GS Renovation removes chimney breasts across Forest Hill's Victorian and Edwardian terraces, reclaiming space in the bedrooms and reception rooms of SE23. With more than 30 years of structural work in South East London, we take out redundant breasts safely, support the stack that remains above, and leave the room squared off and replastered.
Supporting the stack in Forest Hill terraces
In Forest Hill's terraces the chimney breasts sit against the party wall, with flues shared through it with the house next door. When we remove a breast at ground or first floor, the masonry stack above still needs carrying, and it must never be left hanging. We assess exactly what is above before any brickwork is cut, because a stack left unsupported is a serious hazard.
The usual solution is a pair of steel gallows brackets bolted firmly into the sound masonry of the party wall to catch the retained stack, or a beam where brackets are not suitable. On the taller SE23 houses where the stack runs full height and is redundant, we more often remove the whole stack and make the roof good with matching tiles and sound weatherproofing.
Party wall and building control in SE23
Because Forest Hill's terraces are built tight against each other, the chimney stack almost always sits within the shared party wall. Removing the breast or bolting gallows brackets into that wall affects your neighbour's structure, so the work is notifiable under the Party Wall Act and we serve notice before starting. It is a routine step, and we prepare and serve the notices as part of the job.
The structural support is notifiable under the Building Regulations, so Lewisham Council's building control inspects the brackets or beam and signs the work off; this internal work needs building control, not planning permission. We cap any redundant flue with ventilation to keep it dry, make good the floor and ceiling line, and replaster so there is no trace the breast was ever there.
- Steel beam support where brackets are unsuitable
- Full chimney stack removal and roof making good
- Structural engineer calculations
- Party Wall Act notices for shared stacks
- Making good, plastering and reinstating the wall
Trusted Chimney Breast Removal in Forest Hill
Forest Hill homeowners choose GS Renovation because we treat a chimney breast as the structural job it is. You get an engineer-checked support solution, gallows brackets or a beam properly fixed, party wall notices served on your neighbour and Lewisham building control handled end to end, plus tidy working and a fully replastered finish, backed by 30+ years across SE23.
- Free, no-obligation quotations
- Over 30 years of experience
- Dedicated project management
- Fully insured and guaranteed work
- Building control and planning support
- Clean, tidy and reliable tradespeople