How do I remove a cinder block chimney?

I have a cinder block chimney, roughly 36" x 24" that goes from the center of my basement through the first floor, through the attic and out the roof. It is only 2 blocks high on the outside of the roof. I am wanting to remove the chimney (it had been used to vent a wood burning furnace which is now gone) so that our basement has more room for my remodel.

My initial thoughts are as follows:

Start at the top and by using a 5lb sledge and cold chisel, break the mortar and simply carrying down each block. Once below the roofline, patch the roof accordinly. Then, slowly block by block, remove the chimney. Fortunately, the chimney goes through a closet on the first floor so we will not have much remodeling there to do other than some patchwork.

Am I missing anything here or is it as easy as it sounds? I realize the blocks will be heavy and I need to watch out for falling blocks. Any other advice you can give me is greatly appreciated!

Griz

 

Just take it block or brick at a time. You find that once get the right tecnique, it does not take much pounding. Do whatever possible to let gravity help you.

From the size, it is built from a combination of different sizes of block.

Getting a dumpster and sliding the block down a slide through a window at each floor could save a lot of walking and mess.

Dick

 

Is this typically a big deal as far as structure of the house is concerned?

We have a chimney that goes up throught the middle of our house that is no longer used. I would like to remove it so that when we remodel the kitchen we can move the opening into it and improve the flow between the kitchen and the dining room.

Mine is brick if it matters.

 

I have an 1969 Bi-Level that has a cinder block chimney and I was getting ready to do the same thing. It runs through the middle of my house dividing the Living Room and Dining Room. It covers about 4ft by 8ft of space. It has a fireplace down and up. I was going to hire a guy who "knows how to do masonry work" for $1500 flat to remove it, but then I got to thinking and if he really thinks he can do it in 2 days (with my help) for $1500, that is actually like $75 per hour (alot for an unlicensed contractor). After reading up on this I am thinking about doing it myself. I'm curious how folks on here got the bricks from their house to the dump (or recycling center).

 

I'm planning on doing the same thing in my house. Mine is just a ranch with a basement and the chimney runs right were I want to expand one of the bedrooms to. I need a new furnace and water heater, so I'm planning on upgrading to direct vent / power vent so that I can remove the chimney and open up some floor space. Seems like it shouldn't take a huge amount of thinking to get it out....the labor on the other hand is a different story.