A nice home improvement....NF

[lew]

I have a wood burning stove downstairs in the family room and a wood burning fireplace upstairs in the living room. Never really liked the one in the living room though and decided to switch it over to a propane insert.

 

Here's the old

 

 

And this is the new insert.

 

 

Next I wanted to upgrade the brick so we decided to go with a multi-coloured Legerstone.

 

 

 

The stonework was finished yesterday and we spent today getting the room all put back together and we're both very pleased with the way it turned out.

 

 

 

Just thought I'd post the pictures incase anyone is interested in this kind of stuff.

Edited February 8, 2013 by lew

[Twocoda]

I always love seeing before and after pics of renovations....it looked like a great space before the reno but now its even better without the dust and such that the wood stove provided...Fantastic job!!! Whens the basement warming party?

[Whopper]

Looks good Lew!

 

We switched from a wood insert to natural gas log set and we absolutely love it. No more wood and mess in the house, even has a remote control.

[wuchikubo]

Great job Lew, if you did the brickwork, how long did it take? It's been a project to do on my mind too.

[Joey]

Looks really, really good Lew, great job!!

[muskeybugged]

Looks sweet, changes the whole complex of the room, great job!

 

Hate too see the new gas bill though.

 

none-the-less

[lew]

Thanks folks, we're very happy now that we decided to change it all.

 

And Stan, no I didn't do it myself, but had it installed by the same company I purchased the stone from. They did the whole job in 2 days and really did an excellent job.

[lew]

Hate too see the new gas bill though.

 

My whole house runs on propane and I've got a 1500 litre tank in the backyard so I should be good for awhile

[misfish]

Thats SO not LOL

 

I like the wood burners myself. Stone work looks nice.New age.Kinda yuppie.LOL

 

.

[Beans]

Very nice Lew...I might look into doing the same to my wood burning stove...

[Roy]

Absolutely beautiful, Lew! I see some Diane influence in there.

 

I did mine a few years ago...wood burning still but went from modern to rustic. I guess you and Diane are getting younger and J and I are floundering into old age. Hell, we even re-did all of our white leather upholstery to a flowery textile just to aggravate the kids.

[tb4me]

Looks fantastic Lew..Congrats on a job well done my man!

[crappieperchhunter]

I think it looks fantastic Lew. It sure is nice when a home reno turns out well. I bet you are spending a lot of time just looking at it. I know that's what I do when something gets spruced up and makes the place look better.

 

Careful though...cause now it looks like the walls might need a new coat of paint.

You know what they say....give a mouse a cookie...

Edited February 3, 2013 by crappieperchhunter

[Rizzo]

wow that looks great!

[woodenboater]

I'm not one for gas fireplaces but that looks pretty damn cozy Lew. Hope the weather gets cold enough for you get lots of use out of it <wink, wink>

[lew]

Very nice Lew...I might look into doing the same to my wood burning stove...

 

Actually Norm, my next plan is to build a wooden mantle similar to what you have in your living room, but I'm thinking of an old weathered beam from a barn if I can find one.

Absolutely beautiful, Lew! I see some Diane influence in there.

Your 100 % correct Roy, I wanted all white marble but as usual the wife always wins any decorating discussion and we went with the Legerstone. Course I'll never give in and admit to her that she was right.

 

Careful though...cause now it looks like the walls might need a new coat of paint.

You know what they say....give a mouse a cookie...

 

The walls were just painted a year ago Steve, but I'm sure the Mrs. will find me something else to do as soon as she sees me sitting down for more than 2 minutes.

 

Thanks again everyone.

[Twocoda]

When the Tornado hit Goderich awhile year i managed to aquire a beam from a fallen barn and used it on my fireplace....Spray the beam with insecticide and wrap it in plastic for a week to ensure there are no surprises hiding in the wood....Ive done a couple of fireplaces with beams and you must make sure you can anchor to the studs for additional support to the stone to carry the load....Beams are very heavy....If your fortunate enough to find some wooden pegs from the old construction ...they incorportate nicely into the the beam for hanging stockings at Christmas time....We put 5 pegs (one for each bedroom)

I have better pics on my other computer of the finished product but here are a few of when i was putting it all together

 

[lew]

That beam looks fantastic TC and is very similar to what I'm talking about.

 

I already have an existing cement mantle and am thinking of hollowing out a beam, cutting it to fit from every angle to fit over & hide the mantle, and fastening it onto the cement to give the impression of a solid beam. Once I get it formed, the actual wood parts will only be about 1" thick and the beam will be very light compared to a full thickness beam, but will still appear to be a full size....hopefully.

 

I know what I'm trying to say, but it's hard to put into words but I'm sure you understand

 

There's a couple old barns around here that are basically falling down and I'm planning on going to talk to the owners and see if we can work something out.

 

[aplumma]

Nice job Lew it is such a pleasure to get away from burning wood in my opinion. You also can look into getting some 1" X ?" soft wood (pine or Poplar etc.) and having it sandblasted. You can get a very rustic look that will take a stain and have texture.

 

 

Art

[lew]

Thanks Art, that's another option. Never heard of the sandblasting but I have considered building someting nice with dimentional lumber.

 

We don't use the fireplace for heat, but more for appearance when we have friends over, but it'll be nice now not having to carry wood into the living room.

Edited February 4, 2013 by lew

[mr blizzard]

Lew it looks amazing, beautiful job. The original pics of the room looked pretty darn nice, but the renovation is also very sweet. The room has a lot of appeal. You can save money by doing it yourself but in the interest of time occasionaly it is nice to treat yourself and just "gitter done". Obviously money well spent.

I am also glad my wife is out right now lol

[lew]

Thanks mr. blizzard, I like to support the local craftsmen sometimes.

[aplumma]

My Grandpa made me a hatch cover table many years ago using this method and it removes the softer part of the wood and leaves the knots and deepens the grains of the wood. He then stained and sealed it and installed black 2 inch bands on the ends.

 

 

Art

[lew]

Never heard of the technique before Art, but it sounds interesting.

[Twocoda]

I put a 16 foot beam in for a customer a few years ago ...he supplied the 8"x8"x16' beam (paid 600 for it) I acquired an identical beam to his for a bottle of Scotch so it didnt hurt so much when i cut it down to 9 feet to accomadate my desired length Both are hemlock and very heavy....i have so many anchors in them that if there is ever a tsunami on lake huron ..the town may dissapear but his and my beams will still be there....there are many ways to achieve the look your after sounds like you have a solid plan..Good luck with the future project