Fireplaces, as a heat source for homes in the past continue to play a very important role in modern day home designs. Creating a warm atmosphere and a place where people gather when the weather is cold are still reasons to install one in your home. Magazines and the internet are great places to search for stone fireplace ideas.
While we often see them in living rooms, a fireplace is a welcome addition to any room. Creating a focal point with a fireplace is easier still with the introduction of the electric fireplace. Dressing up that fireplace with either stone or brick veneer is a project that homeowners can do themselves.
Reviving a tired fireplace façade is easy with stone veneer or brick veneer. The wood burning fireplace is making a major comeback in new home builds. Gas fireplaces are still the preference for many for its clean burn and low energy cost. Electric fireplaces are quickly catching up and becoming just as energy efficient as gas. The biggest benefit that I have found with an electric fireplace is that you can enjoy the ambience of a lit fireplace without the addition of heat in the summer.
Cladding the façade with manufactured stone or natural stone are great choices for materials and the options are many. A fireplace requires heat or fire resistant materials close to the heat source. Do your research and check the instructions for clearance to heat or flame for any cladding product you choose.
You should start by choosing a style, whether it is contemporary, modern or traditional or any combination of these. Then set out to choose a colour. Manufactured stone veneers are concrete based products that use colour pigments making it possible to create many colour blends within a variety of style choices. Natural stone will have fewer colour options.
While the fireplaces that were built a hundred years ago were made of full stone you now have the option of adding a natural stone veneer that might be a quarter of the thickness. Special footings had to be in place for anything not directly on the ground. Stone veneers, while heavy, have fewer restrictions than their full bed version.
Ease of use is another reason why you should consider installing stone veneer on your fireplace. Stone or brick veneer is one of the simplest materials to work with when it comes to updating or creating a new fireplace.
Start your design plan by choosing a style. Narrow down the choices between manufactured or natural stone while considering colour. Do it yourself with an easy to install stone veneer or have a professional mason do it for you. You won’t regret your decision to use stone veneer.
Applying thin manufactured stone veneers can eliminate the fear of having an ordinary fireplace by using a material that is timeless in its look and durable in its composition. Even Santa Clause will be awestruck at the extraordinary look and originality of the fireplace while putting presents underneath the Christmas tree, possibly running late on his deliveries while admiring it with milk and cookies.
All joking aside, the installation of manufactured stones on fireplaces are simple as they are lightweight, consist of easy to follow patterns and require only mortar to apply.