Opening up a fireplace. No Lintel. Opinions please!

We decided to “look” at opening up our upstairs fire place today.
I wont go into the politics, just say that its the SO’s fireplace

So I stitched the plaster with a drill, in a vertical strip to see if i could find a lintel. No lintel, but did find the brick arch.
As above, its a double arch, with bricks under the ends, the end bricks are laid “tall ways” and have an angle on them, as you would expect.
The bricks inbetween the have been split in half, with two half bricks on each side, a key stone in the middle, and then the same again above.

So i got busy carefully removing the bricked up hole in the middle. It was laid as you would expect, with an air brick in the bottom, and a good slop of mortar on the top to seal the deal (remaining-gap)

In the above picture, i have left this wodge of mortar in position as it didnt NEED to come out and it saves disturbing the lime mortar above.

Seeing as outr “man” wont be availible till after the bank hols, any of you useful lot have any helpful thoughts on whether:

1) Jobs a throbber
2) put a strip/spring steel support in, just to stop the lower bricks from shifting on the off chance
3) Put a full on lintel in
4) Run, run for your lives

Cheers chaps and chappettes!

Ol

I assume its been that way since it was built so I’d go for 1.

Here is the fireplace mid plaster removal. you can kind of see how bricked up it was, and where the wodge of cement fits…

We had a similar layout. The lintel may be higher up and is common i believe. I got a section of angle iron, chased out the mortar from each side level with the base of the arch and slotted it in. You are only supporting about 4 bricks after all.

2

We had a similar layout. I got a section of angle iron, chased out the mortar from each side level with the base of the arch and slotted it in. You are only supporting about 4 bricks after all.

^ this. And do not forget the party wall act… 😉

What is the end use? Stove or open fire?

there was a cast iron fireplace downstairs when we moved in. We had a log burner fitted by pros, and SO would like the iron fireplace fitting upstairs in the spare room (which is where it originally came from) no intention for fire, i think its blocked at the top anyway, Its a chimney brest, so party wall is the back wall of the hearth i pressume, which is solid and not being fiddled with.

I can get to both sides of the bricks, so im thinking i could “press fit” a section of angle iron with some g clamps if i am crafty, to save hammering at it….

(downstairs:

A brunette kangaroo looking at a bottle of Tabasco sauce over a carpet of jellybeans, at Christmas.

Unless I need to clean my glasses…

perhaps the picture of the stove is a distraction…
it is irrelevant really

Its a chimney brest, so party wall is the back wall of the hearth i pressume, which is solid and not being fiddled with.

The whole wall is a party wall, therefore you must get neighbours permission. Like everyone else does…. 😉

My builder fitted a curved piece of steel under the arch in similar circumstances. About 1/4 in or 6mm thick ISTR, 4 in or 100 mm wide. Pressed into shape with one transit van and one kerbstone.

If you are showing off the bricks then maybe not but when I did mine I went for a wider opening to get the heat out and inserted a chunky reinforced concrete lintel – its all plastered over now. Glad I did it but you’d be surprised at how the bricks hold themselves up…