Fireplace Help Please - What is Flammable?

louise3965

Hi can you help us please? We had an old nasty stone fireplace that I always hated. Bought a bargain 2nd hand white painted fire surround from ebay and I really like it. dh said that we could just get a sheet of ply, cut it to size stick it to the wall and put the fire surround on top then paint the ply in a coordinating colour.

Now he's pulled the old stone fireplace down and I find I can't do this as ply isnt fireproof. Dh says we have to buy one of those panel things that look like false marble but I really don't want one of them as I think they look cheap.

Is the only solution to get the whole chimney breast wall skimmed and then attach the fire surround to the newly plastered wall - can I paint it then?

Does anyone know what to do - we havent got lots of money though, so cost is a worry. Thanks

phill99

So are you putting a gas or electric fire in as well? Or is it just a blanked off fire place?

Leif

What Phill99 said. If it is decorative, then it does not matter. If it is a real fire, then regs apply, and ply would be no good. If gas/electric, no idea.

I had a plasterer come round, and suggest hacking away plaster, then fireboarding around the opening, and Easifill to blend outside edges with wall. So you could cut a piece of fireboard in an upside down U shape, so the outside edges go behind the surround. You then paint the fire board. But these are just suggestions, I don't know the regs!

rustyboy21

You will find that the surround has a rebate to it, so when you do actually offer it up to the wall, there will be a gap, poss 1'' up to 6'' on the inside opening of the surround. This is to facilitate placing the back panel in. If you don't have a back panel in place, it will look silly.

If you are putting a fire in too, if you are using an electric one, you can use MDF if you wish as a back panel. If you are using gas, you need a non combustable material like Marble,stone,granite etc. If you are going solid fuel you will need the same as gas, but split into 3-4 pieces and slabbed up on concrete. In all cases you will need a hearth too, gas and electric min 12'' depth,2''high, solid fuel 18'' depth,2'' high, slabbed up same as backpanel and recommend a metal piece in front of fire opening.

In any case, when you have removed your old stone fireplace, unless the plaster is still intact on the wall, or the surround will cover the whole unplastered piece, then you will need to replaster in order to fit it.

Hope that helps