Building a brick chimney

A chimney is a very important addition to the home. Through the chimney all the toxic fumes and gases are eliminated into the atmosphere. Building a chimney is no easy task.

It requires vigilance and detailed planning. Chimneys may all play the same role, but each one is different when it comes to dimensions, type and color. Brick chimneys are built directly on site.

A brick chimney has 5 important parts:

  1. chimney cap
  2. crown
  3. flue
  4. damper
  5. clean-out door

Tools and Materials:

  • Bevel square
  • Bricks
  • Brick chisel
  • Brick hammer
  • Brick tongs
  • Brush
  • Flues
  • 2- and 4-foot levels
  • Finishing trowel
  • Fire bricks
  • Striker
  • Sledge hammer
  • Scaffolding structure

Building code requirments

Before building the chimney, the first thing you have to do is study the local building code requirements. You will find out what type of chimneys suits your home, dimensions and other details.

Making a blueprint

Having a blueprint to guide you through the building process is very useful.

Chimney construction

First of all you must build a fire box, using fire bricks because regular bricks do not have the required resistance. After that you must build a wall around the firebox that has the same height. The empty space between the box and wall must be filled with bricks and mortar. An air-tight damper must be built and surrounded by bricks and mortar. Around the damper you must them place a flue and then construct a smoke chamber that will house the fumes. After all of that has been accomplished, build the actual chimney out of bricks and mortar. It can be at the same height with the roof, or higher. The crown on top should be sloped to forbid water from seeping into the chimney. After that, place a chimney cap on the top of the flue after toy fill up the sides of the flue with mortar. The flue must still be visible.

Finishing touches

Remove any excess mortar before it dries, because it becomes much harder to get rid of then. Remove the scaffolding and put your tools at their right place.

Cement curing and testing

Before you use the chimney, let the cement cure and harden for about 3-4 days. After this time, light a small fire in the fireplace to test the chimney and make the right adjustments if needed.

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