You can support the stack above, or you can take the whole chimney out including the part on the roof. In Charlton, where many stacks are long redundant and badly weathered, removing the lot and retiling can be the better value. We survey, get engineer's calculations for whichever option you choose, and carry it through.
Removing a chimney breast in Charlton
Almost every Charlton terrace still carries its original chimney breasts, and with open fires long gone they eat into the useable width of the room. The catch is that the breast helps support the brickwork and stack above it, so it cannot simply be knocked out. We begin with a structural engineer confirming exactly what is bearing on the breast at each floor before any masonry moves.
Where you keep the stack on the floors above, we support the retained masonry on steel gallows brackets bolted into the sound party wall, or a beam where brackets are unsuitable. In many Charlton houses the sensible route is to remove the full-height stack outright and make the roof good, which removes the load entirely rather than hanging it off the wall.
Party wall and building control in SE7
In Charlton's terraces the chimney stack sits within the party wall shared with next door, so removing a breast or bolting gallows brackets into that wall is notifiable under the Party Wall Act. You serve notice on the adjoining owner before work starts and record the condition of both sides, which matters when the stack you are altering is literally shared masonry.
The structural support is notifiable under the Building Regulations, and the Royal Borough of Greenwich building control inspects the brackets or beam and signs the work off. We manage the engineer's calculations, safe removal and propping, capping any redundant flue with proper ventilation against damp, then replastering so the room is finished flush and certified.
Making the roof good after a full removal
If the whole stack comes out, the work does not end at ceiling level. There is a hole in the roof where the brickwork passed through, and it has to be framed with new rafters or trimmers, membraned, battened and covered with tiles or slates that match the rest of the SE7 roof. Where the stack stood on the party line, the flashings and any soakers along the neighbour's side are renewed at the same time.
Below that, the loft floor is patched where the base of the stack sat, the insulation is made continuous, and any water tank or cabling that was tied to the brickwork is resupported. Taking a stack out also removes weight from one part of the roof structure, which is another reason the engineer looks at the whole load path rather than only the room you are standing in. The finished roof should look no different from the rest.
- Gallows bracket support for a retained stack above
- Soot and debris contained with screens and sheeting
- Roof tiling, flashing and leadwork made good
- Bedroom breast removal to reclaim usable floor space
- Making good, plastering and reinstating the wall line
Trusted Chimney Breast Removal in Charlton
Charlton homeowners choose GS Renovation because we treat chimney breast removal as the structural job it is, not a demolition afterthought. You get an engineer-designed gallows or beam solution and Greenwich building control handled end to end, dust-controlled working in an occupied home, and a certified, replastered result backed by 30+ years across SE7.
- Steel beam support used where gallows brackets are not suitable
- Clean, tidy and reliable tradespeople
- Dust screens and floor protection in occupied homes
- Flue capped with ventilation so the remaining stack stays dry
- Site left safe and secure at the end of every day
- The retained stack inspected from the loft before we start