Open Fireplace Question

HellsBelles

We are fortunate to have a beautiful old victorian slate fireplace and have been given the following quote to restore it to working order, as it's currently missing the inner gubbins and hasn't been used in years. Does this appear fair? Also, will our chimney need lining? How much does that cost and where do I start? I sent the fireplace company pictures of the chimney opening, but they didn't mention lining or sweeping...

"To remove the fire surround and insert and transport the insert to our workshop, 2 men required cost £227

While every care will be taken to remove the fire surround due to its age we cannot guarantee that it will not require repair work to reinstate it back to its current condition which would result in extra costs.

To restore the cast iron insert including stripping, minor repairs, applying a protective coat and traditional black finish £185
To remove the tiles clean and refit £65
Replacement Hood £89
Replacement front bars and ash cover £89
Standard fire back £88
Grate £30
Ash pan £26
Black smooth slate hearth cut into 3 pieces for solid fuel £211
Metal inner hearth £29
Carbon monoxide alarm to meet regulations £25

Total restoration cost £837

All include vat at 17.5%

We can arrange refitting through an independent fitting company who would charge approx £320 plus vat. If an air vent is required he would charge £40 plus vat payable to the fitter on completion. "

By my reckoning thats a total of almost £1500 without even considering the chimney...

Any advice gratefully received!

w50nky

You should have a good chimney sweep carry out a genuine smoke test on your chimney. He will be able to advise on its condition too. If you pick his brains he may know of other companies who install and renovate fireplaces. You can then compare these quotes and make an informed decision.

Good luck

HellsBelles

w50nky wrote: »

You should have a good chimney sweep carry out a genuine smoke test on your chimney. He will be able to advise on its condition too. If you pick his brains he may know of other companies who install and renovate fireplaces. You can then compare these quotes and make an informed decision.

Good luck

Thank you. Now, do you know how to find a good chimney sweep? Is there a reliable association at all?

w50nky

Could you ask nieghbours or family? A recommended sweep is the way to go. There is an association of sweeps and I believe the hetas site may list sweeps too.

http://www.chimneyworks.co.uk/ may steer you towards one in your area.

Good luck

PennyForThem_2

umm are you going to use it as a main heat source or more like a designer feature?

Open fireplaces are not efficient. If a major/alternative heat source then consider a stove. It could be that you keep hearth etc.

diable

Have you ever had or used an open fire before?

HellsBelles

Never had an open fire before. It would be a major heat source, we've got central heating but no fire. The local stove centre said if we wanted a stove we'd have to get rid of the fireplace, so that's not an option. What are your thoughts?

andyrpsmith

For the price quoted you would be able to buy a very very nice restored original cast iron fire place. The restoration quoted to you includes quite a few new parts.

A chimney for an open fire does not need to be lined if it is sound. As others have said a professional chimney sweep will test it for you for about £50 - £80.

It would be wise to have an air vent as a full open fire can use a lot of oxygen and if you have sealed the windows and draft proofed the doors you will notice a difference hence the comment about the CO monitor. The CO monitor is highly recommended for use around any gas appliance, CO is produced from incomplete combustion ie lack of oxygen. Most of the heat from an open fire goes up the chimney and coal gives out 2-3 times more heat than wood. If you burn wood it must be seasoned for at least a year to bring the water content down below 25% or you will tar up the chimney in double quick time with a great risk of a chimney fire. If you buy wood only buy by volume not by weight. Coal you buy by weight.

If you have a victorian house then there is nothing better than a real open fire in an original cast iron fireplace.

A stove will need a lined chimney and it will need to be installed professionally.

HellsBelles

andyrpsmith wrote: »

For the price quoted you would be able to buy a very very nice restored original cast iron fire place. The restoration quoted to you includes quite a few new parts.

A chimney for an open fire does not need to be lined if it is sound. As others have said a professional chimney sweep will test it for you for about £50 - £80.

It would be wise to have an air vent as a full open fire can use a lot of oxygen and if you have sealed the windows and draft proofed the doors you will notice a difference hence the comment about the CO monitor. The CO monitor is highly recommended for use around any gas appliance, CO is produced from incomplete combustion ie lack of oxygen. Most of the heat from an open fire goes up the chimney and coal gives out 2-3 times more heat than wood. If you burn wood it must be seasoned for at least a year to bring the water content down below 25% or you will tar up the chimney in double quick time with a great risk of a chimney fire. If you buy wood only buy by volume not by weight. Coal you buy by weight.

If you have a victorian house then there is nothing better than a real open fire in an original cast iron fireplace.

A stove will need a lined chimney and it will need to be installed professionally.

Wow, thanks Andy. I'm going to get a chimney sweep in asap to look it over. The replacement parts quoted are the bits that are currently missing from our fireplace. We definitely want to keep the original one as it's lovely and the tiles are beautiful too. Do you think the price is reasonable for the parts / work quoted? It's the only specialist resoration co I can find in Leics.

In relation to an air vent, would this go out the back somewhere, or would it go down to the cellar? Do you think we'd need some insulation beneath the floorboards to stop it drawing cold air from the cellar?

If cost proves prohibitive, does anyone have any idea if you can get a gas fire to actually fit in the cast iron insert? We don't have a hood or grate or anything, just the insert and tiles down each side. There is already a gas pipe capped off to one side of the existing surround.

Thanks so much to everyone for all your words of advice, it's been so useful!

andyrpsmith

I think if you wish to have your current fireplace restored then you have little choice. Some parts are a little costly but I suppose it does include vat. See if you can negotiate free fitting of the fireplace back in, that would save over £300. You have nothing to loose.

You can have a gas fire inserted into the grate, I had one in my last house - until it caught fire underneath and melted. However you may always hanker after a real fire. The gas gives out hardly any heat at all, has a consistent flame which is almost silent all features which you don't want in a fire. I would go for the real one first as you can always go with gas later if you can't be done with all the messing about with a real fire (which I love, you will always be on the look out for free wood and delight in chopping it up and storing it somewhere to dry). I like to mix wood and coal (house coal is just lovely, if you are not in a smokeless zone. It gives a really big flame and keeps the wood burning a long time too). The air vent can be in the floor if you have an air flow from below (air bricks or cellar) and if you have a gas fire it is a legal requirement now.

A._Badger

In case it helps (and I think it could) you can find a sweep via this link to the National Association of Chimney Sweeps http://www.chimneyworks.co.uk/