Block off plate

[Ctwoodtick]

Hi all, I’m thinking about adding an after the fact block off plate in my masonry fireplace, which has a wood insert. A previous installer had done a bit of a hatchet job on the back fire brick wall of the fire box and I do not have an even surface there to attach a block off plate on that back part of the block off plate.I’m wondering if other folks have run into this and how to compensate for rough uneven masonry when doing a block off plate.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Can you smooth out the masonry? It doesn’t have to be pretty. You can probably use tapcons partially driven in to give you something to key into.

 

[begreen]

How bad is it and how wide of an area? Is it something that a gasket could fill?

 

[Ctwoodtick]

I’ll try to get some pictures up by tomorrow of the area. But to answer your question, it’s a fairly wide area and fairly “bad“. The previous guy roughed up the area and the surface of that old fire brick looks like jagged rock could find in nature.