Here is a list of items you will need in order to complete the job:

• Pry bar / Crowbar
• Tape Measure
• Level
• Saw
• Drill with Masonry bit
• Lag Sleeves and bolts
• Hammer / Nails
• Ledger board (2 x 2 inches)

Step 1: Out With The Old!

Using your crowbar or a pry bar, carefully remove the mantel from the bricks or wall it is fastened to. In most cases, fireplace mantels are usually locked together with glue and wooden pegs. Progress little by little to avoid cracking or damaging the bricks or wall to which the mantel is attached.

Step 2: Measure

The next step is to measure the width and the depth of the old mantel with your tape measure. These measurements will be used to determine the measurements of your new mantel. So remember, measure carefully! If you are planning on installing a surround mantel or wrap-around mantel, make sure to adjust your measurements accordingly.

Step 3: Install the Support Ledger

Now you will need to measure the width of the fireplace opening, and cut a 2 x 2-inch piece of ledger board to match. Position the support ledger at the desired height and level it. Drill the pilot holes in the support ledger board completely through the other side. You’ll need to put in the lag sleeves into the ledger board and screw in the lag screws with your drill or electric screwdriver.

Step 4: Prepping the New Mantel

After installing the support ledger brace board, place the mantel alongside the stone, brick or wall. Line up the new mantel so that it is in the center of the support wall and the fireplace opening, and to where it rests upon the support ledger board.

Step 5: Installing The Mantel to the Support Ledger Board

After you have properly positioning the mantel with the support ledger board and fireplace opening, secure it by nailing the mantel directly to the ledger board.

Step 6: Locking the Mantel

Remember to always follow the manufacturer’s instruction for installing the mantel to the bricks or wall. Normally, this process includes either glue and pegs or lag bolts and sleeves. Prior to securing the mantel to the support bricks or support wall, check to ensure that the mantel is level. If not, adjust accordingly.

Congratulations! You have now completed the final step of the installation process. Now the only thing left is to clean up, sit back and enjoy your new fireplace mantel.

• Cast stone mantels are lightweight, easy to install, and much more affordable than traditional solid stone mantels. Stone mantels are fire resistant and allow for zero clearance from combustible material (no space required between firebox and mantel) making it the perfect choice for gas and wood fireplaces.
• Marble mantels are classically designed and will add a touch of elegance to any space. Marble mantels are available in a variety of sizes, designs, and colors.
• Traditional wood mantels create a statement of style and craftsmanship. MantelsDirect.com offers wood mantels in cherry, maple, and oak. Wood mantels are designed to overlap your facing material and provide a finished transition between wall, facing, and firebox. Wood mantels are easy to install with just a few tools and limited skill, you can quickly install your mantel kit.

Replacing your fireplace mantel is an easy, affordable, and a quick way to bring style and spark to your home. See real before and after pictures from our customers:

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After

Birch tree bark’s light shades and texture can bring alot of interest to an otherwise cold dark space. Buy birch at a garden center or on-line and cut it to your specifications. Measure the opening to get a full look without a gap on the sides. Pile one log directly on top of another in the opening, taking time and try them in different orders until you find the best arrangement.

A mirror would not only reflect light but a gorgeous rug facing the fireplace mantel. Visit your local framer to have a piece of mirror cut to the exact dimensions of the fireplace opening. Ask to have the edges of the mirror seamed, so they’re not sharp. Or simply lean a large framed mirror against the front of the hearth, as you might lean a piece of art against the wall above the mantel, if you don’t have pets or small children.

A surprising way to bring a glow to the fireplace is to insert an electric log set, striking when the light reflects against a shiny floor. This is a way to brighten up the fireplace mantel and hearth until the temperatures drop in the fall, so go ahead and snake the cord out of the opening to plug the electric fireplace in.

If it’s the mantel itself that you cannot get over, and the surround is what has caught your eye, I suggest you check out Ramsay from the Majestic Series of Classic Stone Mantels. Summer is a great time to renovate the whole fireplace mantel and surround to ensure the project is completed and ready for year end holidays.

