DESTROYED FIREPLACE

[Wyoming300]

Hello
I am new here.
5 years ago I purchased a home. The lowest floor is 4 feet below ground level. Along one external wall is a wood burning fireplace. This fireplace has brick work with a nice mantle around it, for the entire 20 ft length of the wall. The house was built in 1982.
Upon lighting a fire I noticed there is no draft. I pulled the fireplace insert away from the wall and discovered this was originally built with a nice glass door firebox set into the brick. At some point later on someone had taken a saw and cut out the dampener and front of the firebox to slide a fireplace insert into this instead. The fireplace insert is very far from aligning with the flu. It will never be usable in this fireplace.

For the first two years I attempted to get qoutes from specialists to examine this fireplace and tell me how this could be repaired. Ive had 5 businesses here that either qouted me impossible repairs with money up front, or said no go. 7 never showed up. After 2 years of that I gave up and forgot about it.

Now I am married and have kids. I am more open to realistic looking gas log fireplaces. I would prefer would but with a busy life I do understand gas log would be used more often. My wife also wants gas log. Getting gas to this wall would be easy.

Has any one dealt with this sort of fireplace corruption before? One contractor wanted to jack hammer my concrete foundation down another foot to make the fireplace insert fit.
I am having picture issues so I will add those soon

 

[Wyoming300]

Here are some photos

 

[bholler]

Here are some photosView attachment 322262 View attachment 322263 View attachment 322264 View attachment 322265 View attachment 322266 View attachment 322267

Yeah looks like a completely destroyed zero clearance fireplace. We would need to see much more to know if there are any real options

 

[Wyoming300]

Yeah looks like a completely destroyed zero clearance fireplace. We would need to see much more to know if there are any real options

It is completely destroyed. I am starting to think maybe building a smaller fire box inside it with gas logs? Or carefully cutting out sections of brick around it.

What pictures can I take to show you more?

 

[bholler]

It is completely destroyed. I am starting to think maybe building a smaller fire box inside it with gas logs? Or carefully cutting out sections of brick around it.

What pictures can I take to show you more?

We need to know what's behind and above that. In most cases there will just be a framed chase above for the prefab chimney. And framing around that box.

 

[Wyoming300]

Yeah looks like a completely destroyed zero clearance fireplace. We would need to see much more to know if there are any

We need to know what's behind and above that. In most cases there will just be a framed chase above for the prefab chimney. And framing around that box.

The fireplace is external to the house, with a patio surrounding it. The firebox is set into the concrete foundation. Behind the brick work it is a 2x4 framed wall.

 

[Ashful]

I'm no help on the fireplace, bholler is the fireplace pro. But I do a lot of masonry work on old houses, and can tell you that if you want to extract and then later replace brickwork, it's always best to get started today on matching the mortar color, as it can change over days/weeks post-pointing.

Grays are easier to match, tans and browns are a little more variable, but always look much nicer. What color is your mortar?

 

[bholler]

The fireplace is external to the house, with a patio surrounding it. The firebox is set into the concrete foundation. Behind the brick work it is a 2x4 framed wall.

Yeah the 2x4 wall is a problem. I assume you don't have an actual masonry chimney either right?

 

[Ashful]

Yeah the 2x4 wall is a problem. I assume you don't have an actual masonry chimney either right?

Perhaps instead of open gas log, OP should be looking at enclosed gas fireplace? Most of those seem to take a 4" insulated vent, with easy clearances, right?

When I moved into this house, 40" Mendota enclosed fireplace was installed in one of the 1770's cooking fireplaces. A total sin, but it was professionally done, and completely surrounded by wood framing. I tore it out and replaced it with one of the wood stoves you've seen.

 

[Wyoming300]

Yeah the 2x4 wall is a problem. I assume you don't have an actual masonry chimney either right?

No it is a chimney framed external to the house, but it is a stainless flue pipe inside. Some parts of the country dont use brick for construction and those areas never have masonry chimneys.

 

[bholler]

No it is a chimney framed external to the house, but it is a stainless flue pipe inside. Some parts of the country dont use brick for construction and those areas never have masonry chimneys.

Ok that means it's not suitable to put an insert in. Your only option would be a new prefab fireplace

 

[Earlnemo]

"Upon lighting a fire I noticed there was no draft". Yikes.

 

[kennyp2339]

So you have a zero clearance fireplace that the builder dressed up with brick since it’s located in the basement to give it the appearance of a true masonry fireplace
Over time it was illegally converted to hold a wood stove insert which doesn’t work properly due to poor or no draft because it either has a poor connection to the non compliant chimney or you have a negative pressure issue (stack effect) since it’s located in the lowest portion of the house

 

[bholler]

It was also a massive fire risk the way it was. Honestly I can see why lots of contractors weren't interested

 

[Wyoming300]

Yes I agree with you there. So I pull this firebox out and put in another zero clearance firebox of the same size. Is it feasable to take apart the brickwork in front to get into this firebox to remove it? I can bust the rest of it out in pieces but how then would i get a new one in?