Hi,

I want some advice on blocking up the inside of a fireplace.

I live in an old terraced house which has a chimney and fireplace.

I have recently had the chimney wall and fireplace all re-plastered.
I dont have a fire and I dont want one. The fireplace is currenlty
open and it has been plastered inside. I have had it swept.

I just want to keep it like that as a decorative feature. But I need
to block off the inside to prevent soot from falling down into the
fireplace floor. I know I have to keep a ventilation hole

The arch of the fireplace is visible, as is a arch steel lintel. how
can I block off the inside. I have had many thoughts but cant see how
any of them would work.

The plasterer said I could fix a piece of hardboard on the inside,
curved to match the arch, but I cant see a way of fixing this to the
inside. ALso this wont cover the steel lintel. This is currently
very rusty, I dont mind keeping this visible but and I cant see how I
could tidy this up. My preference would be to hide it.

The plasterer did not plaster the edge where the lintel is so
brickwork is visible there.

I tried messing about with some board but cant get it to look right.
Fixing it to the wall is difficult on on side as on the inside the
brickwork forms steps.

Has anyone done/seen anything like this before. I just some some
ideas or an approach really. I am assuming pasterboard is out of the
question as it cant be curved. Arch forming kits are a bit of
overkill for this, and I probably could not plaster the arch anyway.

Many Thanks

Bhupesh

On Jul 5, 1:20 pm, bp wrote:
Hi,

I want some advice on blocking up the inside of a fireplace.

I live in an old terraced house which has a chimney and fireplace.

I have recently had the chimney wall and fireplace all re-plastered.
I dont have a fire and I dont want one. The fireplace is currenlty
open and it has been plastered inside. I have had it swept.

I just want to keep it like that as a decorative feature. But I need
to block off the inside to prevent soot from falling down into the
fireplace floor. I know I have to keep a ventilation hole

The arch of the fireplace is visible, as is a arch steel lintel. how
can I block off the inside. I have had many thoughts but cant see how
any of them would work.

The plasterer said I could fix a piece of hardboard on the inside,
curved to match the arch, but I cant see a way of fixing this to the
inside. ALso this wont cover the steel lintel. This is currently
very rusty, I dont mind keeping this visible but and I cant see how I
could tidy this up. My preference would be to hide it.

The plasterer did not plaster the edge where the lintel is so
brickwork is visible there.

I tried messing about with some board but cant get it to look right.
Fixing it to the wall is difficult on on side as on the inside the
brickwork forms steps.

Has anyone done/seen anything like this before. I just some some
ideas or an approach really. I am assuming pasterboard is out of the
question as it cant be curved. Arch forming kits are a bit of
overkill for this, and I probably could not plaster the arch anyway.

Many Thanks

Bhupesh

Best thing to do would be to keep the fireplace! - helps keep air
circulation the your house and prevent damp, is a nice feature AND
will add value to your home.. I really cant stand fireplaces being
blocked up, it seems a waste and makes teh house loose charachter.

That said, I've just done the opposite to you and Ive knocked out
fireplaces in my old victorian terrace and restored them... But in the
main bedroom, we didnt really want the fireplace but wanted the
"feature". So I knocked it out and had a similar problem to you. I put
a few strips of batten around the inside, quite high up, higher than
the highest part of the arch and then attached plywood to that, I also
added some downlights to this to create a nice feature effect, it
looks nice on teh old brickwork, which I've painted up.

The ply isnt curved, just plain a flat, but is high enough that you
dont see it. As for the rusty arched lintel, I am going to wire brush
that down, treat it and then paint it with an appropriate paint -
making that part of the feature. Obviously when I knocked out the
bricked up fireplace I was left with rough plaster edges, so I put
beading up the sides, and made mitred beading around teh arch at teh
top and plastered up to that.

I suppose you coudl do a similar thing with hardboard and curve it,
but I didnt see the point in teh extra effort when you dont se up
there if you put it high enough anyway

Tom

On Thu, 05 Jul 2007 05:32:40 -0700, Thomarse
wrote:

On Jul 5, 1:20 pm, bp wrote:
Hi,

I want some advice on blocking up the inside of a fireplace.

I live in an old terraced house which has a chimney and fireplace.

I have recently had the chimney wall and fireplace all re-plastered.
I dont have a fire and I dont want one. The fireplace is currenlty
open and it has been plastered inside. I have had it swept.

