Thread: mantles

Hi Worane and welcome to the site,
I made a fireplace mantle about 2 years and posted it on here. I used meranti as it is fairly stable. I was also worried about being affected by heat and shrinking. I think red cedar would be fine and as it is so old it will be well seasoned. There are all sorts of insulation sheet materials that could go between the wood and the masonary if heat is an issue. I would light a good fire and check how hot the sorround gets before committing to the project. If you can hold your hand on it with comfort then the wood could go on there. You will need to check the chimney is clear in any case. Check out places that sell solid fuel heaters to see what they use and even Bunnies should have various insulation options. Mine is for a gas fire so has not required insulation but I helped my dad many years back install a couple on to stone direct with no problems. Anyhow keep us posted on progress as we like to see pics to things being made.
A couple of pics of my effort.
Regards
John

Thanks for replying Orraloon.
I was hoping that the cedar was good for the job. It was a part of a batch of cedar I bought when I owned a toy and furniture business in Montville in Queensland.
I bought it from the estate of an eighty year old timber getter from Maleny so I guess it is a bit older than I stated. Well seasoned indeed!
It will be a while before I get to make the thing but I will post some pics when it is done.
Cheers Nick.
Ps Worane is the name of a ninety year old boat that I sold a couple of years ago.
I use it as a screen name as it is about the only word I can find that nobody has beaten me to.