Taking down a chimney - how?

[Tom_H]

I know he's not going in the living room, but still pushing is more dangerous than pulling IF the structure is very tall, because you may push the center out then the top drops straight down (like twin towers) straight on the tractor. If pulling, attach to multiple points at differing heights with lines 3 to 4 times as long as structure is tall, then you're far enough away not to get hit.

I wouldn't pull or push if there's chance of bricks pulling away any walls they're attached to. Unless you're demolishing the entire structure, I'd use scaffolding and take down 1 brick at a time.

 

[bczoom]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I know he's not going in the living room, but still pushing is more dangerous than pulling IF the structure is very tall, because you may push the center out then the top drops straight down )</font>

Hey Tom, yea, I know. Anyone that has even pushed on a dead tree with the FEL knows of the debris that comes down on you. I just wanted to see if he could get the tractor in the living room. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[8NTX]

Taking down a chimney reminds me of an incident that happened to my dad, many years ago. I must have been about 13 or 14 at the time. Anyway, my Dad used to work for Ford at the assembly plant in Dallas. They would go on strike every few years, and when they did, he would take on odd jobs. He had a good friend that owned a farm outside of town. There was an old house on the property that he wanted to tear down, and hired my dad to do it. I was along to help one day. Inside the house, my dad had chiseled enough of the old fireplace and the supporting structure to bring the whole thing, chimney and all, down inside the house. He made me stay outside, removed the supports and ran outside real quick to avoid the bricks and debris falling inside. The only thing he didn't count on, was that the chimney itself rolled off the roof.

You guessed it, it fell on him after he ran out the door. Luckily, he was wearing a hardhat, but it got his shoulders and back as well. Knocked the breath out of him, but he was able to hobble to the car. But by the time we got there, he was hurting pretty bad and in no shape to drive. No one was at home at the time and we were out in the country with no homes nearby. I knew the way to the hospital, and drove him there. He had an overnight stay, and seems he was laid up for a week or so.

Steve

 

[drm]

Vernon,

As you have probably gathered by now, demolition of a chimney is not child’s play. It is a tall slender structure that is usually built as an integral part of the building. Depending on construction details, age, and condition of bricks and mortar, a poorly planed demolition can cause serious consequences of bodily injury and/or personal property.

You must be able to determine the connections of the chimney to every part of the surrounding structure before planning to “knock” down the chimney. If you are not comfortable or not absolutely sure, do not do it.

Building scaffolding and dismantling it “one brick at a time” will allow for errors in initial assumptions that can be corrected when the connections/details are exposed. This would be my preferred method of demolition.

What ever method you employ, be careful. It is much more complicated that felling a tree and many are injured or worse doing this.

 

[hitekcountry]

drm

You touched on a point I was going to make and that is that some chimneys are strapped or bolted into the structure. also it is even possible for the chimney to be providing support for some part of the building. If either of these conditions exist, pulling the chimney over with a tractor could get rather interesting, and yes, very dangerous.

Fred

 

[drm]

Fred,

You are exactly right. Sometimes even with a good knowledge of construction and sound demolition plan mistakes happen. I feel that one needs to invest the initial time and effort to establish a good method of demolition prior to taking on even a small project like this. I hate hearing about the projects that went bad in a serious way.

 

[edski]

Safe and easy (and slow)...hammer them towards the interior of the chimney, layer by layer. When the chimney fills up, MT as you go. It's not a lot of fun, but it's not difficult either.