Can You Restore a Closed Fireplace in an Old Home? What to Know Before You Start
- Reorigination
- Apr 23
- 7 min read
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“Can you restore a fireplace that no longer works?”
I think it’s one of the most common questions that comes up when people start looking at old homes, or even years after they’ve already moved into one.
And honestly, it makes sense. Fireplaces are one of the most nostalgic and sought after features in an old house. They can be a big part of what makes an old house feel like an old house.
There’s an emotional connection to them. You picture the fire going, the glow, the atmosphere, and the way people (and maybe 1-6 cats…) once gathered and lived around them.
When we first bought our old house, Maggie, the fireplaces were one of her standout features. There were 4 of them downstairs, and they were where my imagination ran the most.
But right alongside that excitement was the reality check. (Cue JM showing me quotes…)
Budget. Structure. Safety. Function.
Could they even work again? And if not the way they originally were, could we get close?
The History Behind Old Fireplaces (and Why They Were Covered or Changed)
In homes like ours, built around 1900, fireplaces were a primary heat source. And yes, before they were a vibe, they were a necessity.
Heat didn’t move well between rooms, which is why it wasn’t uncommon to have a fireplace in almost every main space. Each room needed its own source of heat, which is why so many old homes still have multiple fireplaces, even if they’re no longer in use. (As a cold-natured girlie, I’m pretty sure having multiple heat sources would have been the only way I would have survived!)
As heating methods improved, many homes shifted away from open wood-burning fireplaces and began using coal stoves instead. These were more efficient and easier to manage.
Rather than removing the fireplace, homeowners adapted it. A freestanding stove would sit in front of the original opening, with a stovepipe venting into the chimney. The firebox itself was often covered with a fitted plate.
That’s why you’ll often see tile running across the entire fireplace wall, not just inside the opening. It wasn’t just decorative. It created a durable, heat-resistant surface behind the stove.
As central heating became more common, those stoves were often removed altogether. At that point, many fireplaces were sealed or covered over. Sometimes it was for efficiency, to reduce drafts and heat loss. Other times, it was simply to create a clean, uninterrupted wall. In some cases, the opening was closed with a cover plate or infilled with brick, and later covered with plaster or drywall.
In many early homes, and even in yours, you may still find:
The original brick firebox behind a cover or wall
The chimney structure still intact
Hearth materials under layers of flooring
Tile or surround materials that were covered instead of removed
And that's typically because these fireplaces were built into the actual structure of the house! Fully removing them would have taken significantly more work, which is why in most cases they were simply covered instead of taken out or further modified.
That’s exactly what we found when we started learning about the fireplaces at Maggie.
What We Found at Maggie
If you’re just joining us, Maggie is our 1898 Victorian farmhouse that we have been restoring over time, which I’ve shared more of in 5 years of restoring an 1898 farmhouse.
When we first walked through, none of the four original fireplaces downstairs were functioning. Each one had an electric heater sitting in front, which made it clear they hadn’t been used as actual fireplaces in a long time. Even so, they were still a dream to see.
Once we removed the heaters, we could better understand what we were looking at, even if at the time we didn’t fully have the context. After referencing a few great books and resources, we started building a clearer picture and a plan. (I’ve linked a few of the ones that were especially helpful here.)
Each of the fireplaces had been adapted for a coal stove. The original fireboxes had been covered with a fitted plate, tiled over, and vented through a stovepipe into the chimney.
When we carefully removed those layers, we found:
The original brick fireboxes and chimney mass still intact
Hearths that had been partially covered but not removed
Original tile in varying condition across each room
Each fireplace told a slightly different story:
The parlor was fully intact and the most detailed
The dining room was missing about 20 percent of its tile
The back bedroom was also fully intact, but with simpler tile
The front bedroom had lost most of its tile and had been boarded over
Most of the original tiles had “AETCO” stamped on the back, which was a really exciting find and helped us date them. They were made by the American Encaustic Tiling Company, a major U.S. tile manufacturer in the late 1800s and early 1900s known for decorative fireplace tile. (My tile people know how good this is.)
