…Continuation of Reclaimed Wood Fireplace (Part 1)
So after we picked up the milled wood from Rustic Wood Hub, we set up in the garage to cut the boards to length. We used a sliding miter saw with a 10# 160T blade. I picked up the blade at Lowe’s for $17. The higher tooth blade is used for finer cuts, typically on trim. I also used a 16 gauge nail gun (shown below) in combination with liquid nails. (Note: check with your local equipment supply company if you don’t have a nail gun or air compressor.)
I started at the bottom, working my way up. I’d apply the liquid nails and then use the nail gun to secure to the wall. Each board end was cut at a 45 degree angle so I could bring the edge of the wood all the way to each wall, which hid the end cuts.
I checked my level on the first two bottom pieces before permanently securing. This ensured that when I got to my first full length board it would be straight across.
The original fireplace had tile around the edges, slightly overlapping the fireplace on the top and sides. National Code says all combustible mantels and similar trim shall be kept at least 6 inches from the fireplace opening. For this reason I didn’t want any of the wood even touching the front of the fireplace. We’ll use a piece of flashing, fabricated to spec by a local metal worker, to cover the front of the fireplace and hide the cuts on the wood.
Things progressed pretty quickly once we got past the top of the fireplace. Once I got to the electrical boxes I had to use a jigsaw to cut out the openings in the wood. The rest went pretty smoothly until I got to the ceiling where the wall started to angle.
I used an angle tool to get the angle of the ceiling and took multiple measurements to ensure I made the right cuts. I used a handheld circular saw to cut the boards after cutting the ends to length with the miter saw. I messed up on the very top board the first go around but corrected my measurements and got finally got it into place. I ended up trimming off the milled section on the bottom with my table saw, which allowed me to pop it into place and nail it in.
Done!
I found some wood outlet covers at Lowe’s and have stained them to help better match the wood. I also plan on touching up the front of the fireplace, including fixing the gold trim that had fallen off and painting it black. We can’t wait to see the finished look once the flashing is complete and in place.
Word of advice: If you plan on doing a project like this, make sure you acclimate the wood to the inside temperature for a couple of days before cutting and putting into place.
As I was putting the wood into place, the seams fit great together with no gaps. However, after a few days, some of the boards have actually shrinked, causing the seams to come apart slightly and exposing the milled wood underneath. My wife says I’m being too picky but the reason I wanted the shiplap style was so there would be no gaps at all. I managed to make them less noticeable by using a watercolor brush to apply stain in between the boards.
Overall, we are very happy with how it turned out! We have enough of this wood left over that we will be using on another project in the house (it’s currently acclimating). Stay tuned for our next post!
