Happy Ending for Fireplace Renovation
When we last checked in with the fireplace renovation in a brownstone in Clinton Hill, things seemed to be going well but the jury was still out on how successful the efforts to restore two fireplaces and reline three flues would be. The man writing the checks for the reno sent us an update yesterday….
When we last checked in with the fireplace renovation in a brownstone in Clinton Hill, things seemed to be going well but the jury was still out on how successful the efforts to restore two fireplaces and reline three flues would be. The man writing the checks for the reno sent us an update yesterday. “It took a few days longer than we thought, but the company did a fantastic job. Bring on the cool nights and the bearskin rug!” At the risk of clogging their phone lines, the contractor on the job was called Fireside; you can reach ’em at 718-951-9494.
The Dirty Business of Fireplace Renovation [Brownstoner]
That is one freaky chimney cap.
What’s going on up there?
Percentage for art?
Pigeon trap?
I like it, but man, it’s odd.
Wubbahed, sorry, but I don’t have any manufacturer info on the damper– you could call Fireside, if you were into it, or Google it. It works via a steel cable that comes down the flue; the spring holds it open, and the cable allows you to pull it down and close it. I chose this over the old kind of damper that’s right above the fireplace because I thought this one would keep warm air in the chimney and keep rain (and critters) out.
The flue cover is pretty standard equipment. The idea is to close it when the fireplace is not in use to avoid wind and rain coming in.
I really like the funky flue cover that was featured in the first picture. Can you give me a URL or link to the manufacturer who made it? Also, it looks like it can move up and down to open and close. Is that the case? Thx.
In re: guest 1:16, the fact that your neighbor can feel that warmth makes me nervous, too– I’ve read of others here that had that situation. It might be worth shelling out some coin to have those chinks filled in by an expert, and to add another layer of mortar and firebrick. A fireplace is much less fun if you’re constantly afraid you’re gonna burn down half the block. On the smoke issue, if you have no other choice, you can buy a chimney-top fan to help draw the stuff out. Admittedly an imperfect solution. I’ve heard that some people warm up their flue with a hair dryer before they light up.
And while it doesn’t show in the picture, that green tile does continue out on the floor for more than a foot. Of course we’re getting a grate, andirons, and a screen. Bring on autumn!
FYI, I opened up a fireplace in my parlor about 4 years ago and used Fireside. Could not be happier with the work and very glad I spent the money to do it.
Re. flush to the floor, although it’s not visible I would imagine there’s a hearthstone projecting out from the fireplace. However, there can be problems if you have floor joists running underneath the fireplace and into the party wall. There is a risk that the heat of a wbf could cause the joists to ignite. If you are considering this kind of conversion, an engineer should assess your individual situation. I envy this homeowner’s nice deep fireplaces. Our conversion hasn’t been perfect: our neighbor freaks out when we use it because the party wall gets warm to the touch (even though we have identical firebricks to those pictured — but no 4″ of mortar behind) and it smokes too much. Any suggestions for fixing the smoking? I had thought to try sealing the mantle components with cement (there are cracks btw some of the slate pieces where smoke leaks out) but I wonder if the proportions of the original are just not perfect for wood-burning.
If we had it to do over, I would run a gas line to the fireplace and buy a small antique wood-burning stove converted to use gas (there’s a cool website called good time stove that sells some real beauties).
Does anyone know exactly what they originally used in these fireplaces? They must have been gas or coal stoves with a pipe up the chimney. But many parlor stoves are too big to fit inside and the flue outlet is too high to get inside while retaining upward pitch. All my fireplaces are 26″ high or less. I’ve seen some Baltimore heaters but many must have been stand-alone. Who has pictures or sells the the old ones?
Beautiful!
I myself would be nervous about these fireplaces that are flush to the wood floor, though. My fireplace in CA was about 2.5 feet up off the floor and set back. So there was a tiled bench-like hearth to catch logs that might roll out, before they got onto the wood floors. For a fireplace flush to the floor, people could cover an area around sides and in front of the fireplace with some tile that coordinates with the tile on the surround. It’s an idea.