What to do with my fireplace?

[AceOfHearts]

I have just pulled out the old broken gas fireplace from my living room as i didn't like the look of it or the brick surround, but now it is out it seems they have done a better mounting job than I first thought, and the inside of the surround (that i thought was just a front) is all concreted up. Now the gas is all cut back and blanked off (all safely so don't worry ) i did'nt know whether to just start at it with a club hammer or work with what i have?

I wanted to either replace the whole lot with an open fire or wood burner, but am unsure how much work it will take with it currently looking so 'sturdy'.

I will update with pictures soon, but what do you think i should do, and any pictures of nice fireplaces as inspiration would be appreciated

I will update this thread as I go along with the mini project

[AceOfHearts]

Yes, the house was built in 1880 (2 up 2 down). Obviously i will also need to get it checked out / swept before recommissioning as a real fire. I will get some pictures now to help explain.

[AceOfHearts]

Ok here is what I have at the moment:







Up the chimney:





The easiest thing to do would be put a small stove in the existing gap, but my heart says rip out the front brickwork and try to get the fireplace back to its original size

[AceOfHearts]

Thanks for that

I have had a look at small 5kw stoves on eBay to get some measurements but it looks like even these small stoves will be a very tight squeeze into the existing gap, so it looks like i will have to knock the whole lot out anyways

How would you guys progress with this?

[AceOfHearts]

Thanks for the pictures everyone

I will have a look at 2kw (i did'nt see any that small in my previous search) but yes the room is quite small although the whole bottom of the house is open (not sure if you can see the big hole in the wall in the pictures)

And yes that was the old gas valve. The gas has now been properly capped off in the cupboard to the right of the fireplace and the old pipework going into the fireplace removed.

I will have a look at the smaller stoves and try to get some better pictures of the house to give you an idea of the space. Its looking though like i will knock out all the old brickwork, even though i have found products to 'age' red bricks which would have made an easier solution but i think the hole is just too small

[AceOfHearts]

What do people think of an inset stove like this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fireglow-INSET-450-Multi...

Then i could just put in a nice stone hearth, and do something with the brickwork to make it look better. What could i do with the brickwork as I hate the red bricks? Can I age them with dye or should I paint them.

I am leaning towards this option as it would be easier / cheaper. I am worried if i pull the front brickwork down it might be hiding horrors behind. Or should i just say fk it and pull it down and deal with it?

[AceOfHearts]

Thanks

I think i will do it properly and do it once. I will upload pics later in the week of the mess i make of the brickwork

[AceOfHearts]

Started pulling the brick front off today and have already founf what i think is the lintel:

[AceOfHearts]

OK i have made some progress today, the main problem being though i couldn't find a lintel at the front (more on that later)







After i couldn't find the lintel i panicked a bit, and stuck my head up the chimney. I found the lintel inside and is only 3 bricks up but I cannot see it from the outside even though it is only a single skin of bricks



So what do i do now?

Edited by AceOfHearts on Wednesday 8th August 18:17

[AceOfHearts]

That looks fantastic

So do you think i should just carry on knocking out the modern crap block work until i get to the lintel and original brickwork?

[AceOfHearts]

I think that's a good plan

I have done a bit more poking around and that lintel I pointed out in the earlier post is actually made of steel.

[AceOfHearts]

Made some progress today

I have only just finished clearing the brick dust from all over the house

[AceOfHearts]

Rosscow said:

I love the fact that you are doing some serious demolition work whilst leaving the fish tank in place

Its ok i will move it before i knock out the bricks beneath it

[AceOfHearts]

Unfortunately progress has slowed a bit due to other things needing doing, but i have a few questions.

Since i crashed my motorbike last week money is a bit tight, so i may be using it as an open fire until i can afford a stove next year. Due to being a bit funny about the wood being above the fire (new lintel) i think i will replace it with a concrete one to be on the safe side. I will also be building my own fire surround to save some money, so that should be interesting

With that sorted i need to decide what i am going to do with the aesthetics. I will finish knocking out the base tomorrow, as well as install the concrete lintel. I know what i am going to use for the new base and hearth, but am unsure about the internal walls of the fireplace

I would like to clean up and have the old bricks showing, but as you can see the previous fireplace fettler has smashed the internal row of bricks in by half a bricks width. I am wondering how i can make this look good, or whether to board it all up inside for the 'clean' look.

If i went this way what board would i use and where could i get it?

What would you all do?

[AceOfHearts]

Progress has slowed a bit due to other work need to be doing, but i have a few questions.

I will be knocking the rest of the base out tomorrow, and i know what i want to make the new base and hearth out of so that is all sorted

Also due to crashing my motorbike last week, money is a bit tight, so i will be using the fireplace as an open fireplace until i can afford a stove. With this in mind i will be replacing the wooden lintel with a concrete one for peace of mind.

My question begins with the internal walls of the fireplace. You can see that the previous fireplace fettler has smashed the inner row of bricks back by half a bricks width. How could i make this look good, as ideally i'd like to keep the original brick finish in the end. Alternatively i could board out the inside to cover it up for the 'clean' look. What type of board would I use and where could i get it from?

I will also be making a basic fire surround myself to save money, so that should be interesting

[AceOfHearts]

Slow and steady

An Update:

Hetas engineer / chimney sweep came over today and swept the chimney, inspected it with the camera to check widths and for obstructions and we are good to go for a liner

He can do the installation for a fixed price and also help me order up what I need, all i need to sort out is the hearth and i am good to go

Next question is what I should use for the hearth and whether i should use a 316/316 or a 316/904 liner. Suggestions welcome

I also got a bargain stove on eBay but unsure whether to use it yet or not I also have a fire surround to fit but will need modifying as it is too big. I have the next 2 weeks off though so expect a lot more updates

[AceOfHearts]

Here is what it looks like at the moment:



ETA as you can see i have also moved the fish (and bought a new tank ) and knocked out the rest of the brickwork

[AceOfHearts]

I will finally finish up this thread with some pictures tomorrow. Still a couple of finishing touches to do but I now have a functioning burner

[AceOfHearts]

tleefox said:

swerni said:

Move the TV as well.

They look crap mounted above the fire.

Surely the TV will overheat also?

I tried TV next to the fire, but was awful to watch so I now have a flatter TV mounted above the fire again. I have checked it with the burner running full blast and it barely gets warm. I think the mantel protects it quite well.

[AceOfHearts]

Simpo Two said:

AceOfHearts said:

I will finally finish up this thread with some pictures tomorrow. Still a couple of finishing touches to do but I now have a functioning burner

That's quite a nice stove - what make please?

Only a cheap eBay jobby. I got it for £60 secondhand

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JA013-Woodburning-Wood-B...