If you are planning a chimney take-down in Girton and want to know exactly what happens on the day and why, this page walks through every stage of the job in plain terms.
A chimney take-down is not complicated, but it involves several distinct stages, each of which needs to be done in the right order and to the right standard. Knowing what each stage involves helps you ask better questions, spot whether a cheaper quote has left something out, and understand why the job takes the time it does.
The process below covers a standard chimney stack taken down to below roof level on a typical pitched roof. Variations exist - for instance, stacks shared between semi-detached properties, or stacks on flat roofs - but the core sequence is the same.
Before any scaffold goes up, a roofer should assess the stack from ground level and, where possible, from the loft hatch below. The ground-level assessment establishes the visible condition of the brickwork, the state of the pointing and flaunch, and whether the stack is plumb. The loft inspection establishes how many flues are in the stack, what condition the liner and brickwork are in from below, and whether there is any existing damp damage inside the roof structure around the chimney base.
This inspection is what allows a roofer to give you an accurate price. A stack with multiple flues, a stack that is already partly collapsed internally, or a stack set on a complex roof junction will all affect the time and materials needed. If a roofer is quoting without having looked at the loft and without getting eyes on the stack at height, the quote is based on guesswork.
Chimney work cannot be done safely from a ladder. A scaffold provides a stable working platform around and above the stack, and it also protects the tiles and gutters below from falling debris. The scaffold needs to be positioned so that the roofer can work from all four sides of the stack, and so that materials can be lowered or bagged down rather than dropped.
The scaffold type and configuration will depend on the property and roof layout. On detached properties with more access, a free-standing tower or section scaffold is sometimes used. The scaffold size and type affects the cost of the job, which is one reason chimney take-downs on awkward roofs cost more than those on straightforward ones.
The stack is taken down course by course, starting at the pot and flaunch at the very top. Chimney pots are heavy ceramic or terracotta items; they need to be lifted off and lowered by hand rather than thrown or dropped. The flaunch - the sloped concrete or mortar bed the pot sits on - is broken away and lowered in sections.
Below the flaunch, the brickwork is taken down one or two courses at a time. The roofer uses a bolster chisel and lump hammer to break the mortar joints and free each brick individually. Working course by course keeps the debris manageable and prevents large sections of brickwork falling onto the roof slope below. Each course of bricks is stacked on the scaffold platform or bagged and lowered using a rope and bucket system.
The stack is taken down to just below the top of the roof slope - typically to the level of the roof boards or just below the ridge line, so that no brickwork remains above the tile surface. This removes the liability entirely; there is nothing left to lean, crack, shed mortar or let in water.
Once the stack is down to below roof level, the open flue or flues need to be sealed. The standard method is a concrete or sand-and-cement cap poured or built across the liner opening at rafter level. This is a permanent seal - not a cap that can shift or crack in frost the way an external flaunch can.
Before the cap is poured, it is worth checking whether the chimney breast will be retained inside the property. If it will, and the void between the cap and the fireplace opening below is a sealed, unventilated space, some condensation can form inside the breast over time. A small hit-and-miss vent in the breast (or a vent brick in the external wall where the breast meets it) allows a small amount of air movement that prevents this. This is a detail worth discussing before the cap goes in, because it is straightforward to address at this stage and considerably harder to address later.
The make-good is the most visible part of the job from the street, and it is where the quality of the workmanship shows. With the stack removed, there is a gap in the roof covering where the tiles or slates were cut around the stack and where the lead flashing once sealed the join.
The process of making good involves:
The replacement tiles should match the existing roof as closely as practically possible. On a concrete interlocking tile roof this is usually straightforward with new tiles in the same profile. On an older clay or natural slate roof, sourcing a reclaimed tile or slate is often worth the effort for a better visual result.
Before the scaffold comes down, the roofer should walk the perimeter of the make-good area and check that all tiles are correctly seated and all edges are weather-tight. Any mortar used in the make-good should be pointed neatly and given time to set before the scaffold is struck if conditions allow.
All broken brickwork, old mortar, tile fragments and scaffold debris are cleared from the roof and from around the base of the property. We include full waste removal on all our chimney take-down jobs in Girton, so nothing is left for you to dispose of.
The scaffold is struck once the make-good is complete and checked. On a straightforward job on a standard semi-detached or terraced property, the scaffold erection and strike are usually done on the same day as the take-down itself. On larger or more complex jobs, the scaffold may stay up for a second day to allow pointing to set or additional roof repairs to be carried out at the same time.
A single chimney stack on a standard pitched roof - scaffold up, stack down, flue sealed, roof made good, scaffold down and waste cleared - is typically a one-day job for an experienced team. Larger stacks with multiple flues, awkward roof access, or stacks requiring a complex tile match can extend to two days. This is useful to know because you may need to arrange access to scaffolding areas, keep vehicles clear, or notify a neighbour if the scaffold extends over a shared boundary.
If you have a redundant stack in Girton that needs to come down, call us and we will arrange an inspection so you get a price based on what the job actually involves.
No obligation · We usually respond within 2 hours
Storm damage, active leak, damaged ridge - we aim to be on-site within 24 hours.
