How to Build a Faux Fireplace on a Blank Wall

Determine the location of your faux fireplace and draw an outline of the faux firebox and the hearth in front of the faux firebox with a piece of chalk. Use a straightedge to create the outline so that all sides will be plumb.

Place masking tape on the wall about 2 inches from the outlined firebox. Place a drop cloth onto the floor beneath.

Paint the space within the outline black to give yourself a focal point for the placement of the hearth and fireplace surround. Use an interior latex paint and a paintbrush to cover the area and allow it to dry overnight.

Install the fireplace surround against the wall, centered on the faux firebox. Measure the width of the surround with the tape measure and mark the measurement onto the baseboard. Cut the baseboard along the measured lines with a handsaw and pry it from the wall with a pry bar. Spread thinset mortar along the rear of the surround, covering both the legs and the header. Press the surround against the wall in the cleared area. Check that it’s level with a carpenter’s level and make any adjustments needed while the mortar is still wet.

Place the hearth for your the fireplace onto the floor beneath the faux firebox, against the base of the surround. Remove the drop cloth and place a series of tiles onto the floor in front of the faux firebox, extending the full area of the drawn hearth. Use tile spacers between the tiles to create room for grouting between tile joints. Mark tiles at the edge that need cutting to fit with chalk along the cutting lines.

Cut the hearth tiles with the appropriate cutter for the tile type. Use a wet saw for thicker stone and clay tiles and a tile cutter to snap ceramic tiles along the cutting lines. After cutting the tiles, remove all the tiles from the hearth area and place them onto a flat surface nearby, in the same placement order and pattern.

Apply tile adhesive to the hearth area with a notched trowel, using the flat of the trowel to spread the adhesive and the notched edge to raise ridges in the adhesive surface. Transfer the tiles back to the hearth, pressing them into the adhesive to fit them into place. Place tile spacers between the tiles to keep the tile lines level and the joints uniform. Allow the tile adhesive to dry overnight.

Place brick veneer on the floor within the surround to simulate a fireplace’s brick floor, using the same placement process used with the hearth tiles.