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Heating and cooling: Smoke Nuisance – is wood wood?

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    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 3rd 2018 edited
     
    Well I'm now the joint owner of a rather tall chimley. Doesn't look like an assessment was made of the old brickwork. Will be interesting to see if building control pick up on it.
    • CommentAuthortony
    • CommentTimeAug 3rd 2018
     
    Any chance of a photo?
    • CommentAuthorowlman
    • CommentTimeAug 3rd 2018
     
    That may prejudice, or at least muddy the waters of any subsequent legal stuff. Personally, I'd keep that off the WWW. I'm no legal expert, it just seems common sense to me.
  4.  
    Posted By: Mikeee5Well I'm now the joint owner of a rather tall chimney.

    Why joint owner?
  5.  
    Posted By: Mikeee5
    Well I'm now the joint owner of a rather tall chimney.

    Why joint owner?

    Semi-detached, with stack in pty wall?
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 3rd 2018
     
    That is correct Nick .
  7.  
    If the chimney is part of or within the party wall does this mean that the party wall regs. apply? If so were the regs. followed and do you have any joint liability for the construction?

    Do (did you) have any right of veto if you don't like the method of construction.
    • CommentAuthortony
    • CommentTimeAug 4th 2018
     
    Did they give two months notice and do a condition survey?
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 4th 2018 edited
     
    We had 1 weeks notice from the builder. I queiried the integrity of the existing chimney with the builder and he said that my neighbours had employed someone to calculate whether or not the stack could carry the weight of the extra brickwork needed to lift the chimney to the specified height. I don't think they took into account the condition of the existing masonry. The builder said all he was instructed to do was to increase the brickwork to the recommended height.

    It's kind of put me in an awkward situation. If I point my side of the loose brickwork does the whole construction become my liability, and if I leave it the condition of the existing masonry will only get worse.
  10.  
    You can not afford to touch the chimney ! if you do then they can say that any problems are as a result of what you did and you will be in the position of defending what you did (or got someone to do on your behalf)

    IMO you need to find out who has liability for the chimney that they solely use but is part of the party wall. After that you need to send a letter to them pointing out that they failed to follow the party wall regulations and that you are unhappy with the condition of the chimney and its safety following the works they did. You should not be specific about any item, e.g. the pointing, in your letter as this would limit any later action to that specific item. You should take advice about what you can do getting a proper survey for the chimney and who would have to pay for this - given that they failed to follow the party wall regs. As always a registered letter.
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 4th 2018
     
    Thanks for that Peter. I think they have not been compliant with one of the conditions in the court order with this too. I've mentioned it to my legal bod, will be interesting to see what his take on it is. Perhaps be an idea to request the other side produce the pre construction phase survey report .
    • CommentAuthortony
    • CommentTimeAug 4th 2018
     
    Can you tell us the dimensions of the chimney please, height, as well as it’s breadth and depth (footprint)
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 5th 2018
     
    It's about 2m in height approx 800 mm breadth and approx 400 mm in depth.
  14.  
    That sounds like 2 flues - if so both the neighbours ??
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 6th 2018
     
    That's correct Peter , 2 flues.
    • CommentAuthorowlman
    • CommentTimeAug 6th 2018 edited
     
    Is it me, here we are 6 years on and 1637+ posts later, we just find out its a flue on a party wall. I don't know whether to ................:bigsmile::cry: ?
    • CommentAuthorgyrogear
    • CommentTimeAug 6th 2018
     
    +1

    as for me (admittedly not a smarty...) , I thought the neigbhour lived somewhere down the road...

    gg
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 6th 2018
     
    You guys have missed an episode lol. Deffo been mentioned that the chimney is in the middle of the properties and the stack serves my gas fire too.
    • CommentAuthorgyrogear
    • CommentTimeAug 6th 2018
     
    well, I hate to be a terrible bore/pedant but I trawled the entire text, and can find none of those key-words indicating the fact
    :cry:

    never mind, looks like you have other problems, I wish you luck (must say, this is a salutory thread for myself as "wood-burner" :shamed: ) not to mention the general pedagogical utility...

