Fireplace Painting: The Ultimate Guide

So you've decided to repaint your fireplace. First of all, congratulate yourself on having the courage to commit to this idea and follow through with it on your own. But, before you go charging in head-first, take some time to think through the process. We've created this guide to help you analyze a few important aspects of fireplace painting.

Main Parts of a Fireplace

Every hearth has two main parts that need fireplace paint:

• Facing – This area appears directly embedded into your wall and often runs from floor to ceiling – it’s also the most decorative area of your fireplace
• Firebox - Describes the surface area of the walls surrounding the fireplace chamber where the fire actually burns

Considerations for Painting the Facing

Because the facing is the most decorative part of your fireplace, it adds the most to your room’s presentation. As a result, you will want to be the most careful with this part of the process. Following are some points we recommend you consider:

• Type of facing – There are about as many different types of facings available as you can imagine. So, it’s up to you to figure out which look suits your taste best. Wood, stone, brick, metal, plaster, tile, and concrete can all be used to construct your facing.
• Paint – The type of fireplace paint you will use depends largely on the material it’s constructed from. Make sure you use high-quality primer and paint. Skimping on quality up front will harm the final look of your fireplace when your project is completed.
• Facing surfaces - For brick, keep in mind whether or not you want to keep a real brick look or a painted look. You can buy fireplace paint that achieves both looks. For drywall, standard latex paint works best. If you’re painting tile, an epoxy-based paint works best because it adheres to tile well.
• When to use heat-resistant paint – Typically, you only need heat-resistant paint in the areas right next to the firebox. Like regular paint, you get what you pay for, so make sure not to compromise on quality.

Firebox Painting Considerations

The firebox is where things get really tricky when it comes to fireplace paint. If your fireplace burns real wood your job is guaranteed to be a messy one. If you use gas logs, things will get messy, although not nearly as bad as wood. It takes a little longer to paint the firebox because you will have to scrub away all those soot stains. In addition to that extra step, keep these important points in mind:

• Heat ratings – Firebox paint must be heat rated up to 1000°F. However, we recommend 1200°F, just to be on the safe side.
• Real wood fireboxes – If you are burning real wood, we recommend using a black paint. No sense in painting your firebox a bright color, only to find it ruined by soot stains. Those stains will blend in well if you use black paint.
• Gas burning fireboxes – Consider the idea of using an off-white color. Off-white highlights your décor and shows off your logs. Take a look at a couple examples of this in action to see what we mean:
• Brick fireplaces – The methodology and technique used for each type of fireplace material varies slightly. For brick fireplaces, check out How to Paint your Brick Fireplace.

Quick Review

If you’re going to take anything away from this post at all, remember these four key points:

• Use latex paint on the facing/surround
• Consider using heat resistant paint around the opening and firebox
• What color do you want and which works best with your particular fireplace?
• Do you want your fireplace looking like brick or painted brick?

Keep these points in mind when it comes to fireplace paint and you will be just fine.

Project Overwhelming Finished!

My recent project to help my sponsor with a new customer was a bit of a challenge. She wanted things a little different then I had expected. Even though her fireplace is small in comparison to some that I have done, it took a little longer then it should have.  Not only was her fireplace a dark brick and very porous, but here her room was overpowered by it. It truly dominated her small, windowless den. She had already chosen the Twilight Taupe kit. The mortar was really recessed so the base coat took awhile to apply and the brick was rough.  

After applying color 1, the glaze, and color 2 (all of which went quickly) I had enough confidence to "customize" the process by adding a bit of  wall paint (the darker tan on the right wall in the after picture) to what remained of color 2 and we reapplied it with the sponge. We also tinted color 3 the same way and used it very lightly as the final highlight. (Hint: Dab paint on a plain piece of cardboard a few times while you mix until you are pleased with the shade. Squeeze as much paint out of the sponge as possible before applying. You can always go over it again.) Even though the clear coat is optional I highly recommend it to protect and enhance your "new" fireplace. She had a navy leather sofa and chair and she wanted her den color scheme to be a navy, cream, and dark tan.  Her old red-orange brick just "fought" her decorating efforts.

She LOVED the results and her den appears much larger, lighter, and the fireplace now harmonizes with her decor. The final result was amazing! Why didn't I do this years ago!!?? I don’t recommend if you haven't used the product that "customizing" the final color is the best idea, But she wanted deeper and had found the final effect of the Twilight Taupe to be a little lighter than she had expected, and what she wanted was a little "warmer" color.

I did advise her to make sure as we did this that we "step back" and evaluate during each step!   Susan and my sponsor were elated with the results so much that she has been spreading the word all over the internet and to her friends.

