My husband and I just bought a new house. In the corner of the living room, the previous owner built a brick foundation on the walls and floor to hold an old wood burning stove. We wanted to know how hard it would be to build a fireplace out of the pre-existing bricks? There is already a hole in the roof for the small pipe that was for the Wood stove, so would it really be that hard? Some advice would be AWESOME!
sorry but diy has taken the skill out of skilled trades. you could build anything out of fired clay bricks as was most of european ancient history but it requires a fundamental understanding not a couple hours at the home depot. respect that bricklayers are not lego builders and it actually takes some skill other wise you will end up with a very temporary, fairly dangerous, fire box. most of what we build today in america is a weak structure with a veneer not a solid structure.
How do you build a fireplace?
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July 3rd, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Building a fireplace from bricks is an experts job. You should look into buying premade metal a fireplace, or a free standing metal fireplace. Some are very attractive and easy to install.
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July 3rd, 2009 at 7:12 pm
I built a fireplace and it wasn’t too hard. The first thing to get right is the flue lining in the chimney. Once there are no leaks into any upstairs rooms then you could go ahead and express yourself with bricks to build the fireplace. Bricklaying needs to be accurate of course but there is a gadget for sale called a Brickie [i think] its purpose is to help you to keep the bricks level. Amateurs become professional with this useful tool. My fireplace is basically two columns of bricks, like small gateposts on either side linked by a metal support for two more courses of bricks up which is a wooden mantle piece. Over this I used wood panelling to ceiling level and fixed a large mirror to it. It looks fine and I am very proud of it!!! So get the trowels out and start work.
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Just to add. My brick fire place was built 12 years ago and complies with all building standards. In that time my house hasn’t burnt down! The reason I built it myself was mainly due to bad experiences with so called builders. In Ireland anyone can call themselves a builder, and the law doesn’t protect the naive house owner. The biggest chancers and conmen are handymen who think that they are builders in my opinion. You learn from experience but usually its a costly experience. Therefore, any building undertaking such as a fireplcace can be done by an experienced person and if mistakes are made they can be easily rectified. You save a lot of money and you get what you want wihout paying a fortune to a guy who is out to make easy money and to leave you re doing his dodgy work! Believe me most of them are con men. Get recommendations only from trustworthy people who have had personal experience …. no matter how long it takes.
July 3rd, 2009 at 7:59 pm
sorry but diy has taken the skill out of skilled trades. you could build anything out of fired clay bricks as was most of european ancient history but it requires a fundamental understanding not a couple hours at the home depot. respect that bricklayers are not lego builders and it actually takes some skill other wise you will end up with a very temporary, fairly dangerous, fire box. most of what we build today in america is a weak structure with a veneer not a solid structure.
References :
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