I just bought a house built in 1920. The kitchen is very small and we are trying to DIY remodel it to make it more functional. The biggest stumbling block is the chimney. It has been drywalled over sticks out about 28" creating a dead space in our already very cramped kitchen. We cut a little hole in the drywall to see how much space we actually had, and found that there was 12" of empty space, then pipes and wires running over wood paneling, which we assume is covering the chimney. We really want to get rid of the drywall so we can have that extra foot of space, but can't just leave the pipes and wires exposed. Any suggestions?