Has my fireplace been installed correctly?

[Kriss]

In our diningroom we have a Victorian cast iron fireplace, but I'm not convinced it's been installed correctly.

I was under the impression fire inserts were just that, fireplaces that simply sat in place with little modification of the builders opening or flue/chimney.

If I look up through the baffle, I can see the building as dramatically reduced the size of the chimney by using slate tiles and creating a smaller throat about 20cm x 20cm. Is this correct?

Also, if you pop your head through the damper, there's a large void above the arch of the fireplace, where the lintel is and around the back. Should this aperture where the smoke draws up, seamlessly connect to the chimney?

The lintel and throat created with slates and shown in the pic are around the same height as the top of the cast iron insert, is this too high?

 

[begreen]

Welcome back Kriss. You have been at this project for quite a while. I see your concerns. This might not be ok in the states, but I don't know UK code and the installation of open fire wood inserts is rare here. Was the installer a HETAS qualified engineer?

Tell us about the insert. Did the insert have a flue pipe collar on it's top? Is the unit all in one piece or was the fireback installed separately? If so, and it was done correctly then this could be an accepted install. I poked around at several UK wood insert installation guides and most open fires did not direct connect to the chimney. Essentially they look like a metal lining to the existing fireplace that is mortared in place.

What make and model insert? Do you have the manual or installation instructions?

Here are a couple of the sites I checked out.
(broken link removed to http://www.victorianfireplaces.com/guides/fitting-guides/fireplace-fitting.html)
http://www.antiquefireplacecompany.co.uk/fitting.php

 

[Hogwildz]

Looks like a coal burner to me.

 

[bholler]

Looks like a coal burner to me.

me 2