Today’s case study is a 1930′s NE Portland bungalow with English Cottage flair. The original utility chimney is being removed to make room for a kitchen remodel on the main floor, expanded closet upstairs, and a new high efficiency furnace in the basement. The cottage also has a larger chimney near the front of the house that services the living room fireplace.
In the first half of the 20th century, a home often had a second chimney separate from the living room fireplace stack. The second chimney was usually the exhaust route for an old boiler, oil furnace, or wood stove. With modern cooking equipment and high efficiency furnaces that can exhaust inconspicuously through a wall, these second chimneys are obsolete and often pose a hazard of water leakage, air leakage, and exhaust gas leakage into the living areas. Removing them during a remodel can open up much needed space in a smaller home!
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