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Bringing the fireplaces of a London Grade II townhouse back to life

Bringing the fireplaces of a London Grade II townhouse back to life

October 28th at 12:00am
Home Blog Bringing the fireplaces of a London Grade II townhouse back to life

Fabulous Grade II listed homes often have equally fabulous fireplaces inside - but the maintenance to ensure that they can continue to be used as they were intended can be a challenge.

It’s the chimney, rather than the fireplace itself, that generally calls for modernisation in cases where the owner is keen to keep features as original as possible (or where Grade II listing means that they need to).

Natural deterioration in the interior of the chimney can render them inefficient and, in worst case scenarios, unsafe to use.

But a wholesale chimney replacement would irrevocably change the look of the building, so isn’t always an option.

We were recently asked to update the chimneys of a townhouse in Kensington Park Gardens, where changes to the external look wouldn’t be possible, but where the fireplaces needed to be up and running as traditional open fires.

Here’s how we did it ⬇️

The house

This gorgeous Grade II townhouse is located in Kensington Gardens, on the left you can see it at the start of the project - at right, the structural scaffolding and hoist we put in place

When working with older properties that have wonderful period fireplaces, the want of the customer is often to ensure the fireplace is kept up to date with modern standards, but without losing it’s wonderful period aesthetic — and without having to knock anything down.

So when we bring an older fireplace up to modern standards, we often recommend the FuranFlex-25 product, as it ensures a top-performing fire without having to make any significant structural changes. More information on the FuranFlex-25 product below.

The Fireplaces

The two fireplaces selected for FuranFlex-25 installation

The Chimney

On the left, a better look inside one of the two chimneys before installing the product, and on the right, a member of the Grate Expectations team conducting a recce

So what exactly is FuranFlex-25, and how does it work?

The FuranFlex-25 lining solution, which carries a 25-year product guarantee, is the only method by which chimneys of any shape, dimension and length, can be fitted with joint-free airtight liner of steel hardness composite material that is resistant to corrosion, flames and heat.

The FuranFlex® tube is lined in the chimney in its soft state, and by the effect of the heat, gets irreversibly hardened into the shape of the chimney.

This means the fireplace effectively receives a new modern chimney, hidden inside the current structural framework.

The FuranFlex-25 Installation

On the left, the chimney being lined with the FuranFlex-25 product, and on the right, the material itself

Are you considering FuranFlex-25 as a solution for your home?

To give you an even better idea of what types of fireplace best suit FuranFlex-25, we've compiled a range of typical cases below.

Is your fireplace right for FuranFlex?

Here's a selection of fireplaces that are well suited for the FuranFlex-25 product

Potential customers should note FuranFlex-25 is most appropriate for antique fireplaces, graded properties, and similar

To learn more about the FuranFlex-25 product, we recommend visiting our page on Flue Systems.

If you enjoyed reading the above, we encourage you to visit our blog section for similar content, and follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.

If you would like to contact us directly to discuss your dream project please call 020 8540 8387. 

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