All of the mantles were still in place, although they had been painted and some molding details were missing. Still, such a win. The dining room even had an overmantel and mirror, and the front bedroom mantel had rows of small nail marks along the edge, likely from years of pinning stockings or other items to dry.
So many everyday moments these fireplaces have seen.
Understanding what was there was one thing. Deciding what to do with it was the next step.
How We Approached Restoration
We did not approach each fireplace as a separate project. We looked at the house as a whole.
Our goal was to preserve as much original material as possible and reuse it where it mattered most.
Because some fireplaces had lost more tile than others, we made the decision to move materials between rooms.
We took tile from areas where it was more intact and used it to rebuild and complete other fireplaces. This allowed us to keep the original material in the house, even if it was not in its exact original location.
That approach of preserving what we could and making thoughtful decisions about where it mattered most is something I’ve written more about in Restoring without erasing its history.
How We Made Them Functional Again
We also had to decide how we wanted the fireplaces to function moving forward.
After partnering with a chimney specialist and having everything inspected, we learned that while the fireplaces and chimney structure were still intact and built into the walls, the mortar had deteriorated over time and was no longer in a condition to safely support traditional wood-burning use.
Because of that, restoring them as original wood-burning fireplaces was not a viable option.
There was one additional challenge.
The portions of the chimney above the roofline were no longer stable, so those sections had to be taken down. That meant traditional vertical venting was not an option either.
Instead, we worked with a fireplace installer to create a plan using gas inserts that fit the scale and style of the house, while still nodding to the original coal-burning look.
This approach allowed us to:
Install gas inserts designed to resemble historic coal-burning fireplaces
Use the existing chimney cavities for new venting
Exit that venting at the back of the house so it would not impact the exterior appearance
In the end, we were able to bring function back in a new way while preserving the original look of the home.
Why We Did This Early
Restoring the fireplaces was one of the first major projects we took on after buying the house.
At the time, Maggie did not have HVAC. Bringing the fireplaces back gave us a way to create heat sources throughout the house while we continued working on it during some of those cold Tennessee months.
It was also one of the larger budget items early on.
Doing it first is probably what made it possible if I'm being honest. Waiting likely would have pushed it out or changed the outcome after the realities of home renovation costs and timelines in an old house set in!
This ended up being one of those decisions though that shaped everything that came after, and it ties closely to how we approached the early stages of the house overall, which I shared more about in Where do you even start? The first steps of restoring an old house.
Modern Options That Still Respect the Past
For us, restoring the fireplaces early made sense based on how we were using the house at the time. You may not be doing this as an early project, and in many cases, it ends up happening much later but one of the biggest misconceptions about restoring fireplaces is that you have to choose between function and authenticity.
That is not the case anymore.
There are modern options that meet today’s safety and efficiency standards but are designed with historic homes in mind.
For Maggie, we chose the Valor Portrait Windsor Arch gas insert, which was designed as a callback to traditional Victorian cast iron styles.
It allowed us to:
Keep the scale and presence appropriate to the house
Match the look and material of what would have historically been there
And still have a reliable, safe heat source
The goal was not to make something new fit.
It was to choose something new that already fit.
Do Not Be Afraid to Ask Questions and Get Multiple Opinions
If you’re thinking about taking on your own fireplace project, this is rarely a one-size-fits-all process.
What works in a new build is not going to directly translate to a 100 year old home.
That does not mean it is not possible. It just means it may take more thought.
Talk to multiple contractors. Get different perspectives. Ask what is possible, not just what is typical.
In our case, we worked with an installer to think through how to:
Use the existing chimney structure
Adjust venting to work with what the house could support
And keep the final result visually consistent with the home
That process matters.
Because a standard solution might get the job done, but a thoughtful one will make it feel like it always belonged. Welcome to Reorigination.
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