How Much to Repair a Chimney?
Are you planning to have a new chimney installed or work undertaken on a pre-existing chimney?
Our guide to the costs of chimney work will cover a wide range of areas and break down both the labour and supply costs involved for each job.
We will also explore topics such as the duration of various types of chimney work and the cost of chimney maintenance and repairs.
Chimneys offer an important function for a lot of homes, but they take a lot of damage over time from nature.
So, who is this guide for?
This article will be helpful if you plan on having chimney work undertaken or if you are considering the prospect.
Although a chimney can seem to be straightforward in design, they are actually devised complex structures that require expertise to maintain and repair when damaged properly.
Chimney Repair Prices
The table below shows the average costs of various chimney repair work:
| Type of Chimney Work | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Full Chimney Installation | £1,900 to £3,500 |
| Chimney Lining | £700 to £900 |
| Chimney Sweeping | £60 to £150 |
| Chimney Cowl Installation | £180 to £250 |
| Chimney Repointing | £400 to £1,200 |
| Chimney Inspection | £75 to £150 per chimney |
- How Much to Repair a Chimney?
- What Are The Supply Costs of Chimney Work?
- What Are The Additional Costs of Chimney Work?
- Tradesmen Costs for Chimney Work
- How Long Does It Take to Complete Chimney Work?
- Types of Chimney Work
- Chimney Maintenance Cost
- Chimney Repair Cost
- How Much Does It Cost to Remove Chimney Stack?
- How Much Does It Cost to Remove Chimney Breast?
- FAQs
- Sources
What Are The Supply Costs of Chimney Work?
For this section, we will look at the supply costs involved in various types of chimney work as if you were to purchase materials directly from a retailer. It will cost you around £15 to £20 per metre to purchase stainless steel flexible liner, £12 to £18 per liner in the case of pumice liner or approximately £30 to £40 per liner if it is made of clay.
You can purchase a line adapter for about £40 to £50, a twin wall connector for around £50 to £60 and it cost you roughly £300 to £600 to buy a chimney flue. In terms of the brickwork, you can expect this expense to add up to approximately £40 to £100 with the exact price depending on the size of the chimney in question.
A static chimney cowl will likely set you back somewhere in the range of £50 to £120. An anti downdraught chimney cowl will probably cost between £140 and £240 although cheaper options are available through websites such as eBay and Amazon.
A rotating chimney cowl may cost anywhere from £25 to £110 although high-end products can cost several hundred pounds. A disused chimney cap usually comes with a price tag of around £10 to £30 while chimney liner cowls tend to cost between £40 and £100.
What Are The Additional Costs of Chimney Work?
In this section, we will look at any added costs you may choose to incur. To scaffold a chimney will cost about £200 to £600 while to have a cherry picker hired for the same purpose will cost around £200 for the first day and then an extra £100 for every day afterwards. A register plate and enamel stove pipe will likely cost you an additional £150 to £250.
Tradesmen Costs for Chimney Work
Based on the times necessary to install different types of chimney lining, it should cost between £75 and £250 to have stainless steel flexible liner installed, around £300 to £750 to get concrete and clay liners installed and about the same cost for pumice and ceramic liners.
A professional will likely charge you about £150 to £250 per day to install a chimney liner or somewhere between £18 and £25 per hour.
How Long Does It Take to Complete Chimney Work?
The focus of this section is the length of time it takes to complete various types of chimney work. In the table below, we lay out these different durations. Then, we will discuss additional factors that could influence how long different types of chimney work will take.
| Type of Chimney Work | Installation Time |
|---|---|
| Full Chimney Installation | 1.5 to 4 Days |
| Chimney Lining | 0.5 to 3 Days |
| Sweeping | 0.5 to 1 Hour |
| Chimney Cowl Installation | 1-2 Hours |
Additional factors that could influence the duration of any of the above work include ease of access to your house’s roof and the weather, as for example, heavy rain could force work to be postponed.
Types of Chimney Work
We will now discuss the various types of chimney work in more detail. We will look at what each type of work is and their average cost.
Chimney Installation Cost
To have an entire chimney installed will first involve creating a fireplace and then installing a chimney breast to connect the fireplace to the top of the house’s roof.
