Meet our new fireplace.
A modern flagstone fireplace with no fireplace surround or glass door.
It’s a perfect example of how less can be more. Can’t recall what’s missing? Hint: It’s shiny. It’s gold.
A dated, brass fireplace surround against flagstone.
Our gold fireplace surround and glass doors looked out of place against the flagstone wall, and we’ve been thinking a lot about our options.
The Backstory
We received concessions at closing to take care of chimney damage, and deeply regret not making those improvements immediately as it’s the coldest winter we can remember. The main holdup in planning repairs related to whether we should keep it wood-burning, or convert it to gas. [At the time of publishing] we’re not 100% decided on this yet, though we agree that having a high-efficiency woodburning insert would be great considering we have a nearly infinite supply of wood from our own property. (Editor’s Update: After living with it as shown for several years, we finally upgraded to a gas fireplace.)
In removing the insert, I was actually setting out to paint the gold. I even bought two cans of high-heat black matte spray paint to make due until we’re ready to make a more permanent upgrade. It wasn’t until I had the gold surround off that I realized our new, fully revealed fireplace looked totally kick ass. I could never put it back on now, even if it is painted black.
How to Unclip a Fireplace Cover
Removing a fireplace cover like ours was easier than I expected. Ours was attached from within using a series of 4 clamps (one in each corner). There were no unsightly screw holes, and also, no damage to the stone whatsoever. Who knew? Not me. Obviously, or else I might have taken this gold feature to the curb long ago.
Hidden clips hide inside the fireplace to hold the frame to the stone or brick.
We haven’t spent any time using the fireplace, aside from making sure the doors open and close. In fact, it was loaded with spiderwebs and pieces of insulation. So, as you can imagine, it was a joyous adventure in dodging wispy webs.
After the clamps are loosened from within, the fireplace cover will pull right off the wall. It’s like removing the picture frame from a beautiful painting. Just be cautious if you’re doing this at home because it is heavy and you may want an extra hand to prevent any tile/stone/brick scratches.
After you loosen the clamps, the surround will be free to lift and gently maneuver away from the wall.
Clean the Fireplace
The fireplace needed a good cleaning to remove soot, spiderwebs, and other debris.
Preparing to clean a fireplace.
We scooped out some ash with a shove, then used the Shop Vac to suck up the micro-debris. I even loosened build-up on the iron grill using an old toothbrush.
Fireplace clear of soot and debris.
I sold the shiny gold log holder on the hearth, opting for a midcentury-style instead. The version we “upgraded” to is actually much older, possibly the original set that was used with the house. We found it in the basement, and its clean lines are perfect for (the future display of) fireplace wood. Its cool shape is modern and minimal, so I think we’ll have it for a long time.
(Side note: Little deer friend was sold as an umbrella holder, but we like it as everyday decor. And we even popped a red nose on it around the holidays for Rudolph-effect.)
Removing the old log holder and replacing it with a new, midcentury log holder.
Now that I look back, the unobstructed stonework feels like the fireplace shown in our virtual tear sheet. Time to start thinking about adding a beautiful wooden mantle.
Staging the fireplace with several white birch logs is all I have in me right now, but I do love its simplicity. We had another large white birch branch go down this winter, so I’ll be able to add a few heavier pieces soon.
A fireplace with no unsightly surround.
How many of you have let your fireplaces go au natural? Any positive or negative experiences with regards to having active fires and only a screen (not glass doors)?
19 Comments
Our recent home purchase also includes a fireplace with a sliding glass door and screen like the one you removed. I have the black high heat spray paint waiting to tackle it when the weather warms up and I can open the windows for ventilation. Have you found that there is any draft now that it is removed? I’ve always planned on leaving it to keep out some of the cold air during the winter.
I grew up with a fireplace that was only covered by a screen and had no problems with sparking embers, etc. I think it would work well for your fireplace since it has the raised hearth which would keep the kids a bit further away.
Great minds think alike! I was questioning whether or not it would be drafty before I removed the surround… there were little gaps in the glass doors all along, and when I opened the glass doors it never felt like cool air was coming in, or warm air being pulled out (but I think I’d be naive to think that it wasn’t happening a little bit, even with the flue closed). No complaints so far, the living room still feels just as warm. I’d love to see how yours look when sprayed black! I did think it would be a slick look.
Looks a million times better!
