Should You Keep An Unused Chimney?

This is a question often asked by customers who,  looking at an old chimney up on their roof, are worried about the safety of an old chimney as well as the potential to need one down the road. At Wilkens, we often meet with customers to discuss the potential actions one can take, or not take, with their chimney.

A Chimney No Longer In Use

Chimneys are added to houses to vent harmful gases up and away from where people live and walk. Whether it is smoke from a wood-burning fireplace or gases from a furnace or hot water heater, safe ways to keep the air in your house clean is to have the hot air naturally rise in a sealed column. As people move more and more toward high efficiency furnaces and water heaters, chimneys are becoming less needed. The only thing that will always need a chimney is a wood-burning fireplace. Wilkens restores wood-burning fireplaces and renovates chimneys in order to comply with safety outlines and allow for a luxurious feature of your home.

Keeping An Unused Chimney

As we discussed above, if you are going to one day use or refurbish your fireplace, a chimney should be kept so that you have the option to do so. This applies to your own plans for your house, as well as for future owners if one day you consider selling. Having the option to restore a fireplace can be a selling point for some people.

Chimneys are also, to some, considered to be an aesthetic feature on a house. If a chimney is tall and stately, it can add a beautiful detail to a house which is important, as we have discovered with many of our clients.

Those are the two main reasons to keep an unused chimney.

Getting Rid of An Unused Chimney

For those who have no future plans to use their fireplace or who have no inclination toward a chimney as an aesthetic feature, the best course of action is to tear the chimney down to a safe level and have a new section of roof added over it.

Chimneys are exposed to the most extreme parts of Canadian weather. They generally get battered from all sides and, especially when they are no longer venting warm air, can stay soaked with snow and rain, leading to deterioration.

It can definitely be a good idea to tear down an unused chimney.

GIVE us a call with your questions

We offer free estimates as well as friendly advice for all  aspects of chimney restoration and demolition. Get in touch by visiting our WEBSITE or check us out on GOOGLE and HOMESTARS to see our glowing reviews.