Painted Fireplace

[Dragonrider99]

Greetings to all. I have a 70 year old house that has a large, beautiful brick fireplace. The problem is that sometime in the past, somebody decided to paint it white. I have been there 17 years now and would finally like to do something about it. I plan on installing a new mantle of some type at the same time. I would really, really love to get rid of the paint and restore it to the natural brick. Is it possible to remove ALL the paint somehow?? I am sure that there are many layers on it by now. I have thought of strippers ( not the good kind lol), sand/bead blasting, even have thought of maybe abrading it, covering it with stainless steel mesh, then installing 1/4" brick face over it. As I said, I would also love to replace the mantle. Presently, it looks like a 1x8 piece of pine, painted white of course, with moulding mounted to the underside around all three sides. How is a mantle usually attached to the top?? I could really use some help on this.... thanks

[Sweep]

If you are replacing the mantel it would be easier to cover the brick with a granite surround or tile. There is no way to know if the brick is of good quality anyway. Sandblasting the brick would be costly and leave it looking soft and porous. Buy a ready made mantle with vertical trim. It would just stand on the floor and be attached to the wall.

[Shanley]

Try this Prosco HD Paint remover www.prosoco.com/ProductDetail.asp?ID={6DBBB494-C64D-4F74-9EA8-161AC3F132BC}

[Dragonrider99]

I thought of possibly using a surround instead of trying to refinish it. I am not sure how to go about this though. The fireplace steps out at the top . There is around 15 inches of space above the lintel, then it steps out by roughly 1/2 brick for 5 courses. The mantel then sits on thew top course. Would a surround even go over a setup like that? I have seen them used on fireplaces that were smooth to the top, but never like this. Any ideas??

Thanks

[Sweep]

It doesn't sound like a surround would work.