So, I’m in love with that fireplace! I have this idea that we’ll someday end up with a mid-century modern house with a fireplace like that where I can also install a giant mantel from reclaimed barn wood.
Thanks!! It was my favorite feature in the house when we found it. I could never paint it or cover it up!
Looks awesome.
You probably know this already, but definitely make sure that wood is super dry and keep an eye on it for creepy crawlies – normally it’s not a big deal if firewood has a few bugs (and it always does) since they just get burned up, but since you’re not planning to burn those, could be an issue.
Good tip! I’m not sure how long those logs have been in the house, but they already felt super dry when we moved in. I like the look, so I didn’t toss them into the backyard campfire. I think it’s high time we figure out an outdoor wood storage concept – somewhere to let the wood begin to dry and begin to rid itself of anything living within! (I did always wonder how designer homes that integrate a whole wall of logs for looks could be bug-free…)
I had that exact same insert and did just what you did–bought the black high heat spray paint but never used it and decided the opening looked better without anything on it. I tried selling my insert on Craigslist for $80, then $50, but never sold it till I got down to $20. I have gas logs so can’t speak to any problems with embers, although a screen should be fine to curtail them. My problem is worrying about insects or squirrels gaining access to the house through my old chimney (my fireplace was once wood burning), so I have to be sure my damper is tightly closed at all times. Other than that, you should be fine without an insert.
Hi Em! The fireplace looks excellent. I envy your slick gray stonework — our fireplace has a similar insert, but ours is kind of dirty-brushed-brass. And we have dark red bricks. We have little kids — any concern with losing the “barrier” (whether perceived or real) that an insert provides? Also – we have not used our fireplace in years; we don’t have a good spot to store wood, and I just don’t have the capacity to deal with all that. But we have super cheap electric where we live, and I’ve often thought of putting in an electric insert — some of them make a pretty convincing-looking fire, from what I’ve seen. Any thoughts on those!?
I’ve never used an electric insert, but we have friends who have used them and love them. I think they’re great, and actually I think that Sherri has one and has spoken highly of it. No concerns (yet) about the loss of a barrier from an insulation standpoint, although I’ll probably be most concerned if someday we have an exposed fire blazing and sparks flying. Also, I worry a little about the soot messing up the front of the stones more than it already has from the previous owners. Any real fireplace I’ve sat in front of is pretty tame though, and flames and smoke go straight upwards with the flue, so… if we keep it “open concept” I guess we’ll just live and learn!
Your fireplace looks great!! It’s always nice to have a DIY project that ends up with fewer steps instead of more!
We have a fireplace that sits flush with the floor (there’s about 18″ of a stone surround and then hardwood) and is open on both the front and one side. It only has a mesh screen, no glass, but we’ve had three winters worth of fires and so far haven’t had any kind of problem.
Great to hear! That sounds pretty… open on the front and the side? I like the sound of that.
Looks so much better. We have a mid-century wood burning fireplace with great stonework. We didn’t want anything to take away from it so we were looking for the simplest (yet functional) screen. We chose a Minuteman screen w/ doors from woodlanddirect.com. It’s pretty pricey but I couldn’t find another one with such clean lines with doors. We didn’t want to bother with removing a hot screen since we use it frequently.
Oooh, thanks for the link to that site! I see some pretty nice looking options already.
We have the EXACT same brass cover on our fireplace, however, the former owners used it to cover an ARCHED brick opening, We’d much prefer the arch! The only difference is, the back of our cover has some ‘semi-pliable’ (?) putty type stuff behind it. I have no way of knowing what condition the brick is in behind it or if it will leave an obvious square mark once the cover is removed. Ant ideas or tips? Thanks!
I bet the putty will come off – some of it would likely come off with the brass, and the rest I bet you could carefully use a putty knife to pry it away. I doubt it is as troubling as if they had used an oozy caulk. I’ll hope the best for you!
Thank you SOOOO much for this tip — I just removed our brass screen and never would’ve thought it was clamped on!
looks great as long as you don’t care about your heat going up your chimney. Fireplace doors keep warm air in your house. Open grates allow heat to escape up the chimney. Removing them will cause you heating bill to go up considerably.
We didn’t notice a difference, either in draftiness nor cost, but I do agree that it could create a drafty situation. We’ve since installed a gas fireplace. You can see it here :) https://merrypad.com/2017/01/06/heat-and-glo-gas-fireplace-insert-installed/