How to Remove the Top Half of a Fireplace Facade

In home designs of the 1960s and 1970s, large fireplace facades were often extended to the ceiling and even covered entire walls. Modern interior designers dislike such dominating brick and stone facades. When you are ready to remodel your oversized fireplace area, reduce the size of the facade to something more compatible with the rest of the room. Many people choose to drywall the top half of the fireplace above a new mantle to match the walls. Remove the top half of a fireplace facade with a few tools and a stepladder.

Drop cloth
Stepladder
Chisel
Mallet

Instructions

- 1
  Lay a drop cloth around the fireplace to protect flooring from pieces of mortar and brick that may fall. Set the stepladder on a flat place on the floor.
- 2
  Set the edge of the chisel on the mortar next to the top right brick on the fireplace facade. Use the mallet to hit the end of the chisel, driving it into the mortar. After three or four strikes, you should see the mortar start to crack.
- 3
  Slide the chisel over to another space on the mortar around the brick. Hit the end of the chisel as you move it around the first brick.
- 4
  Pry the brick out with the chisel. Move to the next brick along the top of the facade and repeat the hammering. Work from the top of the fireplace facade to the last row of bricks you want to remove.
- 5
  Chisel off any large chunks of mortar that are attached to the wall in preparation for refacing the surface.

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