We had a fireplace technician come out and take a look at our two fireplaces to let us know what was needed to make both fireplaces operable. The guy didn't have good news for us. In fact, he had really horrible news for us. Our fireplaces are basically fire hazards and need to be replaced. However that wasn't the bad news since we kinda figured as much. The bad news was that our entire chimney was in horrible shape and would need to be rebuilt from the basement to the roof. One big problem with that is that according to code, your chimney needs to be 2 feet above the highest part of your roof. SAY WHAAAT?!?!?!. Our roof is so pitched it makes a black diamond ski slope look tame. So of course, to rebuild a chimney of that magnitude it would cost a fortune...like one year's tuition at an out of state college fortune.
We were told, however, that if we went with a gas-only fireplace then we wouldn't need to rebuild the chimney and it would knock off A LOT of money. Looks like gas it is!
Fireplaces
We were told, however, that if we went with a gas-only fireplace then we wouldn't need to rebuild the chimney and it would knock off A LOT of money. Looks like gas it is!
As you can see, it looks like the chimney was repaired at some point over the years. Even with the addition to the chimney shown here, the chimney does not clear the top of the roof (picture is at a weird angle). Imagine adding about 2 more feet to it! The chimney would be pretty ridiculous looking.
Fireplaces
This is the fireplace in the parlor/living room
Here it is with the mantel pulled off and the insert taken out.
Here is a shot taken from inside the fireplace looking up the chimney
This is the fireplace in the master bedroom
Here it is with the insert pulled out
I suppose this was proof that they were considered hazardous. Inserts were needed because they were built without using fire brick.
Shot from inside looking up the chimney from second floor
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