Elliott P wrote: The chimney no longer serves any purpose.The chimney is cracking but does not appear horribly dangerous, and there are 8 other houses on the street with the exact same setup. I'm wondering if it would be a real hassle to get up there with a chisel and break it down.

Thanks for the pic. That thing extends a good distance above the
roofline. My estimate is 8 to 10 feet. Can you meaure or estimate
this distance? My gut feeling is that this way more hassle than it's
worth.

I guess there's no harm in keeping it, but I'm trying to compare
costs of removing the thing, and just letting it stay. Here's a
picture where you can somewhat see the chimney:
http://flickr.com/photos/talllguy/11...7594057780280/

Basically: * How much would it cost to have taken down by someone else?
You just have to get bids. It may cost more than you would like
because your roof will a hole in it when this thing is gone. You might
get bids from roofers.

* How hard would it be for me and some friends?
If you rent a lift bucket it will be easy. Without a bucket, not so
easy. It wll be harder to repair the hole in the roof. Do you have
any roofing or carpentry skills? You might consider having it removed
to the roof line at the same time you are installing a new roof. Then
it will be easy to remove the inside portion.

* Why not just leave it?

You have not given any reason for removing it. I can think of a
couple. Is it is taking up space inside the house that you want to use
for somthing else? Are you planning to replace your roof anytime soon?
It is a safety concern? Those are the only good reasons I can think
of.

Lawrence