Removing ductwork

Working on a 4-story brownstone that used to be multi-family (no longer). Sometime in the 1970s, a centralized ventilation system was added. There is a communal fan on the roof and a duct that runs to the parlor level. The vent on the parlor level is still existing, but the vents on the other floors have been covered over and the roof fan is no longer operational (blades are disconnected, but it is open to weather). In the 2nd floor room I am working on, this duct takes up a large corner of usable space and the owners want to remove it. It is obvious from exploratory demo that the duct is not asbestos covered, and it is covered with plaster on wire lathe. Anyone have an idea as to how the wire lathe is attached to the duct if at all? What type and gauge duct would have been used at that time? From what I can see, it looks heavier than today’s common 22-26 gauge. Besides the potential dead critters, any surprises I should look out for?

nanner08

in Brownstoner Renovation 10 years and 9 months ago

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nanner08 | 10 years and 9 months ago

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Definitely not an air shaft. Upon further exploration, it seems that it only vents to the parlor floor and no other floor. It’s also not the roof fan, but another vent near it that just has a mushroom-type cap on it. I can’t imagine what this was for. It seems an awful lot of work just for a little ventilation in one room 3 floors below.

catboot | 10 years and 9 months ago

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Are you sure you’re not looking at the original air shaft? Our house has an air shaft that goes from the garden level to the roof, and is capped by a skylight (this is not the skylight over the stairs). Rooms vent to the shaft via a small (and often painted over) window.