What to do with a bricked up fireplace.

3 years ago

Hello. I'm moving into my first non-rental in a few weeks - a 1950's semi. Both fireplaces have been completely bricked up, the lounge having an electric faux fireplace which looks a bit plastic and wobbly. Really not sure what the best thing to do is. I could live without the heat of a fireplace, but will it be weird with nothing there? In which case, can I get a simple surround and a backplate and put something in the centre (such as fake log ends)? Not sure I can live with a whole faux fireplace!

Any inspiration or advice appreciated.

Comments (4)

PRO
Kingfisher Designs
3 years ago
You can put in what you want (though be aware that when you take the electric one out there will quite likley be somthing of the original one left, if not all) you could open it up and put an electric fire effect stove in.
J BUCK
Original Author
3 years ago
I think it's literally a freestanding, plug-in unit at the moment so a totally blank canvas. Well, a brick one :-)
Related Discussions
How to open up and old fireplace.....
Q
Comments (2)
Hi BFM, just looking at previous posts relating to opening up fireplaces and can't find anything that seems to mirror our current situation. Every fireplace in our new home (and there should be 6!) has been sealed with cement. There is no vent on the inside wall...in fact all there seems to be in the vicinity of where the fireplaces should be are plug sockets. I am absolutely desperate to start opening one up (I'd like to open them all up in time) just to see what they've done. Nothing seems to have been done "correctly" in the house so uncovering lots of mysteries. I'll post a photo example below.
...See More
What to do with 70s fireplace?
Q
Comments (3)
A lot of it depends on how you are theming the rest of the room. Some people would kill for a fireplace like that in a retro lounge as an example. You could paint the wood but it would need to be a specialist paint that can withstand a fireplace. I would change the base and tiling though which looks a bit drab. Changing the fireplace altogether is obviously an option and not as expensive as you might think.
...See More
What do do with this fireplace?
Q
Comments (37)
Looking at it, I think it's a mishmash of periods. the mantelpiece and overmantle is characteristic of a late victorian/edwardian style. We are more used to seeing these with vertical side panels of decorative ceramic tiles and a cast iron firebasket raised off the floorlevel. the actual ceramic glazed fire you have in there appears possibly to be anywhere between 20s & 50s, probably a replacement because the original burned out (assuming it's in the main living room it will have been a main source of heat for the house). So the question is, what do you love and what do you hate about it? Because it's not working for you right now. Usually edwardian fireplaces with an overmantel (and edwardian/victorian furniture in general) comes apart into sections. the tricky bit is finding which sections! But I'd imagine the entire overmantel with the mirror could be taken off leaving the mantelpiece intact, albeit with peg holes that would need filling on the top of the mantel at the back. Usually there were wooden pegs and holes for placement. If you are on a very tight budget, and assuming you don't want to keep the rather lurid carpet, simply keeping what is there, and adding a fender would work (as someone suggested above). You can get low level ones in brass that are extendable to fit relatively cheaply, or there's vintage ones that range from low level right up to having padded seats. If you intend to actually USE the fire, then it may be possible to pull up the 20th century ceramic tiles (if that's what they are) lay a screed underneath and then relay the tiles a bit higher so they are proud of the floor level. If any are broken it might be possible to relay them at the edges where they are less in the way - but at the end of the day, open fires are messy and what you really need is a slab of clean smooth hearthstone to make it easy to keep clean. Alternatively if you don't like early 20th century mashups, then you could (carefully) take out the fireplace, sell it on (someone would love it - personally I don't like the murkiness of that sort of fireplace ceramic colourwise, but I do recognise it's a nice and unusual example of the genre) and buy a replica more suited to the surround. You can get some rather nice ceramic edwardian style tiles for the sides. Have you tried to light the fire? it may be the hood is necessary if the chimney doesn't draw well. Or it could just be an aesthetic choice a previous owner made without considereing how the fire actually performs. As people have said above, you can paint it. Whatever paint you use, make sure you aren't totally knackering the wood underneath in case you want to have it stripped back to wood in future. The suggestion of hanging a picture over the oval mirror is a good one. Though I suspect with a different less instituttional carpet and the fitted cupboard gone, a judicious choice of plants or ornaments might make the whole thing recede into the room as a whole and be less 'in your face' at the end of the day, it's actually a time and labour intensive decorative heat source, so if you aren't going to have an open fire, and it's not a listed building, consider selling it and getting rid completely. It's a mishmash anyway that doesn't work so well aesthetically, though individually the separate parts of edwardian/ mid 20th century do have charm. but together? ouch you are living with some dearly departed's poor design choices! Which I suspect are not going to be so easy to marry together. Though as people have said above, painting it white is going to help a lot! My final thought is that you've got off lightly with that overmantel with a plain oval glass! When I was a kid we had an edwardian house near manchester, in what was the day nursery, behind a baize door, on teh first floor, had an overmantle with a plaster of paris insert that weighs 25kg with rather terrifying fairies playing in the moonlight as it's subject. The house was due to be demolished so we took the plaster behemoth with us. It's currently hanging in my hall and scaring all small children that pass by!!! 40 years on I still can't decide if it is actually totally hideous or so ugly that it's beautiful. Mostly though I just don't want it to fall off the wall and kill one of the cats! Here it is in all it's fugliness. Framed in the 1980s in somewhat ungracious proportions to just top off the general weirdness of it!
...See More
What to do with this fireplace?
Q
Comments (6)
Many thanks for your suggestions. I will see if I can get a mantle to wrap around the current bricks. We may have to remove some of the bricks on the side to fit the mantle. I am not sure about having just a shelve above... I prefer to have the legs :) For the blue bricks, see below the inspiration I had. But as you said, it may be too bold :) not sure my husband would accept it anyway! Do you think it would look to strange?
...See More
Sonia
3 years ago
Could you share a picture of your set up?
J BUCK
Original Author
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
So I haven't moved in yet but this is it currently. That whole fireplace is a freestanding suite, the chimney breast is bricked up. I'm tempted to have no fireplace at all, I'd prefer that to a faux thing tbh. I'm having a folding door put in on the the very right hand side so it opens through to the dining room, and was planning on a dark grey/green on this wall. Another option is to re-open the chimney breast and have something put in, even if it's decorative. But then I'm not sure what suits a 50s house - I'm drawn to black cast iron but I've always lived in Victorian properties...

Oh, I'll be changing the lights too :-)

What to do with a bricked up fireplace.

Comments (4)

Kingfisher Designs

J BUCK
Original Author

Related Discussions

Sonia

J BUCK
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

What to do with a bricked up fireplace.

Comments (4)

Kingfisher Designs

J BUCKOriginal Author

Related Discussions

Sonia

J BUCKOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

J BUCK
Original Author

J BUCK
Original Author