Experienced real estate agents will give staging tips that include cleaning until your home is spotless, next declutter, followed by depersonalizing. You may have taken the photos off the refrigerator, hidden stacks of paper from your desk and freshened up with a new coat of paint.  Look past your furniture, art and fireplace screen, it’s the bones of the house that must have a draw to the buyers.

Homes with strong architectural details add interest and anchor the home in a period or style. These features include crown molding, the stairwell and fireplace mantel. As you walk into a room the eye is drawn to the focal point, most commonly the fireplace mantel. To declutter and freshen up the mantel fireplace is one of the biggest staging tips I could give. A fireplace make-over project could include refacing the fireplace surround and installing a new mantel shelf. Fireplace mantels can be designed to overlap your existing facing material and provide a completely new custom look. Remodeling the fireplace mantel is completely adaptable keeping staging to sell and the home improvement upgrade within your budget. Think of this as an investment in your home. You may find illustrated measuring instructions or an installation guide helpful in deciding fireplace mantels that would best stage your home for buyers.

Enhancing the architectural elements of the fireplace mantel, as  your room’s primary focal point, will add to the overall home value, get it staged to sell and impact your showings. Staging is a short term marketing tool focused on the showing keeping the end goal in mind: SOLD!

Studies show staged homes sell for more money than un-staged homes. Where could a short term investment in your home have the greatest impact? The first step is getting buyers to actually come to see your house. Staged houses look better on the MLS pictures. Naturally these photos of your home would include a living or family room. The fireplace mantel is the focal point within a space that draws the eye and makes your home stand out. Beef up or update the mantel fireplace and surround could be what makes your home memorable during a showing.

Review competing listings and compare your fireplace mantel to others found inside homes in your market. This may help determine the extent of work the fireplace mantel needs. Out with the old shiny brass fireplace accessories. A new updated fireplace screen may be the only staging needed. A do-it-yourself update of the fireplace mantel shelf, replacing the facing on the fireplace mantel surround or complete remodel of the wood fireplace mantel with the help of a contractor may be in order. Putting a little work toward to stage your home and make-over the fireplace mantel may be what gives your home the edge over competing properties.

I would love to introduce these classic features but am sure plasterwork or commissioning hand carved woodwork cost prohibitive; not to mention the challenge of locating skilled craftsman in my hometown. Cast stone is a masonry product used as an architectural feature, which is an excellent replacement for natural cut stone. Classic Cast Stone Mantels call upon renaissance details adapting over mantels to add to the interest of the mantel shelf, hearth and fireplace mantel surround facings. That oil painting once found in the center panel of the overmantel would have to be replaced by a flat screen television. A niche, 16th century recess introduced into the design especially for a statue, can be fashioned within an over mantel to accommodate our t.v. Cast stone crown molding could be customized to coordinate with the fireplace for our new mantel and over mantel.

Overmantels seem to be most commonly found in homes that have ceilings of ten feet or more because rooms with tall ceilings can definitely support the visual impact of an overmantel. This classic architecture really appeals to me, but I eight foot ceilings.  If you want this look too but don’t have tall ceilings either, don’t lose heart.  Custom fireplace mantel designs with over mantels are an option with fully customizable widths and heights, made to order, based on dimensions dictated by your home. Deb is the MantelsDirect.com cast stone expert and an excellent resource for questions about cast stone fireplace mantels.  Adding details to my fireplace mantel will enhance the architecture of my room, plus the introduction of an over mantel would definitely achieve the ‘wow’ from anyone who enters the room.

Each design is available in several wood types and optional finishes.

One of the quickest and most cost effective upgrades that you can make to your home is a new fireplace facing kit combined with a wood fireplace mantel. Facing kits are precut and are made of marble, granite, travertine or slate. The kits are easily installed using construction adhesive and can be placed over existing brick, drywall or almost any substrate. Our wood fireplace mantel kits can be put together in a few minutes and slide over (and overlap) the facing kit. Once the mantel is secured to the wall, you will have completed your project!

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