May I also recommend:
Brick/Prefab Fireplace Cleaner
A New Masonry Fireplace Glass Door 
All Things Fireplaces

I LINKED THIS PROJECT AT THE FOLLOWING BLOG & LINK PARTIES
Mop it up Mondays - I Should Be Mopping the Floor - Every Monday
Beautify it Monday - Bringing Beauty - Every Monday
Busy Monday - A Pinch of Joy - Every Monday
Think Pink Sundays - Flamingo Toes - Every Sunday

Dark & Dreary to Bright & Cheery Brick Painted Fireplace

My husband and I just happened onto this brick paint product online when searching for what to do with our dreaded fireplace. We loved the bricks and didn't want to "cover" them as some design sites had suggested. We were thrilled when we found Brick-A-New online.

It took me a day to choose a color then we ordered right away. Thanks Wendy for taking our call and processing our order to Canada. The product came within a week. My husband and I completed the project in the evenings over a few nights. We have very bumpy bricks which was a concern for us when we ordered, but the standard fireplace paint kit covered our fireplace, it took about 1 hour or so to apply the base coat. Then I was able to apply the other colors two at a time over a couple of evenings.

What a transformation I would walk by our room that used to be the dark and dreary den and would do a double take when I saw the painted bricks even though I had done them myself. It was super easy and you can't make a mistake. Just apply and step back and say I did that! Then show all your friends your new room.

I would recommend this product to anyone. And I already have, friends, family and co-workers alike have been amazed when I show them the photo's.

We're just one step away from our fireplace being finished, we're saving up for our gas fireplace insert now.

Melissa,
Ottawa, Canada

RELATED ARTICLES:

Before and After: Fabulous Fireplace Redo's

Brick Painted Fireplaces

Fireplace Paint

An Amazing new look on a previously painted brick fireplace

Color Theme: Twilight Taupe

Thank you very much for the amazing product that allowed us to renew our existing fireplace for a fraction of cost. It is used to be wall of white paint over the bricks and looked boring and ugly. 

Yes, it took me 5-6 hours and several layers to apply the base coat but it was well worth it. The second, third and fourth steps were easy and quick. I should mention that as I was applying coat after coat I liked how the fireplace was starting to change.  It worked like a magic. 

The last coat changed the look completely and gave us an amazingly looking new fireplace. Everybody who comes to our house can't believe that it is just several steps of painting and have to touch the bricks to prove it themselves.

Thank you for the amazing idea for the Brick-Paint Kit !

The Sickler Family

Related Articles:

Should I paint my brick fireplace?

Who would have thought painted brick could look this good?

Why paint a brick fireplace?

An Amazing Transformation!

It’s been almost a year since I used Brick Anew on my fireplace and have been busy with some additional remodeling, but wanted to show you the before and after photos.  I think it’s an amazing transformation!  Thanks for your great customer service and a wonderful product.

Sincerely,

Pat Billeter

Thinking About Refacing? Or Resurfacing? Think Again...

"Hey, Mom? Why does Dad say you can't paint brick?"

An old friend of mine, Greg, called today with a question about fireplace refacing. “I’m thinking about going Southwestern,” he said. “Maybe sort of a Santa Fe stucco look, kind of like earth tones, sort of like adobe but not adobe, you know what I’m talking about?”

I wasn’t actually sure. I thought for a minute about his living room and how it was already furnished. “Your fireplace is brick,” I said. “Isn’t it?”

“Yeah, and I’m sick of it. The last guy who lived here must have burned his furniture in it or something. I’ve got soot stains almost to the ceiling.”

I laughed, but only because I’ve seen the exact same thing a thousand times. “Let me ask you a question,” I said. “Are you wanting to do a total room makeover, or are you just trying to cover up some stains? You just got a new sofa last spring, right?”

“Yeah, the wife picked it out. It’s sort of mid-century modern, I guess.”

“And the rest of the room—You have a lot of stainless steel and chrome. You’ve got a leather armchair, don’t you?”

“Yeah, why?’

“Nothing,” I said. “But I just wonder if you really want to do stucco. And so you know, what you’re talking about is resurfacing, not refacing.”

“There’s a difference?”

“Not a huge one—you see the terms used interchangeably—but technically refacing is when you put, say, stone over an existing hearth. When you put up stucco or plaster you’re resurfacing.”

“Huh,” he said. “And you don’t think it’s a good idea, do you?”

“It’s not necessarily a bad idea,” I said. “But in your case, I’m just not sure why you want to go to so much trouble. Why not clean the brick, see how that looks, and then, if you still can’t stand it, try painting it.”

There was a long pause. Then I heard my friend whisper something to his wife, Debbie. Finally, he handed her the phone. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she said. “I’ve been telling him we should paint for three weeks. And all he ever says is ‘Honey, you don’t paint brick.’ Have you heard that before?”

“More times than I can count,” I said. “And it’s total nonsense.”

“I knew it,” she said. “But I do have one more question. You think you could come by sometime this week and help us pick a color?”