A plain wall was transformed into an attractive and functional space with a wood heater, bookshelves and stone-clad feature wall.
The project
This D.I.Y. project was not for the faint-hearted and needed more than just help from my husband. We did the work ourselves but had a plumber sign off on it, which included the flue installation.
I bought everything from Bunnings including:
- Scandia wood heater and flue kit
- Timber framing for the fire and bookshelves, and Pine to make the mantel shelf
- Stone cladding which is an external cladding stone from the garden section
- Tiles for the heath, which are 60 x 60 indoor floor tiles
I documented each stage of the build with photos. Here is how it went.
What we learned along the way
There were a couple of things that we came up against:
- The most significant challenge came at the design stage. We had to use space from the room behind to house part of the flue. We had to protrude into the other room by about 250mm as I didn't want to compromise on how deep the shelves were or they would have been right up against the window.
- Once we started demolishing the wall and ceiling, we noticed that a roof rafter went straight across where we needed to put the flue, so we had to split it. Luckily my husband is a carpenter and we have lots of builder friends so we knew what we could and couldn't do.
- Once the fireplace was complete, we started the bookshelf using particle board. This was a mistake! The cut edges were really rough so I had to plaster them. It was ok once it was painted, but a lot more work went into it compared to the left bookshelf when we used MDF.
- The wood heater was very heavy. I managed to help get it into the house, but we needed extra help to get it into position in the wall.
This project is my favourite renovation achievement. I love the result and it's a great feature.
Before and after
How to heat your home
Discover the best ways to keep your home cosy in How to heat your home from the Bunnings team.
More inspiration for your fireplace
Bunnings Workshop member Jimi built a stone-clad fireplace for his gas heater.
Community member loggie updated an old brick fireplace with stacked stone cladding, a floating mantel and downlights.
Please remember It is essential that your wood fired heater is installed by a qualified professional and that all installation guidelines provided by the manufacturer are followed. This includes maintaining proper clearance to combustible materials, adhering to installation distance requirements, and meeting the necessary hearth specifications.
