Something temporary until the right mantle and home décor is selected.
When we moved in, the mantle over the fireplace was made from the same crown molding trim in the kitchen with some dark corbels and wasn't the bold look we were going for. As a quick fix until we settle on a decor plan, we tackled a new mantle built cheap and easily.
Off to the local home improvement store we picked up three pieces of 1 in. x 8 in. x 8 ft. Whitewood Ledger Board.
This affordable board offers a rustic, natural wood appearance that we will stain later. One side had an unfinished rough cut to further that rustic appearance. The dimensions here are nominal, which means its really 0.75 in. x 7.25 in. x 96 in.
Cut List (A straight edge and hand saw will work just fine for this or a miter saw for speed):
Three 67 in. long boards (for the Top, Face, and Bottom)
Two 6.50 in. long x 5.75 in. High boards (Left and Right End Caps)
Next Some finishing. The two boards that had the most grain and knots were chosen for the bottom and face board, and were subjected to manual distressing. Depending upon how the distressing came out would decide which went where. Distressing included using a soldering gun to simulate a rusting nail by pushing into the board as well as pressing up against (longways) the board, dragging a "screw board" with the grain to create some dimension, and various different types of indentation marks made onto the face using a hammer, bag of screws, and chain links. For the top board, the smooth side would be used to make decorating easier. All boards were then given a hand sanding using 120 grit sandpaper and then were stained using Dark Walnut Stain.
Assembly is straight forward, the face will have both the top and bottom board long edges glued and nailed (we used a pneumatic nail gun and 18. gage 1.5 in. nails, with 8" nail spacing). The end caps were screwed in using 1" Screws from the bottom and top into the end caps.
Now to finish the end caps. Because we didn't do a miter edge on the long boards and edge boards we have unsightly end grain showing. To fix this we opted for a iron-on veneer. The process was simple, cut to the shape needed (we took the sheet, overlaid the edge, marked and cut with a utility knife). We ironed it on per the instructions, and stained to match. We don't have a picture here since we were task focused, but there are finished pictures of the veneer after it is installed on the fireplace.
Back to the fireplace, why did we choose 67 inches as the length of our mantle? Because the width of the fireplace was 70 inches and we liked the look of a 1.5 inch gap on each side. Now to height. Our fireplace insert is raised off the floor (which is nice for loading the firewood) which means our mantle is going to also have to be high in order to be code compliant. The International Residential Code (IRC), states that for Fireplace Clearance (exception 4), mantles greater than 12 inches from the fireplace opening are not subject to a maximum projection from the wall. We decided to put the mantle 12 inches from the top of the fireplace insert metal flashing which gave us margin above the fireplace opening. With the location decided, it was now time to install the ledger board the mantle would be mounted to. The bottom of the mantle ledger board would be placed 15 inches from the top of the fireplace metal flashing {12 inches + 7.25 (Face Board Width) - 0.75 (Top Board Thickness) - 3.5 (2x4 Ledger Board Width)}
The 2x4 ledger which was just shorter than the interior cavity length (~ 65.5 inches) and was secured using five screws through the brick veneer into the plywood backing: one on center at 35 inches from the edge of the brick fireplace, two-seven inches from edge of the brick fireplace on each end, and two-19.5 inches from the edge of the brick fireplace on each end. A masonry drill bit was used to drill through the brick and mortar to allow the screws to secure the ledger.
The mantle slides right over the ledge board and then was secured using six wood screws from the top of the mantle into the ledger.
To get a sense of the height and some décor that may be used, we put up a 12 pane window sash, some candles and candle stick holders, and fireplace tools. To prevent the window sash from falling off the mantle, a screw was added to the top board to prevent the window from sliding off. And now you can also see how the veneer came out. If the veneer come to the corner to your liking, you can always add fiber infused wood filler to close the gap, or do some light sanding on the veneer to less its thickness.
Looking better already with Just Enough effort to transform the space as we grown into our home. There's still work to be done on the fireplace but for now, we're on to the next project.
Tools and Materials Used:
Personal Protection
Vinyl Gloves
Safety Glasses
Step Ladder
Little Giant
Mantle Assembly & Prep
Tape Measure
Level
Four - 1 in. x 8 in. x 8 ft. Whitewood Ledger Board.
One - 2x4 6 feet long
120 Grit Sandpaper
Wood Glue
18 ga. 1.5" Long Brad Nails
Pneumatic Nail Gun
Dewalt Cordless Drill
Philips and Square Bits
One #8 3/4 Inch Philips Pan Head Wood Screw (Window Sash Stop)
Twelve 1 Inch Square Bit Wood Screws (To secure Mantle End Caps)
Six 1.5 Inch #8 Philips Wood Screws (To Secure Mantle to Ledge)
Five 3 Inch #10 Phillips Wood Screws (To Secure Ledger to Fireplace Wall)
Stain
Dark Walnut
Clean Rag to Apply Stain and Wipe Dry
Home Decor
Fire Place Tools
Candle Holders
Candles
Vintage 12 Pane Window Sash