It's time for a new roof on my rental property, which means it's also time to do something about the deteriorating chimney. It's not being used for anything--there's a wood fireplace but the tenants don't use it. The house was built in 1946 and the chimney appears to have been skim-coated to cover up failing masonry, and the estimates I've gotten call for the chimney to be demolished down to the roofline and rebuilt. That's pretty expensive, and seems like a waste at a time when wood fires are (rightly, IMO) falling out of favor. I'm wondering if I should just have the chimney removed and install a gas insert in the fireplace. There might still be a need for venting but a full chimney wouldn't be required. Thoughts? Other ideas? I know gas inserts themselves can be quite expensive.