Demoing and refacing the fireplace was a big part of the total renovation we did in our master bedroom suite. While it wasn’t terrible to begin with, it didn’t fit our style and we had bigger plans for the space. We had already gutted the whole bedroom and closet, so it made sense for us to demo the fireplace at the same time and just start fresh.
The Before
My husband and I started by removing the stone facing one at a time using a sledge hammer and pry bar. It was a tedious but satisfying process. It took us a couple hours to totally remove the stone on the wall, leaving the hearth for another day.
When trying to remove the hearth, we tried to salvage the large stone top piece by chiseling away from the bottom mortar joints, but later discovered the whole base was filled in with concrete and there was no saving it. This was a huge headache to remove, but with a larger sledgehammer and my husband’s muscle, we were able to get the job done.
We uncovered the old brick chimney that had been covered up with drywall and the stone veneer. The brick was flush with the drywall, and the stone we chose for the new fireplace was only about one inch thick, so instead of adhering it to the existing wall with cement board we wanted to frame it out to give the whole fireplace some depth and dimension.
We decided to frame it to add roughly 5 inches of depth including the thickness of the stone, to give the floor to ceiling fireplace some dimension without protruding too far out. This was something we weren’t comfortable doing ourselves so we hired that part out to a professional to make certain it was structurally sound and up to code with the new gas fireplace insert we were having installed.
Once the fireplace was framed, the cement board was installed and the mantel was hung, it was time to mix up some mortar and install the new stacked stone facing! I started in the bottom left corner and worked my way up row by row, going left to right each time. I bought the pre-made corners in addition to the straight panels, which just needed to be cut to the depth of our fireplace. Although they did save me some time not having to match the pattern on each corner, you could easily get away without them and just piece them together yourself (and save a little money too). Since this was my first time doing this kind of project, I opted for the easier route.
The straight panels went up easily and I was able to cover a lot of area quickly. It was the cuts that slowed me down when I got to corners and other obstacles like the mantle, beams and ceiling – that is where it got a little tricky and took a lot more time and precision.
The very top row gave me the most trouble and took the most time. Because the ceiling has a vault to it, I had to cut each individual piece at that same angle so the stone hugged the ceiling without any gaps. And of course the ceiling wasn’t straight, so each angle varied piece by piece. It also took some time hand selecting each stone to work well on that top row, while keeping a random and uniform pattern throughout.
A crucial step in the process was making sure the rows were level the whole way up. Both our floor and ceiling were not straight, so it was important to use a level over each row to make sure I was on track. I would hold the level on the wall and draw a line as a reference point. When I was getting off track, I used a little extra mortar or spacers here and there to correct it when needed. Because the mortar was the same color as the stone, you wouldn’t be able to tell if there were larger gaps in some spots.
This fireplace project took about 6.5 days overall to complete between demo, reframing, prepping and tiling (and in between work schedules). This included a lot of learning along the way since this was my first time doing any kind of stone work – I had never even used a tile saw before. Being as meticulous as I am, I really took my time and made sure it was done correctly and looked flawless, and I’m glad I did because I’m so happy with the result and would have never gotten that kind of attention to detail hiring it out without paying a fortune.
I was so intimidated by this renovation before I started it because there were so many “firsts” and not really knowing what I was getting myself into, but once I dove in and got into a rhythm it was a fun project, and so rewarding once it was all done. It really completes the master bedroom and creates a grandness and wow factor to the space. I’m so in love with how this bedroom turned out! With a lot of research, watching YouTube videos and having the courage to pick up the tools and start, I was able to tackle and finish this master fireplace renovation and make it exactly how I had imagined it. If this rookie DIYer can do it, so can you!
The After
Materials I Used:
- Marble Splitface Ledger Panel
- Marble Corner Ledger Panel (optional)
- Cement Board
- Ridgid 9 Amp 7 in. Blade Corded Wet Tile Saw with Stand
- ProLite Large Format Stone Mortar
- Paddle Mixer (attachment for drill)
- 1/2″ x 1/2″ Square Notched Trowel
- 1/8″ Spacers
- Sponges
- 5 Gal Buckets
- Goggles
- Hearing Protection
- Tape Measure
- Level
- Tile Sealer
- 60″ Reclaimed Barn Beam Mantle
Thanks for your support and following along throughout this project! It has been so fun seeing this space come to life. Check out the blog to see the other projects in the master bedroom renovation!
Xoxo,
