Retaining the Auckland Heritage Skyline – The chimney perspective
Auckland homeowners who live in designated heritage or conservation zoned areas such as Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, Herne Bay, Remuera, often do not realise their chimneys have heritage value and with that can come responsibilities
Homeowners looking to renovate often need to remove their heritage chimneys to facilitate fabulous design outcomes within the home by utilising the recovered floor area.
The old heritage chimney (often a beautiful architectural element) is now quite rare due to many having been removed over the past 60 years. It is this loss of the heritage skyline that drives the policy of restoration and replication.
These heritage outcomes are guided by the Resource Consent process which runs alongside your Building consent application.
The Auckland Council Heritage Team are usually ok with internal fireplace/chimney removals but do insist the top (above roof) chimney be replaced with an exact replica that is clad with the original brick recovered from site and usually cut thin (brickslips).
Now, if you are removing the old chimney and all the support below roof to the foundation, how exactly do you keep the old and often unsafe and heavy chimney structure above roof?
Red Mantle has the answer and it is nice and easy.
We engineer a structural support frame using timber or steel which is attached into the attic space. The attachments are designed by our engineers to spread all wind and earthquake loads into the wider house.
It is earthquake and cyclone proof and will look great for many decades.
Auckland resource consents require the original heritage bricks to be used on the replica chimney. This will mean careful deconstruction of the old chimney to ensure the old bricks remain in good condition.
We then construct an exact replica of the existing Heritage chimney using composite and brick veneer. The composite base is a one-piece structural box (built like a mast on a yacht) to the exact shape required.
This makes the chimney lightweight and very durable. Your Red Mantle chimney will never leak, rust, or rot.
Red Mantle sort and machine all the original old bricks down into pistols (corner bricks) and slips (tiles) which are then bonded to the exterior surface of the new chimney. Once completed, the new replica chimney will look 100% authentic.
It is lifted into place onto the roof of your house using a small crane or hiab, it fits over the structural frame like a sleeve and is then secured to the frame.
The chimney is then step flashed to the roof, so it looks like the original. Our methodology means no cavity is required! You can spot a real fake as they need to 'float' above the roof to drain water.
The replica chimney can have working open fires or other appliances below if required, using lightweight flue systems…. and yes, you can flue an open fire!
The chimney can also be used for venting kitchens and en-suites.
With the Resource Consent process in Auckland City requiring replacement of the heritage chimneys above roofline, this can often come as a shock to homeowners and pose an unwanted extra cost.
Our experience has shown most home owners do not (in the end) regret the restoration of their chimney…especially as the benefits become clearer.
- Valuable future proofing of the home/chimney
- Recovery of very valuable floor area within the home for added living areas such as ensuites, bedrooms and office spaces
- Capital values increased
- Increased Heritage values
- Red Mantle 20 Year warranty
- Red Mantle has the only reliable system in NZ that is accepted by heritage teams
If you are interested in replacing an old or damaged chimney either to add value to your home or for heritage purposes give us a call.