Brick Fireplace Retrofit Project

Everyone has a living room with a brick fireplace that’s begging to be converted into a media room. But you’re probably thinking there’s no good way to hide the wires.  Further, how will it affect the room aesthetically?

With the right talent, experience and careful planning see what a great team can do in one day…  

A successful retrofit depends on experience, skill and a broad range of knowledge-  of construction techniques and knowing “what’s behind the wall”, of good design and installation procedures and especially of an understanding of aesthetics.  ENCO brings all the pieces to the game- design, drafting, installation, programming and coordination with carpentry, cabinetry and construction artisans.

Below are some photos and notes from a recent project.

BEFORE- THE CHALLENGE The TV was housed in an equipment cabinet under the stairs. But the focal point of the room is definitely the beautiful fireplace. So, though it would be a serious challenge, mounting the new TV over the mantle would make a much better focal point. However, there was no existing wiring above the mantle, and because it is a working fireplace with a flue the wires couldn’t  be routed behind the brick.

THE PLAN FOR THE FIREPLACE Additional mill work around the mantle that would perfectly frame the TV, concealing the necessary wiring and tying everything together aesthetically.  Our drafting department provided the new mill work design and plans such that the additions would be seamless.  Note part of the mantle would have to be removed.

THE PLAN FOR THE EQUIPMENT The existing equipment would be upgraded, with the new equipment all being housed in a 19 in rack that slides out and rotates for easy maintenance. The remaining space would be converted to storage, all trimmed to match the existing decor.

WIRE ROUTING CHALLENGE One of the major challenges for this project was how to run the video and control cables from the equipment location to the new location over the mantle.  The room was built on a concrete slab.  Even worse, the foundation beneath the equipment is also concrete.

THE SOLUTION The solution was to route the cable behind the baseboards to the fireplace.  This allowed the wires to be completely concealed.

Additional mill work trim would conceal the wiring up the side of the fireplace to the TV.

In the mean time, the equipment rack is prepared for installation.  Close attention has to be paid to wire routing, heat management, and ease of access.

In-wall speakers replaced the unsightly surface mounts and gave the system a much cleaner appearance.   Fortunately, we didn’t find a header behind the speaker being installed in the following pictures.

The finished system looks great.

And the new equipment cabinet looks clean.  And the additional storage space works well.

THE BEST PART The media room electronics include the TV of course, along with a Blu-Ray player, cable DVR, Kaleidescape movie system and surround sound receiver.  The system is controlled by one simple, intuitive touch panel.  Fantastic.

CONCLUSION With proper planning and experience, we can seamlessly transform your living room into a media room.  Not only is new system easy to use and feature packed, the installation didn’t sacrifice any aesthetic quality in the room.  In fact the additional mill work around the television improved the visual delineation of the room, accentuating the high ceiling and making the living space feel more intimate. We love what we do.