Parkray stove removal

[Davehighlands]

I am removing a stove from a circa 1900s house. I am not replacing it with another, the water tank has been removed years ago, the chimney is swept, so just wanted to check i was going ok. I don't mind the work and mess, but don't want to just take a hammer to it all.

There is a liner around the stove, plus a pile of concrete, bricks, and looser grey stuff. I have included photos, and have drawn a line on the wall where I can tap out the original lintel and supports. Basically i just want to remove the stove and then board it up, but it looks like I need to remove a lot more yet. The fireplace, possibly where the range was years ago looking at size of lintel, and built into gable end of solid stone construction, seems to be an inner construction.

Advice needed:
Is it likely I will eventually get to a stone structure where the original cavity was?
What would you do, take the stove out and board it up, or excavate the whole space?

Thanks for any advice

 

[tell80]

No pics - waiting for pics?

Whatever happens you must provide a vent or means of providing through ventilation from the bottom of the flue to the very top.
You say its a swept flue so there's no SS flue liner?
Is there a metal plate sealing off the bottom of the flue?

 

[Davehighlands]

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• Davehighlands
• 5 Dec 2021

Before i started

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• Davehighlands
• 5 Dec 2021

Inside the cavity, loose bricks

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• Davehighlands
• 5 Dec 2021

Redundant pipework

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• Davehighlands
• 5 Dec 2021

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• Davehighlands
• 5 Dec 2021

Black line indicates lintel and support

 

[Davehighlands]

No pics - waiting for pics?

Whatever happens you must provide a vent or means of providing through ventilation from the bottom of the flue to the very top.
You say its a swept flue so there's no SS flue liner?
Is there a metal plate sealing off the bottom of the flue?

Not sure why pics were missing. Not got to plate yet but can see something, and getting chimney capped and vented this week, and thanks for venting advice

 

[tell80]

You have a wood surround - do you intend to keep it? Otherwise, remove it before going further: use a knife to cut the paint/plaster at the edges esp at the mantle. there are two lugs plugged and screwed on either side of the surround about 150mm up from the bottom and 150m down from the top.

There is a back boiler with flow aand return pipes connected - these pipes will be full of water.
Are the pipes visible/boxed-in in another room?

Do you intend to keep the concrete hearth or skip it?

When the appliance is out you can remove much of the rubble and filler bricks but post a pic first.
There's a lintel of some kind up above the fireplace opening possibly the stone lintel you mention - in the last pic there's a metal bar "lintel" above thee opening.

Is the back wall conventional brick or is it a stone wall?

 

[Davehighlands]

Thanks @tell80 , I do not intend keeping the surround now so will follow your guidance on removing. I have traced the pipes to a cupboard where the tank once was, they are disconnected and tank removed, so they are redundant pipes.
I will skip the hearth. Will post pics once the appliance is out, which may take a little while yet! The metal bar does not seem to be structurally supporting anything, and my guess is that it is a plate that the flue is attached to, but I will expose it before removing it.
The back wall is stone.
Thanks for your help

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

I'd be wary, (if you haven't done this already), of any Black water and/or sludge remaining in the stove/pipework. This stuff will stain anything it comes into contact with, advise you protect flooring etc before cutting into pipework/removing stove.