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I want to paint my brick fireplace.  It is actually a faux fireplace that is actually a cement mold that is made to look like brick.  Its circa 1928.

I realize I'll have to clean and scrub it well and prime it but any suggestions on which products I should use and any helpful advice on techniques would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

Here is a picture of the fireplace taken before we moved in.  We been busy stripping the pearlized peacock wallpaper off and painting.  As you can see my fireplace needs help.  Just click on the thumbnail below and you can see a bigger version.

Personally, I would cover it with mdf board then paint it, just to modernize it.  It not that big of fireplace so it shouldn't be very expensive to do and it really isn't that hard.  If thats out of the question then painting it could help brighten it up.  Keith should be along to tell you the proper products.  My only suggestion is that you spray it instead of using a brush or roller.  If your heavy with the paint it often comes out looking like a painted fireplace.  Spraying it gets into the nooks and crannies without the paint getting to glopped on.  Once its sprayed people of ten have a hard time telling that its painted.

Be careful of overspray too if you try that. There are small spray units (Preval makes them) you can buy that are helpful. You'll want to prime with acrylic (such as fresh start) and topcoat with latex (a lower sheen will look nicer).

Thanks for your advice divadesign!  I definitely want to lighten it up a bit and modernize it.  I was thinking of using some MDF to trim it out and show just a portion of the brick.  We had been thinking of knocking it out in 2 or 3 years and building a proper mantlepiece with a gas insert so we may just paint for now. 

I like your advice on spraying it rather then painting it.  My sister-n-law moved into place where the fireplace brick had that really globbed on look and the previous owners had used semi-gloss as well!

__Keith wrote:

Be careful of overspray too if you try that. There are small spray units (Preval makes them) you can buy that are helpful. You'll want to prime with acrylic (such as fresh start) and topcoat with latex (a lower sheen will look nicer).

Thanks Keith for your spraying advice.  I googled Preval and looked at the small spray units you mentioned.  Could you give me a heads up which stores carry them or is the usual suspects?

 

 

It's a specialty item that a good independant paint store will carry. Check the dealer locator on the BM site for a store near you. The boxes may have them as well but the advice you'll get there can be a little scary. We sell the unit and replacement cartridges for $10 each.

My thoughts on spraying are a little different depending on the look you want.  Most painted fireplaces need to have that heavy painted look as you would see in an older century home.  Unless you are using a power sprayer it is hard to get that out of a spray can sometimes without hrs of spraying a a big mess. It can also be far more expensive.   I've painted units with brush and roller using latex based paints that have turned out fantastic. Its just a matter of taking care in pride in your work and following up on your work catching those nasty runs.  Brush the joints first and roll the flat finish.  Either way will work.. Its your choice. I just think one can be as good as the other if you take your time.

This probably doesnt matter in your case but if you are painting in an area where it will get a fare amount of heat I was told a latex is best. It wont breakdown, combust or react to heat the same as a regular oil based paint may.

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Well I've scrubbed and washed the fireplace really well and I am letting it dry thoroughly before I prime it with latex primer.

2 quick questions:

1) Paint finish- matte or eggshell?  I am thinking matte and should I used reg. BM matte or BM collection ultra-matte?

2) in the pic where the awful red colour is and the log/hearth goes, what should my final colour be?  a)black b) a deep expresso brown c) suggestion?

Thanks everyone for your advice.  I will post pictures of my "work in progess" to inspire others to turn their "eye sore" into a focal point for the holidays!

I found a better picture from last Christmas for a "before" shot so you have a better idea of what I am dealing with. Just click on the thumbnail before to see it bigger. I am in the process of picking paint colours and will let you know what I choose.

Thanks again.

 

I personally would just use the cheaper flat.  I wouldn't spend the extra for the washability the ultimatte is supposed to give you.  How many times do we wipe a fireplace?   Just keep the leftover  if you ever need to touch up a dirty spot, thats the one luxury a flat gives you especially on a textured surface is the ability to do touch-ups that aren't so noticeable.  The mantel is a different story.  I would go a pearl finish on that because we place things on it and we dust/wipe it off alot.  As for the hearth I think it depends on the colour scheme going on in the room and the colour you pick for the fireplace.  Let us know the colour you pick for the walls etc and then we can choose whether the black or brown would be better. 

I agree with Diva on the flat black.  You can get flat blacks specificly for fire places and wood stoves. Its probably going to be heat resistant paint but who cares as long as it gives you an authenic black fireplace look.

Looking closer at your pic..(Much better then the last thanks ) I would suggest not going to crazy with the colors.  A creamy color maybe and you could probably do a darker shade on the decorative brick pattern around the cavity if you wanted a bit of two tone. Again as Diva mentioned. It depends on the rest of your color theme..

One other suggestion I would make is to create a tile hearth around the unit to give it an authentic fireplace look. Right now it looks a thought the wood flooring goes right under the logs.. You can get many reasonably priced granite or marble tiles from Home Depot. With the right wood boarder you wouldnt even have to glue them down. Go right under the whole fireplace if it will allow to save any cutting.....

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Thanks for the great suggestions Fletch!  My mother n' law had a similiar ideas re: the tiled hearth.  The way it looks right now it really looks like a faux fireplace and a tiled hearth would help alot. 

I've got some progess pictures.

I used Zinnesser latex primer and used a brush to carefully paint the morter joints.

In the end I didn't use a sprayer but a thick roller and slowly and carefully primed the fireplace.

My only question is that the faux brick had these tiny stone speckles that must have been adhered to the cement surface to look like brick.  I took a closeup so you can see what I am looking at vis a vis primer.

Do you recommend a second light and careful spot coast of primer to cover these specks or can I leave it now to paint?

I'll post my  paint chip selection soon.

Thanks again

Cyn

No problem Cyn...Im happy to help.. Its looking great already just with the primer.  The white on its own is a very clean traditonal look. Maybe a little too bright if you dont have any other whites in your room...

Re the second coat I would say you are good to go with the finishing coat or coats.   Those little specks should give you no grief and will fill in with your next application...

Anyways... Great work so far.. Its already looking 200% better. Good luck on your adventures in color...

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One other thought I had was in the fire place cavity its self.  An option instead of the black would be to match up with a fire place brick which is a very dull yellow color.  It might not stand out as much if your are going with a lighter color and may accent your logs and  holder a little more.. If you are feeling really creative you can blacken behind the logs with a spray paint to give it the appearance of a well used fireplace...  Dont be afraid play around.. Its only paint and can be covered again...

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My wife and I just bought a fixer upper in Atlanta, GA-the fireplace was a wreck.  I got an estimate for redoing it and it was almost $3000 dollars-way more than we were going to spend (or had for such a project!).  A friend of mine told me he had redone his fireplace by painting it, which I thought you weren’t supposed to do-I saw it and it was killer! He used this special paint called brick-anew that is heat resistant etc.-I kind of forgot about it and I came back from a business trip and my wife had redone it herself-I was really shocked at the difference-that brick-anew paint worked really well-here is our fireplace now-really cheap too-I would recommend highly:http://www.brick-anew.com/

Oh yeah-it looks exactly like real brick too and they have all the instructions for different colors etc.

I could not post a picture of my fireplace-but this is one they did and it gives you a pretty good idea.

does anyone know how to post your own picture on here?

Mitch