I just want to keep it like that as a decorative feature. But I need
to block off the inside to prevent soot from falling down into the
fireplace floor. I know I have to keep a ventilation hole

The arch of the fireplace is visible, as is a arch steel lintel. how
can I block off the inside. I have had many thoughts but cant see how
any of them would work.

The plasterer said I could fix a piece of hardboard on the inside,
curved to match the arch, but I cant see a way of fixing this to the
inside. ALso this wont cover the steel lintel. This is currently
very rusty, I dont mind keeping this visible but and I cant see how I
could tidy this up. My preference would be to hide it.

The plasterer did not plaster the edge where the lintel is so
brickwork is visible there.

I tried messing about with some board but cant get it to look right.
Fixing it to the wall is difficult on on side as on the inside the
brickwork forms steps.

Has anyone done/seen anything like this before. I just some some
ideas or an approach really. I am assuming pasterboard is out of the
question as it cant be curved. Arch forming kits are a bit of
overkill for this, and I probably could not plaster the arch anyway.

Many Thanks

Bhupesh

Best thing to do would be to keep the fireplace! - helps keep air
circulation the your house and prevent damp, is a nice feature AND
will add value to your home.. I really cant stand fireplaces being
blocked up, it seems a waste and makes teh house loose charachter.

That said, I've just done the opposite to you and Ive knocked out
fireplaces in my old victorian terrace and restored them... But in the
main bedroom, we didnt really want the fireplace but wanted the
"feature". So I knocked it out and had a similar problem to you. I put
a few strips of batten around the inside, quite high up, higher than
the highest part of the arch and then attached plywood to that, I also
added some downlights to this to create a nice feature effect, it
looks nice on teh old brickwork, which I've painted up.

The ply isnt curved, just plain a flat, but is high enough that you
dont see it. As for the rusty arched lintel, I am going to wire brush
that down, treat it and then paint it with an appropriate paint -
making that part of the feature. Obviously when I knocked out the
bricked up fireplace I was left with rough plaster edges, so I put
beading up the sides, and made mitred beading around teh arch at teh
top and plastered up to that.

I suppose you coudl do a similar thing with hardboard and curve it,
but I didnt see the point in teh extra effort when you dont se up
there if you put it high enough anyway

Tom
Chimney balloons are available for sealing up chmineys - they leave a
gap for some ventilation and can be removed if necessary.

Never used them tho'

http://www.chimneycowlproducts.co.uk...=-1&TB=A&SHOP=

Robert

Tom,

It looks like I have not explained my self propery. I have done the
same thing as you. The original fireplaces were bricked up. I opened
them. I didn't want a fire and just want it open as a feature. But
the inside of the fire place is open (all the way to the pot at the
top). I have had it swept but I want to block it off inside just as
you have done. Your suggestion of battons and plywood seems the best
way forward.

A few questions then

Should I treat the ply and any way (i.e as for extrnal use). Guess
the same appplie to the battens. DId you go round teh edge with some
sealer to fill in the small holes - otherwise I'd guess you would
still get small bits of dirt etc coming down

How did you fix the battens to the inside of the wall. I had a quick
look up and there not much room to drill holes - did you glue.

Can you explain the mitred beading round the arch as I have no idea
what this is. I have seen beading that is used by plasterers, but
could not see how it could be used to create the arch - it does not
seem to be bendable. The plasterer has plastered the arch but not
that well as he assumned I would tidy up the arch. I could wire brush
the steel and paint that - thats a great tip thanks. That leaves the
exposed arch edge.

Thanks for the help

Bhupesh


Thomarse wrote:

Best thing to do would be to keep the fireplace! - helps keep air
circulation the your house and prevent damp, is a nice feature AND
will add value to your home.. I really cant stand fireplaces being
blocked up, it seems a waste and makes teh house loose charachter.

That said, I've just done the opposite to you and Ive knocked out
fireplaces in my old victorian terrace and restored them... But in the
main bedroom, we didnt really want the fireplace but wanted the
"feature". So I knocked it out and had a similar problem to you. I put
a few strips of batten around the inside, quite high up, higher than
the highest part of the arch and then attached plywood to that, I also
added some downlights to this to create a nice feature effect, it
looks nice on teh old brickwork, which I've painted up.

