Brick hearth

[Denise]

I want to completely remove a ceiling to floor brick wood stove hearth. How do I safely plug the stove pipe hole and is there anything I need to know about how it might be attached to the outside chimney? I would greatly appreciate any help/thoughts!

Thanks,

Denise

[HayZee518]

the fireplace is built from the floor upward along with the chimney. the hearth part is refractory brick and refractory cement which is very hard. in the top of the hearth is a cast iron damper and smokebox which funnels the smoke to the chimney. best thing is a sledgehammer - so wail away at it! the chimney has a flue liner - rectangular pieces of a clay like material. once you get to this point chisel away one side for about a foot and push inside fiberglass and metal screening. use a hydraulic cement and inter-disperse cement and screening. shove in as much as you can. hydraulic cement expands as it cures, unlike regular cement which contracts.

[skootch]

sounds like a lot of work

I guess you REALLY don't want that hearth, huh.