Blocked Chimney

[dwhit55]

Hello,

I have just joined the forum after viewing some of the posts.

We moved in to our mid terrace three storey Victorian property in 2014.

The dining room (middle room) has an open fireplace that has never been used while we have lived there, I noticed around 2015 some dust/soot falling down the chimney so we decided to get it cleaned and swept, local chimney sweep came did a smoke bomb etc all good, just recommended not to use as it would fill the room full of smoke - no problem.

Recently we have noticed a sooty type smell in the dining room and debris in the hearth, and dampness on the top floor in and around the inside facing chimney wall, thought it may of been a leak in the roof etc but no roofer could find anything all tiles etc replaced, left the room to dry for 6 months or so and re-decorated and unfortunately dampness has come back.

Decided to get a chimney sweep out this weekend due to the annoying irrating smell coming from the chimney however when using his camera he asked if we had any specific large works done on the roof, re-roof etc said no just tiles replacing etc however next door have - full new re-roof and chimney re-pointing.

The chimney sweep mentioned there is bricks in the chimney causing a blockage around 3.5 metres up from the hearth using his camera and rods there was no way the blockage of bricks/blocks etc would budge.

I have no idea how or why we would have a blockage, and the sweep recommended a builder to come in knock a hole in to the chimney breast on the 2nd floor level to view the blockage (seems an expensive job)

Its baffled me how we have a blockage - the sweep said the people who carried out the next door re-roof could of dropped rubble etc down there if not using a skip (the re-roof was carried out by cowboys - in my opinion and not one of them spoke any english and foreign owned landlord of the property, generally let out to Romanians etc)

I'm generally at a loss, as I believe the chimney isn't having chance to breath/ventilate if there is a blockage - I think we need to get someone up on the roof really to see if it has been blocked from the pots also, either way its going to be an expensive job and no fault of our own!

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I've attached a google street view shot of March 2025 re-roof to next door done 2024 (5 pots nearest, next door is the gas cowl pots 6No)

Upon viewing google street view even in 2008 my property had 5 pots.

 

[dwhit55]

The back two chimney pots are the dining room - front 3 is the living room (no issues as far as im aware)

We do however have Efflorescence on an inside wall between the dining room/living room - another issue in itself, not sure if this could be linked to the chimney however.

 

[Cubist]

Looks like quite a lot of greenery growing around the top of the chimney stack and the mortar flaunching around the pots. It's possible that this has broken up the mortar over time and allowing driven rain into the interior walls of chimney. That would not necessarily explain dislodged bricks trapped in the flue but, if the root structure were strong enough, it may be possible. Usually a strong smell of soot after recent rainfall suggests the entry of rain either through the pots or the brickwork.

 

[dwhit55]

Looks like quite a lot of greenery growing around the top of the chimney stack and the mortar flaunching around the pots. It's possible that this has broken up the mortar over time and allowing driven rain into the interior walls of chimney. That would not necessarily explain dislodged bricks trapped in the flue but, if the root structure were strong enough, it may be possible. Usually a strong smell of soot after recent rainfall suggests the entry of rain either through the pots or the brickwork.

Thanks for your reply.
Yes I see what you mean regarding the greenery, it could be worth getting someone up there and investigating I think.
But like you said it still doesn’t explain why the chimney sweep couldn’t get his rod up as there was a solid blockage shown as bricks on his camera - baffling.

 

[a twig]

Given the number of pots there must be other flues / fireplaces in your property - did the sweep trying going up any of those?

The blockage could be the internal bricks that divide the flues (called feathers in these parts) collapsing into one side.

The main cost of doing what the sweep suggests would be scaffolding to access, pulling out 2 or 3 bricks to get an arm in and clear it, then replace the bricks wouldn’t be too much of a job

 

[Stevers]

The main cost of doing what the sweep suggests would be scaffolding to access, pulling out 2 or 3 bricks to get an arm in and clear it, then replace the bricks wouldn’t be too much of a job

The chimney is on a party wall though so any blockage could be accessed from a room or loft, with scaffolding only required if it's above roof. It might be the camera, but there's a bit of a bow in the top of the stack that makes we wonder if needs a bit of TLC. Unfortunately the sort of stuff that goes up chimneys coupled with the level of exposure up there can eventually wreck them.

There should indeed be a fireplace, (or copper) for each flue/pot. We have five pots at each end, with fireplaces in two bedrooms, two living rooms and a basement room each side.