Additional parts such as the chimney lining and cap will also need to be added. It could cost you somewhere in the range of £1,900 to £3,500 for a full chimney installation. The labour costs will end up at approximately £150 to £250 per day.
Chimney Lining Cost
Chimney lining is a network of internal tubes usually consisting of a ceramic, metal or clay material.
They are designed to protect the chimney walls from heat damage and corrosion and to contain combustible particles, safely guiding them through the chimney and out of harm’s way. The total cost to have new a chimney liner installed will probably come to about £700 to £900 with the labour cost landing around £260 to £360.
For a more information check out our guide about replacing a chimney liner.
Chimney Sweeping Cost
This job will likely not just involve having your chimney cleaned and swept, but a chimney sweeper may also undertake additional cleaning work such as sweeping and cleaning the flue pipe, smoke duct and fireplace. This can reduce the risk of soot-related fires or/and dangerous gases being emitted into the air.
Based on the average cost per hour charged by professionals, you can expect to pay between £75 and £150 for this work with the exclusion of the chimney sweep cost that is based on supplies.
For a more information check out our chimney sweeping guide.
Chimney Cowl Installation Cost
A chimney cowl is a metallic ventilator that is positioned atop the chimney flue or pot. It is designed to improve the functionality of the chimney flue or pot. A chimney cowl can reduce, if not eliminate the risk of birds accidentally entering your chimney.
Chimney cowls can also help to reduce how much rain gets into your chimney and can prevent down draughts making their way into your chimney. Generally, it costs between £180 and £250 to have a chimney cowl installed.
Chimney Maintenance Cost
Having a chimney repointed and having it swept are examples of chimney maintenance, some of the types that we will look at in this section. In each of the following subsections, we will discuss what each type of maintenance is, and the costs involved.
Chimney Repointing Cost
To have a chimney repointed involves removing old, worn mortar and replacing it with a new, fresh mix. The cost to repoint a chimney will come to about £150 - £250 per day.
The duration of this task will vary significantly depending on the size of the chimney; thus, so will the total cost. For a bungalow, it may cost around £200 to £700, but for a semi-detached house, with the use of scaffolding, such work may cost about £600 to £900 if the chimney is located on the side of the house.
However, it may cost as much as £900 to £1,200 for the same house type, if the chimney is situated in the middle of the roof.
For a more information check out our chimney repointing guide.
Regular Chimney Inspection Cost
Another way to keep your chimney in the best shape possible is to regularly inspect it for problems. Look out for any signs of cracks in the bricks and mortar or any elements that appear loose.
If you can notice issues before they worsen, you will save money in the long-term. To have a professional inspect your chimney will cost around £75 to £150 per chimney.
Guttering Cleaning Cost
By regularly cleaning your gutters and removing any blockages, you can reduce the risk of water damage occurring as a result of unwanted water accumulation.
To hire a professional to perform this work, you can expect to pay at least £75 with the cost of a clean being roughly £4 per metre on top of a given flat rate.
A professional will likely charge between £20 and £25 per hour. The total cost will depend on the length of your gutters and the extent of the clean required.
For a more information check out our gutter cleaning guide.
Chimney Repair Cost
In this section, we will explore the costs involved in having your chimney repaired. We will discuss various types of repairs and layout their estimated costs.
Leaking Chimney Repair Cost
A chimney may leak for many different reasons. For one, it may be that your chimney’s flashing has been damaged. This is a metal sheet that is situated around the chimney’s stack. Its purpose is to seal joints and reduce the risk of water entering your chimney.
If you need to have damaged flashing replaced, it may cost between £100 and £250 if you were to hire a professional. Aside from the initial work, a professional will also damp proof your chimney as part of the job.
For a more information check out our flashing repair guide.
If the bricks & mortar are damaged, leading to leakage, they will need to be repointed. Old, damaged bricks and mortar will need to be replaced with new materials.
This repair could cost anywhere from £200 to £1,000. Another possible issue is that the chimney crown has cracked. The chimney crown is positioned above the brickwork and at the top of the chimney. It tends to be made of cement. Its purpose is to stop rain from entering a chimney.
Any flue liners situated one inch or more above the crown will also need to be taped. Canvas tarps can then be laid along the chimney’s base to stop crown sealer from dripping onto the chimney’s shingles. If you wish to perform this work by yourself, the material costs will come to roughly £30 to £110.
