Raised Fireplace height + wooden mantelpiece

yop

Lads

We are putting in a raised fireplace with a wooden mantlepiece.

What is a "good" height for a raised fireplace in a room height of 8' 9"

Also for a mantlepiece herself would like a rustic look timber mantlepiece anyone any advice or recommendations?

cheers

kadman

Hi Yop,

Depending on the width of your fireplace, and how ornate you want to go. If you are looking an ornate type of decoration, you could support your mantlepiece on carved wooden corbels, like these.

http://www.vandykes.com/product/02008533/

Or if you are looking for a more rustic, rough looking finish. You could just support the main mantlepiece, on cut shaped wooden corbels, with out the carving.

Be sure that you use timber that is kiln dried, and choose a timber that is less likely to deform in the heat of a kitchen environment. Some are more suitable than others.

kadman

kadman

rooferPete

Hi Yop,

I think Kadman touched on an important point being the width, if you have a high mantlepiece you need to have a wide ope to keep everything in perspective.

WoW big words, note to self, no marmalade on toast in he morning

I saw one in a fairly big room that in a small room would not have looked nice, the timber appeared rough and heavy, up close I could see the "rough look" was man made.

They had wanted the rustic look and gave the job to a joiner who knew his business, I think it was 9" x 3" but the front edges had been shaved to appear as if the bark had fallen off.

The ope was about 48" with a stove inset, the surround was tiled using old fire clay cobbles like you see in old kitchens, the whole package looked very well and suited the style of the room.

.

yop

Ya the corbels would be nice lad, not the decorative ones though, too gay!

I understand what u are saying alright, it will be a standard fire open, the sitting room is 14ft * 15ft, it is a corner fireplace with the width been 7ft, I had intended to have the mantle piece run the full width of the fireplace.

I was thinking of a mantle of 4 inches thick, a sleeper, what u think, or would I be better to get a piece of oak and stain it?

The front of the fire place will be done in a sandstone.

kadman

If you are looking for that rustic, worn weather beaten look, then go for light stained irish oak.
You could buy your oak straight from a sawmill, would be definitely cheaper than kiln dried oak, from a supplier. And you would get the larger sections, from a sawmill.

Kiln dried would be dried down to about 12-14 % moisture content, so it should not move that much.

Saw mill oak would be airdried down to about 22 %, depending on how thick, and how long its been cut. This will move significantly during the drying process in your house, so I would not advise plastering in the back of a large section into the wall, for a few months. A wet 10-12 x4 oak wet oak plank, will rip the plaster off the wall during drying, if it needs to cup or twist.
Sawmill oak will definitely look more natural after drying, and cheaper too.

Irish Oak prices may be as high as 50-70 euros a cubic foot, for kiln dried.
Air dried oak from a sawmill, probably 20-30 euros a cubic foot.

Maybe you might have a tree that could be planked on site.

Railway sleepers contain toxic chemicals for preserving the sleeper, used to be chreosote. I heard recently that chreosote is being , or has been banned, due to its carcinogenic agents.

A 6 foot 12 x6 would be 3 cubic feet.

kadman

yop

Cheers lad,

Think I will drop the sleeper and get the oak and stain it, get the chisel out and give it our own "rustic" look!!

MorningStar

yop wrote:

Cheers lad,

Think I will drop the sleeper and get the oak and stain it, get the chisel out and give it our own "rustic" look!!

If you want rustic why not go to a reclamation yard. Instead of making somthing look rustic go for the real thing. Not sure if that is cheaper or not but you can rarely reproduce the real effect.

http://www.salvoweb.com/Ireland-Rep./

patrido

Rare Earth Heartwoods in Clonmel http://www.heartwoods.ie/ are worth a look. They sell all sorts of reclaimed pieces, and if they don't have it, they will order it. My Dad is waiting on some pitch pine for his own fireplace.

I reckon authentic rustic will look 1000 times better than any attempt at "accelerated aging"

Regarding dimensions... I'm putting something similar into my living room. The room is 6.4m x 4.4m with a 2.6m ceiling. The chimney breast is 1.83m wide by .43 deep. The opening is about 750mm wide.

I think a foot off the finished floor looks good, and the height of the opening is semi-constrained by the building regs to ensure the chimney will draw... if it doesn't draw smoke, it will draw tears ... I think the max height from grate to chimney/flue is about 500mm - check the homebond book to be sure).

A 4 inch mantlepiece would look great, so allow maybe 6 to 12 inches between the top of the opening, and the bottom of the mantle.

rooferPete

Hi Patrido,

I think (not sure) that you would be nearer if you gather the flue to measure closer to 1.5 m from the hearth to the flue, 500 mm wouldn't allow a standard fire back fit into the ope.

Why not consider the height of the hearth at 250 mm 9" ? that should still allow the hearth to ceiling height at 2400 mm or the standard 8'.

The illusion would be a raised hearth with a very high ceiling but still below the 2700 mm ceiling height making the room easier to heat.

.

patrido

Hi rooferPete,

I was going from memory so it could be a little bit more than 500mm... the dimension I mean is from the top of the grate to the bottom of the flue gathering lintel. This would give you more than enough space for a 16" or 18" back which I think are standard.

I think you're right about the height of the hearth... too high and it would look silly

pd