This is the thread to discuss any DIY that you are doing at the moment, and share the achievements, and the disasters.

Ill start :w00t:

When we bought our new house we were told that the fireplaces (4 in all) had been boarded over when they had central heating installed, which happened about 7 years ago.

So we decided to tackle the lounge one this weekend as we want it in working order by Xmas (im using the royal 'we' as i just sat and watched as the dust flew in every direction).

BUT as per normal what we thought was going to be a small job ended up as a HUGE one. The fireplaces werent boarded up .... but bricked up. God knows what they had used to put these bricks up with, but they wouldnt budge. Mr.B ended up getting his hammer drill out - and even with that he only managed to open up half the fireplace before his elbow gave in.

So - as per normal a small job has ended up as a massive one. We were also led to believe that part of the fire was still behind there, but it isnt, its just a hole, so we will have to spend a fortune getting it ready for use. We knew we would have to buy a surround and hearth(sp), but now we have to purchase the whole blummin lot - and that sounds expensive to me !!!

(im using the royal 'we' as i just sat and watched as the dust flew in every direction).

Yes I am very adept at using the Royal 'we' when it comes to DIY Bonnie. :w00t:

And the Fireplace doesn't really need to cost a fortune, you could always trawl around the architectural salvage yards for an authentic one aged appropriate to your house age. If you are going to open it up to use as a 'real' fire, then all you need is an inset, grate and surround - and the chimney checked for blockages. It is a messy job, but well worth it in the end.

So I would take the the royal carriage out one day, trawl around the scrap yeards, salvage yards, reclamation yards - and just have fun.

When we moved to this house, there was a hideous false bricked fire place that stretched over the alcove [they had their telly on a plinth on it]. We had had the keys less than an hour, when I had a sledgehammer in my hand and I took this thing apart - it took about 3 hours in total - but it was one of the best jobs I have ever done, to remove such an ugly blot in the house was a pleasure beyond beleif.

Bonnie, I'd get a chimney sweep in to make sure there are no problems further up and the fire will be usable before you go to any big expense. :)

Bonnie, I'd get a chimney sweep in to make sure there are no problems further up and the fire will be usable before you go to any big expense. :)

Yeah we will be getting one in as it hasnt been used for a long while. The sad part was, when we cleared some of the bricks we found a birds nest with dead babies. It was fresh - and we had watched them building the nest. It was kinda sad :sad:

Flippy - ive been looking online at fireplaces and some of them seem reasonable. Mr.B wants to build the surround, so its just the actual fire and backing (which i want slate) that we need to buy. Looking at this place online it will cost us around £300.

Ohhhh Bonnie, if only you were here in Devon - I have a shed full of slate and other tiles - Mr I being a tiler and all that! He did our fireplace with large marble tiles and its GORGEOUS!!!

Deffo check out the local Reclaimation and Salvage yards - Mr I's mate swears by them for "little gems" that you would spend a fortune on elsewhere!! Check your local free papers too!

I love the way we use the royal "we" when discussing DIY - all I do is pick the colour scheme and accessorise while poor old Mr I does the graft!

Hee hee. I had to laugh at the title of this thread. Do you know what jobbie/jobby means up here Bonnie??

Hee hee. I had to laugh at the title of this thread. Do you know what jobbie/jobby means up here Bonnie??
Much the same as it means in our house probably!! :w00t: :pooh:

Hee hee. I had to laugh at the title of this thread. Do you know what jobbie/jobby means up here Bonnie??

lol! me too PJ! it means pretty much the same down here! I actually wanted to know what other kind there was besides DIY!!!!! :pooh:

lol! me too PJ! it means pretty much the same down here! I actually wanted to know what other kind there was besides DIY!!!!! :pooh:

Me too - I was most disappointed!!

Lol - I do know what a 'jobbie' is ...... but i always call jobs 'jobbies'.

Does anyone understand what ive just said :ninja: