Fireplace Remodel & Replacement in Houston, TX
Most Houston fireplaces do not need replacing — they need the dated face taken off and the room rebuilt around them. We reface in stone and brick, swap tired inserts, rebuild mantels and hearths, and resize openings, using the same crew that builds our fireplaces from scratch.
A remodel is usually about one thing: the fireplace is the focal point of the room and it is fighting everything else in it. Eighties red brick under a white-painted mantel, a builder-grade tile surround, a raised hearth that eats floor space, a firebox that has not been lit in a decade. The structure behind it is often perfectly sound. What is wrong is the face, the proportions and the finish.
That is good news, because working with a sound firebox and flue keeps the job in the realm of masonry and carpentry rather than demolition and rebuilding. We start by finding out which of those two jobs you actually have, and we tell you honestly — including when the answer is that the firebox is finished and a replacement is the better use of your money.
What a remodel can include
Stone and brick refacing
The most transformative change available. The old surround comes off and the wall is rebuilt in stacked stone, natural stone, thin brick, cast stone or large-format tile — partial height or floor to ceiling. Floor-to-ceiling changes the proportion of the whole room, which is why it is the request we get most.
Insert replacement
Swapping a dated or failed gas insert for a current sealed unit, or fitting an insert into an existing wood-burning firebox to make it usable on a switch. We measure the opening and the venting first so the surround does not have to be rebuilt around the appliance.
Mantel and hearth rebuilds
Floating timber mantels on hidden steel, carved cast stone mantels, painted millwork, raised hearths cut down to flush, or a new raised hearth built out in stone for seating. This is often the single change that makes the fireplace look designed rather than installed.
Opening resizing
Widening or heightening the opening for a modern linear look, or reducing an oversized opening. Structural work involving the header and, on wood-burning units, the flue-to-opening ratio.
Plaster and modern finishes
Smooth or textured plaster over the full wall for the seamless contemporary look, with the mantel and hearth detailed to suit.
Correcting what is behind the face
Once the surround is off, anything failing gets fixed before the new finish goes on — firebox repair, damper work, or a flue issue found on inspection. See fireplace repair and chimney repair.
The same fireplace, before and after
Dated red brick fireplace before, floor-to-ceiling stacked stone after.
brick-to-stacked-stone-fireplace-remodel-before-houston-tx.jpg · brick-to-stacked-stone-fireplace-remodel-after-houston-tx.jpg
What Houston homeowners say.
We hired Charles and his team at Artex Masonry and Fireplace to remodel our fireplace. They were first class from the time they walked in to our home to give us an estimate, until they packed up their last tool. Before starting the remodel they expertly covered the floors and furniture. At the end of each workday, all equipment and tools were put away, and the area thoroughly cleaned. Charles was great to work with, listened to our ideas, and had great suggestions from his years of experience. His team was respectful and highly skilled. The end result far exceeded our expectations. Thank you Charles and team for the beautiful addition to our den.
Remodel or replace?
Remodel when the firebox and flue pass inspection and the complaint is aesthetic — the brick, the mantel, the hearth height, the proportion of the wall. Nothing structural has to move and the room changes completely.
Replace when the firebox is cracked or burned out, the factory-built unit is beyond parts availability, the flue is unsound, or you want a different fuel type than the existing structure can carry. At that point the money is better spent on the right appliance than on decorating around a failing one.
We tell you which one you have at the site visit, with photographs of whatever we find. That assessment is free, and it is worth having before you buy stone.
Remodel questions.
Give the room its focal point back
Refacing, insert swaps, mantels and hearths. Call (281) 570-9408 for a free written, itemized estimate.