Advice needed on Fireplace Renovation

[mitsitsad]

Hi All,

I have an upcoming project and I'm asking for input. I had seen this DIY a few months back and decided I'd like to go with something like this:



My current fireplace looks like this:



From what I can tell, the stone is solid, not just a facade, so demoing it in hopes to find brick behind it won't work. I decided I need to frame it out. I'll lose 4" or so but it'll give me a better surface to work on and space to run electrical/TV equipment since I'm planning to mount the TV above it. Some questions:

• can i remove the raised hearth? it's about 18" tall and sticks out too far. Will it look stupid if the fireplace is floating that high above the floor? The house has a very modern feel to it elsewhere
  
  
• Framing - do I need to use special wood, or will the hardiboard protect it? what do I do on the insides of the framing, just put small strips of the hardiboard?
  
  
• anyone have experience with a similar project? I assume if I was tiling my fireplace the process would be similar
  
  
• do i need a fireplace insert?
  
  
• TV - if I don't have a mantel, how close can the TV be to the top of the fireplace? I don't plan on using the fireplace much, if ever, but i dont want to melt my brand new TV

 

[begreen]

Welcome. That may be real stone, but it looks like a flat stone veneer to me. It wouldn't surprise me if masonry is underneath, but that will take some probing. It is a pretty nice looking fireplace so I'd think hard about changing the look unless you really hate it. Just changing out the shiney gold doors would make a big difference in the look. The hearth construction looks boxed too. It would take some exploratory holes to discover whether it is stone covered block or wood framing.

To change the look all that may be needed is attaching wiremesh and having a pro do a skim coat over it. I'd contact a mason or two about the idea. You may be able to have a trench cut in the face for wiring. Some sort of heat break is strongly advisable to protect the television, though this is a large area so consider the alternative locations too.