Big pipe in loft - any ideas?

[brettjbuckley]

I have this large grey plastic pipe in my loft. It originates from (presumably) the cavity between the semi-detached houses and then goes up through the roof near the chimneys. Can I remove it? We do have a separate chimney breast further down the loft wall.

The woman next door had a proper loft conversion and does not seem to have any such pipe - however, we no longer speak to her so cannot ask!

 

[Softus]

Either a flue or a foul waste vent; probably the latter - do you have a WC vertically below this pipework?

 

[brettjbuckley]

No - the bathroom exists at the other end of the house (along with the drainpipes and so on)

 

[Softus]

Can you tell us what the pipe is made of, and can you post a photo of the very top where it sticks aaaht of your roof?

 

[breezer]

i know what that looks like, donkeys years ago we had a "boiler" in the bathroom (way before central heating) it had one of those pipes just like that going similar to yours.

but i am NOT saying thats what your is

 

[brettjbuckley]

We did have an old cylinder that got removed last year - but it existed at the other side of the loft.

I have just inspected closed and decided againsts plastic - rather a cold, hard material that souds like pot when knocked upon.

 

[breezer]

commonly called asbestos (least thats what it looks like) as it can withstand the heat of a boiler

 

[brettjbuckley]

Ahhh...yes, it does look like asbestos. No idea which boiler it belonged to.
I guess removing the pipe might prove dodgy them

 

[Softus]

Well then, it's clearly a flue. If you have no appliance connected to the lowest end of the flue, then it's an obsolete and redundant flue.

If it's obsolete then you could have it removed, but you would need to pay attention to the following points:

1. If it contains asbestos, then you are legally obliged to use only an appropriately licensed contractor.

2. The roof will require repairs which cannot be carried out from below.

 

[brettjbuckley]

Thanks for all of the advise. It does look like the sections of the pipe would loosen and detach. Legalities of removal aside, could I not simply leave the two end sections - in the wall and in the roof and ditch the rest?

I still don't understand why it goes into the wall between the two houses - I presume that a cavity exists between semi-detached houses of course!

 

[Softus]

Thanks for all of the advise. It does look like the sections of the pipe would loosen and detach. Legalities of removal aside, could I not simply leave the two end sections - in the wall and in the roof and ditch the rest?

What possible motive do I have for setting aside the legalities of removal?!

I still don't understand why it goes into the wall between the two houses - I presume that a cavity exists between semi-detached houses of course!

It doesn't go into the wall, it comes out of the wall, and it does this because it's a flue!

Either you have a chimney breast there, or nearby, or there used to be one there, or nearby. If none of those, then it's been installed in a cavity wall, for a reason that nobody knows, with the possible exception of your estranged neighbour.

 

[brettjbuckley]

Beneath that portion of the loft sits the large back bedroom. I have recently removed all of the wallpaper and redecorated, finding no signs of any chimney. Beneath that bedroom sits the dining room. We have not got around to decorating it yet, but we will eventually remove the all the wallpaper and may find the remains of a chimney - or even the other end of the flue!

I suspect that the pipe has existed since the building of the house in the 1960's. I will talk to some of the other neighbours who have owned the houses from new and see if they have one.

 

[Softus]

I will talk to some of the other neighbours who have owned the houses from new and see if they have one.

Good plan! Hint: if another house still has the same flue in place, then it will be protruding from the roof and therefore visible from outside.

 

[JohnD]

I have something similar, the room below the pipe has a flue built into the wall (the blocks have a precast flue running through them) so there is no visible fireplace or chimneybreast in the room. You might find that there has been a gas fire somewhere underneath it, with just a "letterbox" hole in the wall where the gas fire connects, or possibly the potential for a gas fire to be installed later. In my case, there is a special "tile" on the ridge of the roof where this flue exits, you might see it with a pair of binoculars.