Fireplace reno help, wood to gas fireplace

jsunsun · 01-05-2013, 02:55 PM

Hi all, I'm looking to renovate my fireplace by having a total face lift and convert it from originally a wood burning fireplace, to a modern-looking gas fireplace.
Attached are 3 picture:
-Picture #1 is the original fireplace
-Picture #2 is the style of gas fireplace I'd like to install (long and horizontal).
-Picture #3 is a picture of the original fireplace partially demolished

Looking at picture #3, the exposed wall after I removed the front layer of brick I'm guessing may be the exterior wall? My question are:

1. Can I simply demolish all brick until everything is flush with this exterior wall?
2. Since the exposed wall appear to be exterior wall, do I have to insulate this wall and cover it with drywall?
3. Then can I simply create a framing for the new fireplace, insert the new fireplace and connect the venting to the original fireplace opening to the chimey (Assuming I'm getting a vented fireplace)?

I can't seem to find much information online confirming what I'd like to do is acceptable. Thanks all!

SeanB · 01-06-2013, 11:50 AM

Is your chimney brick or just pipe? If its brick then you can't just remove the bottom brick structure. You can remove any of the facia, but I think thats it. I haven't done this before but I would be cautious as to how much you remove to make sure you don't weaken the over all structure. Same goes for widening it, you can't remove anything holding up the chimney above.

moneymgmt · 01-07-2013, 01:29 PM

Why didn't you just build out and over the existing? Your desired end result clearly looks built out further than what you started with. Seems easier and cleaner. Do you have the new fireplace? What does the vent kit say for design requirements? That should be where you start.
I can't confirm the structural necessity of the base of brick inside the house but everything I can imagine says you opened a huge can of worms here.

jsunsun · 01-07-2013, 09:02 PM

Thanks so much for the replies! Attached are a few more pictures, hopefully that'll make it clearer.

Picture a) Picture of row of bricks that might be partially embedded into the wall.
Picture b) Picture of fireplace chimey on the exterior
Picture c) Picture of the blueprints of the fireplace

Looking at picture a), these are the bricks that made me stop the demolition, as some of all the bricks appear may be partially embedded into the exposed wall, which might be the exterior wall. And even if they are not embedded into the wall, they are cemented into the wall. That's why I was afraid to touch these ones.

Out of the bricks I've already demolished, I'm quite sure they are all purely for aesthetics and have no structural value to the wall, as none of them were touching any part of the exposed wall. Between the bricks I've demolished and the exposed wall, it was actually a hollow cavity.

Yeah I guess I should go buy a new fireplace first so that'll give me a better idea on the design requirements of that new fireplace. I no one can confirm whether the bricks in questions can be knocked out, I guess I'll leave them in and build around that.

jsunsun · 01-15-2013, 09:09 PM

So I ended up buying an electric fireplace shown here, http://www.dimplex.com/en/fireplaces...ergy_wallmount which which doesn't require any exterior venting and have no requirement on minimum distance to combustable materials.

With that in mind, does anyone see any concerns if I were to carefully knock out all the protruding bricks from the wall that may be an exterior wall? though this wall appear to be still encased by an external chimney (show in image in replies above).

Then I would build a frame to fit the fireplace, and put insulation wherever necessary.

Also that would mean my chimey would be completely useless, is it ok to insulate the chimney? if yes, what's the proper way to do this?

Thanks!