 100 KG of some smokeless fuel as a very welcome Christmas gift, I think she is worried as she saw me servicing the chainsaw.

All set. :)

I will post a pic when I light it on Friday night.
Click to expand...

Please do - been awaiting an update with some interest.

(Got this brilliant bloke in to sweep our chimney , which he did for £70 - got two bags of mucky soot out and some old coal burning residue from the days of burning house coal in the previous open grate. For another £70 he gave the stove a good overhaul , replaced the rope on the glass door , checked the baffle plates and air bricks and tested the whole lot for CO2 and put a smoke bomb to check the chimney. Fire performs on dry wood like a blast furnace)

Well pleased.
 
davesgcr said:
Please do - been awaiting an update with some interest.

(Got this brilliant bloke in to sweep our chimney , which he did for £70 - got two bags of mucky soot out and some old coal burning residue from the days of burning house coal in the previous open grate. For another £70 he gave the stove a good overhaul , replaced the rope on the glass door , checked the baffle plates and air bricks and tested the whole lot for CO2 and put a smoke bomb to check the chimney. Fire performs on dry wood like a blast furnace)

Well pleased.
Click to expand...
You are not London I guess with those fab prices.
 
£60 for one, £100 for two here in west Wales - by a bloke who really knows what he's doing and leaves a checklist of what he's done.

And believe me I've had a couple of blokes before who really didn't know what they were doing. One couldn't even remove the throat plate from the woodburner, I had to do it for him. There are charlatans around.
 
planetgeli said:
£60 for one, £100 for two here in west Wales - by a bloke who really knows what he's doing and leaves a checklist of what he's done.

And believe me I've had a couple of blokes before who really didn't know what they were doing. One couldn't even remove the throat plate from the woodburner, I had to do it for him. There are charlatans around.
Click to expand...

We also got a certificate of cleaning. Much like the French do apparently , which is required by the local Mayor's office in case of chimney fires. (if you have not got one , you get fined !)
 
davesgcr said:
Please do - been awaiting an update with some interest.

(Got this brilliant bloke in to sweep our chimney , which he did for £70 - got two bags of mucky soot out and some old coal burning residue from the days of burning house coal in the previous open grate. For another £70 he gave the stove a good overhaul , replaced the rope on the glass door , checked the baffle plates and air bricks and tested the whole lot for CO2 and put a smoke bomb to check the chimney. Fire performs on dry wood like a blast furnace)

Well pleased.
Click to expand...

And, that's what TopCat should do, but they clearly couldn't give a fuck about being safe.
 
davesgcr said:
We also got a certificate of cleaning. Much like the French do apparently , which is required by the local Mayor's office in case of chimney fires. (if you have not got one , you get fined !)
Click to expand...
I'd thought yearly certificates were needed for insurance but I heard that the sweep told one occasional user that they could safely miss a year.
 
planetgeli said:
£60 for one, £100 for two here in west Wales - by a bloke who really knows what he's doing and leaves a checklist of what he's done.

And believe me I've had a couple of blokes before who really didn't know what they were doing. One couldn't even remove the throat plate from the woodburner, I had to do it for him. There are charlatans around.
Click to expand...
Plus you can burn actual coal. Well envious.
 
Sorry not impossible to light just hard. two attempts, blazing kindling, fire goers out. Last attempt, build fire with charcoal, add smokeless fuel. It's caught now.
 
That looks so much better! Also safer for sure. Solid job. Merry christmas and enjoy your warm fire. 300 quid to get a chimney cleaned that's crazy money!

Maybe you could get a kinda metal plate to replace the foil on ebay or somewhere?
 
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