Surprise! Chimney in my new kitchen design. How do I embrace it?

10 years ago

We have a 100 yr Four Square. We just discovered the chimney from our gas foyer fireplace does not go straight up but goes back and to the right and now creates a 30" by 18" wide protrusion right where I was going to put my range in my new kitchen . Obviously the range has to move. We considered removing the chimney but 1) the cost and risk and 2) we love our fireplace and even hope to restore it to wood burning one day ( gas now)

How do we embrace it? Kitchen designer suggested taking away the focus by making it look like it is cabinetry. The problem is even with cabinets around it, there will still be an 8 inch protrusion past the countertop plus it will be about 30 inches wide.
It is sort of in the middle of the wall dividing kitchen from foyer of kitchen. If you were looking at it. The range/countertops and cabinets to right and some space to the left with a wide entrance into the kitchen and eat in table to the left of that.

What about embracing it and not hiding it and trying to expose the brick? We can't tell what shape the brick is but we can see from the attic it is a pretty red brick.

How would it look? What is involved in exposing the brick in the kitchen and is it extremely expensive?? Our countertops will be soapstone and floor red oak so I would think the look would work

Thank you. All advice appreciated!

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Comments (4)

cold_weather_is_evil
10 years ago
Got a pic?

Is there anything preventing you from abandoning the brick run which is causing you other problems and running the flue straight up to the attic (before realigning to the external chase) via sheet metal? You are being threatened by a 100 year old bad (bad?) design trying to dictate what you do today if I read that right. Do you want the brick (maybe needing expen$ive work to be restored to safe reliable working condition?) or do you want your kitchen? A repair mason may actually suggest lining it with a metal flue.

Modern sheet metal is very adaptable stuff; brick isn't. A flue made out of brick will be, what, six or seven inches thicker than one made out of a double layer of sheet metal, the flue space within being equal?

Of course removing a brick structure may reveal that it's supporting something, accidentally or deliberately, that would then have to be repaired, and it would be a permanent removal.

You say it's pretty but the KD wants to hide it. I think that people 100 years ago didn't think much about exposed utility brick being proper design and you may find a horrendously ugly bricklaying job under the carefully applied plastering. There's one way to find out, but removing plaster without damaging brickface often isn't easy, clean, or cheap.

Looking at all that it sounds like a scolding! It's not, I swear. I wouldn't want that decision.
Circus Peanut
10 years ago
We have a length of exposed chimney and although brick is rather attractive in its own right, it's in a weird place that doesn't really lend itself to showing off. Ours also has a number of steeled-over holes for generations of different wood stoves -- these are, alas, not so pretty. We're still deciding on whether to cover up or keep -- but we don't have the spatial issue you're experiencing with yours.

Hmmm. If you have the layout measured out on a graph, the Kitchens forum is really an amazing place to post it and ask that same question: better to redesign stove layout or reroute chimney?

Good luck!
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jackfre
9 years ago
Rather than looking at this only as a design element I would suggest that you have a professional chimney sweep in to evaluate the chimney for continued use. The chimney all ready has a liner for the gas fireplace, I assume, but there may well be structural issues inside the flue that will determine whether it makes sense to ever use it for the wood fireplace you want. Balance the cost of repair, and it will need repair, against the cost/benefit of removal.

I just went through this at our home and ended up tearing out the 150 year old fireplace. It allowed opening up the floor plan on both the first and second floor. Pricey, yes, but a part of the plan. We have a Vermont Castings wood stove that we will install this summer, once the front of the house is done. That chimney will be much smaller, operate better and we can still see the flame. Oh, ands once we had the whole chimney down you would not believe the number of burn marks on the surrounding wood structure including the sub floor. Of course we found the same thing with the removal of all the knob and tube electrical
lavender_lass
9 years ago
If the brick isn't in good enough shape to expose...maybe paint over it? You could choose to paint it a brick color or an off-white...but either way, the texture would be pretty cool.

Maybe with a free-standing cabinet underneath and kitchen tools/accessories hanging from the brick? If you like an unfitted style kitchen (and it sounds like you might) I think this will look great :)