The ply isnt curved, just plain a flat, but is high enough that you
dont see it. As for the rusty arched lintel, I am going to wire brush
that down, treat it and then paint it with an appropriate paint -
making that part of the feature. Obviously when I knocked out the
bricked up fireplace I was left with rough plaster edges, so I put
beading up the sides, and made mitred beading around teh arch at teh
top and plastered up to that.

I suppose you coudl do a similar thing with hardboard and curve it,
but I didnt see the point in teh extra effort when you dont se up
there if you put it high enough anyway

Tom

In article .com,
bp writes:

Hi,

I want some advice on blocking up the inside of a fireplace.

I live in an old terraced house which has a chimney and fireplace.

I have recently had the chimney wall and fireplace all re-plastered.
I dont have a fire and I dont want one. The fireplace is currenlty
open and it has been plastered inside. I have had it swept.

I just want to keep it like that as a decorative feature. But I need
to block off the inside to prevent soot from falling down into the
fireplace floor. I know I have to keep a ventilation hole

I've done exactly this. If it backs onto an outside wall, I would
suggest you ventilate the flue to the outside rather than the
inside. Otherwise you'll lose up to a kW of heat up the chimney
in winter.

I put an air brick from the flue to outside a few courses of bricks
above the top of the fireplace. I then blocked off the flue using
a piece of plasterboard in the top of the fireplace glued in place
with bonding coar plaster. When fitting it, I put a layer of loft
insulation on top of the plasterboard, partly to prevent it getting
cold and forming condensation, but mainly to cushion any debris
falling down the flue to reduce chance of it damaging the plaster-
board. The back wall of the fireplace was only a single skin brick
wall, and to prevent that getting cold and forming condensation and
mold, I lined it with 25mm cellotex and then plasterboard, and
plastered the whole inside.

I dug out the floor of the fireplace down to the slate damp course
in the brickwork, fitted a damp proof membrane, layed about 6" of
cement and vermaculite insulation and brought it up to floor level
with mortar. This should enable it to be used for a fire in the
future (if the flue is reestabled and the cellotex removed).
Fireplaces often relied on regular fires to keep damp out of the
base and hearth, and without fires, mine was slightly damp as the
infill wicked moisture up from the earth.

I dropped a lighting cable down the flue from the loft, to enable
a concealed light to be fitted in the fireplace.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On Jul 5, 9:04 pm, (Andrew Gabriel) wrote:
In article .com,
bp writes:



Hi,

I want some advice on blocking up the inside of a fireplace.

I live in an old terraced house which has a chimney and fireplace.

I have recently had the chimney wall and fireplace all re-plastered.
I dont have a fire and I dont want one. The fireplace is currenlty
open and it has been plastered inside. I have had it swept.

I just want to keep it like that as a decorative feature. But I need
to block off the inside to prevent soot from falling down into the
fireplace floor. I know I have to keep a ventilation hole

I've done exactly this. If it backs onto an outside wall, I would
suggest you ventilate the flue to the outside rather than the
inside. Otherwise you'll lose up to a kW of heat up the chimney
in winter.

I put an air brick from the flue to outside a few courses of bricks
above the top of the fireplace. I then blocked off the flue using
a piece of plasterboard in the top of the fireplace glued in place
with bonding coar plaster. When fitting it, I put a layer of loft
insulation on top of the plasterboard, partly to prevent it getting
cold and forming condensation, but mainly to cushion any debris
falling down the flue to reduce chance of it damaging the plaster-
board. The back wall of the fireplace was only a single skin brick
wall, and to prevent that getting cold and forming condensation and
mold, I lined it with 25mm cellotex and then plasterboard, and
plastered the whole inside.

I dug out the floor of the fireplace down to the slate damp course
in the brickwork, fitted a damp proof membrane, layed about 6" of
cement and vermaculite insulation and brought it up to floor level
with mortar. This should enable it to be used for a fire in the
future (if the flue is reestabled and the cellotex removed).
Fireplaces often relied on regular fires to keep damp out of the
base and hearth, and without fires, mine was slightly damp as the
infill wicked moisture up from the earth.

I dropped a lighting cable down the flue from the loft, to enable
a concealed light to be fitted in the fireplace.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Bhupesh,

I see, it does sound very similar to what I have done upstairs. On the
side of the plywood that face up into teh chimney I have treated that
with sonme external wood preserver, the bit that is visible, i've just
used standard satin paint, or whatever you want.

As for any small gaps that were left around the edges, I have used
decorators chaulk to seal those.

I forgot to say in my original reply that I put a vent in the plywood
too, just s standard plastic one, and the lighst either side.

I must admit, getig the batten in place was the hardest part and I did
curse quite alot while doing it...I had to drill at a slight angle as
my drill was too bit for teh chimney hole, but I wasnt worried too
much about teh neatness of the batten, as long as they were secrured
well, they are now hidden by the plywood. I didnt find a way to attach
the ply to the front arched edge as there was no way I could drill up
there, but the ply seems to hold well enough along the 3 edges.

When I said Mitred beading, I used standard wooden beading, the right
depth for the plaster and attached a stip up each side of the opening,
in the room. To create teh arch effect at teh top I cut teh battem
into 5 mitred lenths, which when attached creasted the arch i required
all the way around. This was also trickey as the old plaster was very
deep and varyied greatly in depth around the opening.

On Jul 6, 8:12 am, Thomarse wrote:
On Jul 5, 9:04 pm, (Andrew Gabriel) wrote:





In article .com,
bp writes:

Hi,

I want some advice on blocking up the inside of a fireplace.

I live in an old terraced house which has a chimney and fireplace.

I have recently had the chimney wall and fireplace all re-plastered.
I dont have a fire and I dont want one. The fireplace is currenlty
open and it has been plastered inside. I have had it swept.

I just want to keep it like that as a decorative feature. But I need
to block off the inside to prevent soot from falling down into the
fireplace floor. I know I have to keep a ventilation hole

I've done exactly this. If it backs onto an outside wall, I would
suggest you ventilate the flue to the outside rather than the
inside. Otherwise you'll lose up to a kW of heat up the chimney
in winter.

I put an air brick from the flue to outside a few courses of bricks
above the top of the fireplace. I then blocked off the flue using
a piece of plasterboard in the top of the fireplace glued in place
with bonding coar plaster. When fitting it, I put a layer of loft
insulation on top of the plasterboard, partly to prevent it getting
cold and forming condensation, but mainly to cushion any debris
falling down the flue to reduce chance of it damaging the plaster-
board. The back wall of the fireplace was only a single skin brick
wall, and to prevent that getting cold and forming condensation and
mold, I lined it with 25mm cellotex and then plasterboard, and
plastered the whole inside.

I dug out the floor of the fireplace down to the slate damp course
in the brickwork, fitted a damp proof membrane, layed about 6" of
cement and vermaculite insulation and brought it up to floor level
with mortar. This should enable it to be used for a fire in the
future (if the flue is reestabled and the cellotex removed).
Fireplaces often relied on regular fires to keep damp out of the
base and hearth, and without fires, mine was slightly damp as the
infill wicked moisture up from the earth.

I dropped a lighting cable down the flue from the loft, to enable
a concealed light to be fitted in the fireplace.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Bhupesh,

I see, it does sound very similar to what I have done upstairs. On the
side of the plywood that face up into teh chimney I have treated that
with sonme external wood preserver, the bit that is visible, i've just
used standard satin paint, or whatever you want.

As for any small gaps that were left around the edges, I have used
decorators chaulk to seal those.

I forgot to say in my original reply that I put a vent in the plywood
too, just s standard plastic one, and the lighst either side.

I must admit, getig the batten in place was the hardest part and I did
curse quite alot while doing it...I had to drill at a slight angle as
my drill was too bit for teh chimney hole, but I wasnt worried too
much about teh neatness of the batten, as long as they were secrured
well, they are now hidden by the plywood. I didnt find a way to attach
the ply to the front arched edge as there was no way I could drill up
there, but the ply seems to hold well enough along the 3 edges.

When I said Mitred beading, I used standard wooden beading, the right
depth for the plaster and attached a stip up each side of the opening,
in the room. To create teh arch effect at teh top I cut teh battem
into 5 mitred lenths, which when attached creasted the arch i required
all the way around. This was also trickey as the old plaster was very
deep and varyied greatly in depth around the opening.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I've recently done the same to one of my chimneys.
I just put a metal plate in. Attached to two shelving brackets omn the
sides.

Enough there to stop debris and soot falling down.
Shelf can be pulled out and any rubbish disposed of;.
and useful for any future chimney sweeping.
There are enough airgaps around the sides to allow for it to breathe.
Must say its tricky to drill the holes. but as it's unseen you can
make a mess of it with no issue.