    (thoroughly enjoyed Joiner's contributions, must say!)

    gg
    • CommentAuthorJeff B
    • CommentTimeAug 6th 2018
     
    Although I have only dipped in and out of this thread from time to time, I must admit, like gyrogear, I also thought the troublesome neighbour lived somewhere down the road, not in the semi next door! So all this time Mikeee5 has been battling with his next door neighbour and only communicating with him via a solicitor. Wow, what a life and such an unnecessarily sad situation. Surely the downdraught from the chimney must also be affecting the neighbour's house too?
  21.  
    Posted By: Jeff BSurely the downdraught from the chimney must also be affecting the neighbour's house too?

    Yes but he is not bothered about breathing the pollution.
    Posted By: Mikeee5and the stack serves my gas fire too.

    Oops.
    Did the neighbour get the chimney surveyed to see if the increase in stack size would affect your gas fire? is your flue lined for the gas fire? Do the modifications to your flue need sign off by some gas authority as a modification to a gas appliance?

    Whilst I don't know much about the party wall regs. it appears that your neighbour has ignored them all. - Time to take advice
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 7th 2018 edited
     
    Like I said GG, it looks like you've missed an episode. If you've looked back through the thread you will probably have seen some blank posts of mine. I put pictures and diagrams of the properties clearly highlighting the areas we were experiencing excessive fumes. The chimney in the middle of the properties was clearly marked out. The pics were up for a couple of weeks and someone sent me a PM and advised me to remove them which I did. It may have been a few years back so you may have forgotten that the chimley was situated on a party wall.

    Still waiting for my legal bod to reply re the duff brickwork Peter, not sure of the implications 're the gas fire.
    • CommentAuthorJeff B
    • CommentTimeAug 7th 2018 edited
     
    The neighbour must be, as my Dad would have said, a "bit of an awkward cuss" to say the least! Even if he is oblivious to the smokey environment outside surely he must have friends/family who call round and who would be affected by it and make some comment? I suppose with his attitude he may well be a "Johnny no mates" of course!
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 7th 2018 edited
     
    They witnessed the fumes in our property and tried to convince us it was acceptable Jeff. They thought they were in the right because the environmental health department had told them they were doing nothing wrong. As mentioned from the start of the thread the EHO had never been in or around our property when the fire has been lit. As the experts have advised the smoke is not dispersing sufficiently when it comes over our property, which is most of the time because we are in the prevailing wind.
    • CommentAuthorCWatters
    • CommentTimeAug 16th 2018
     
    I never realised their chimney was so close to you. I find it hard to believe that an extra meter or two on the height will make any difference. I mean if it's coming down at a 45 degree angle then that just moves it 1m horizontally.
  26.  
    Posted By: CWattersI never realised their chimney was so close to you. I find it hard to believe that an extra meter or two on the height will make any difference. I mean if it's coming down at a 45 degree angle then that just moves it 1m horizontally.

    Not necessarily so. Chimneys and roofs are unpredictable things and 1m might be enough to lift the smoke out of the down draft caused by the roof apex. In the same way if the wind is blowing in the opposite direction then there may be a totally different air flow over the rof such that the smoke (or most of it) does not descend. Wind tunnel testing would show but it is probably cheaper to stick 1m on the chimney and see what happens.
    • CommentAuthorMikeee5
    • CommentTimeAug 18th 2018 edited
     
    <blockquote><cite>Posted By: CWatters</cite>I never realised their chimney was so close to you. </blockquote>

    Hopefully that will give you some idea how intense the fumes have been CW. I've seen visible smoke at ground level around the property on the odd occasion. The smoke is disappearing just above head height on most of the videos I have taken. We're hopeful the mods will clear the fumes from the vicinity of our property but doubt they will clear the garden.

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