An insufficiently capped chimney or one without a cap may be left more vulnerable to water damage.
To fix this by having a new chimney cap installed will likely set you back around £100 to £200. Faulty roof tiles or a lack of roof tiles entirely can also lead to water leaks.
It may not only be the roof tiles, or lack thereof around your chimney stack that causes a problem as issues with roof tiles or an absence of them elsewhere on your roof could allow water to travel from a separate leakage area to your chimney.
Broken or blocked gutters can result in water to accumulating on your roof, becoming a cause of water leakage.
Broken Chimney Flue Repair Cost
If your chimney flue is broken beyond repair, you will need to have it replaced. This work may involve replacing old brick & mortar, the chimney lining and other internal chimney elements such as flue tile. Such a replacement could cost you around £800 to £1200.
How Much Does It Cost to Remove Chimney Stack?
In this section, we will look at the labour costs of having a chimney stack removed. You may choose to have a chimney stack removed because the chimney is beyond repair. Further, chimneys have become less necessary with time due to the rise of gas-based central heating.
For a medium chimney stack that is located by the eaves, the labour costs of removal will add up to approximately £200 to £300.
The labour costs will vary depending on the size of the chimney stack, how accessible your chimney is, where the chimney is located (by the eaves or the gable) and where exactly in the UK your house is located. Waste can be disposed of by hiring a skip or through a man and van service.
For a small to medium chimney by the eaves, it will take about 3-5 hours to remove while for a large chimney near the eaves, the duration will increase to about 5-7 hours.
You can expect it to take 4-6 hours to remove a chimney stack for a small-medium chimney that is positioned at the gable-end and for a large chimney by the gable; it will take around 6-8 hours for the job to be complete.
How Much Does It Cost to Remove Chimney Breast?
We will now look at the cost of removing a chimney breast. There are many reasons why someone may choose to remove a chimney. Examples of such reasons are a damaged stack, issues with insulation, pollution concerns or because of a substantial roof leak.
As with having a chimney stack removed, gas central heating has made chimneys unnecessary in many households thus if there are issues present that are beyond repair, a full removal may prove the most logical option for some. Chimney breast removal will cost between £100 and £150 per day for each labourer involved in the work.
How many days the removal will take will depend on the exact nature of the job. The cost will depend on the size of the chimney, how accessible it is and where in the UK you live. You can also dispose of chimney breast waste with a skip or an alternative waste disposal service.
To have a lower floor chimney breast removed will take 2-3 days, for a bedroom breast, about 4-5 days and to have both jobs undertaken, will take approximately 5-7 days.
FAQs
Q: How much does it cost to remove bees from a chimney?
A:A simple chimney treatment to remove bees may cost about £40 to £60 + VAT, while a 2 person job with the use of ladders will likely cost around £120 to £150 + VAT. If there is a beehive in your chimney, it may cost significantly more.
Q: How often should I clean my chimney?
A: Ideally, your chimney should be cleaned once or twice a year, although the type of chimney in question can affect how often it should be cleaned.
Q: Why is my chimney leaking?
A: There are many possible causes behind a chimney leakage. Damaged flashing, damaged bricks & mortar, a cracked chimney crown, rain pouring through the top of the chimney, faulty roof tiles or a lack of roof tiles and gutter problems are all possible explanations.
Q: How long do chimney liners last for?
A: On average, chimney liners last between 15 and 20 years.
Q: What will it cost to have a broken chimney flue fixed?
A: It will cost approximately £800 to £1,200.
Sources
- https://www.thestovehub.co.uk/stove-guides/guide-stove-costs/
- https://chimneychoice.co.uk/Static-anti-downdraught-cowl-6-inch
- https://www.fluesystems.com/shop/Chimney_Cowls.html
- https://www.manomano.co.uk/search/static+chimney+cowl
- https://brewercowls.co.uk/chimney-cowls/spinning-cowls
- https://ncc-flue.co.uk/blog/why-you-should-fit-chimney-cowls/
- https://brewercowls.co.uk/chimney-cowls/spinning-cowls
- https://www.spokanevalleyfire.com/safety-tip-take-good-care-chimney/
- https://www.hetas.co.uk/when-chimney-swept/
