Concrete Fireplace Emulates the Look of Stacked Timber

By Khara Dizmon, ConcreteNetwork.com Managing Editor

Although concrete can be colored in nearly any hue imaginable, some people still prefer its utilitarian look. But even with its gray, industrial color, concrete can still wow with its moldability. "This was a fireplace surround designed for a residence in La Jolla, Ca.," says Chris Frazer, whose company, DC Custom Concrete, was hired to build a pyramid shaped, rough wood finished fireplace. "The homeowner had found the idea for a finish she liked in a magazine. It was a board-looking finish," recalls Frazer. "It looked like it had just been de-molded from rough wood. She was trying to replicate the industrial-look of concrete."

Never having molded concrete to look like wood, Frazer took on the challenge. One issue he had to consider was that the fireplace surround would be installed on the second floor of the residence. "We couldn't pour the entire surround on-site," he says, "so it had to be lightweight enough to move it around." So Frazer precast most of the project in large panels at his shop.

To replicate the look of timbers, Frazer used rough cut Douglas fir. "We made templates of each piece and took them back to the shop and built molds out of melamine," he says. They milled the rough wood to fit inside the molds. "We made the walls of the melamine mold wide enough to fit the timbers, then we oiled them up real well so the timber wouldn't stick to the concrete when we popped it out. Then we poured upside-down against the timbers." Once the molds were removed, the final finish of the surround was revealed. The surface was perfectly impressed with the look of rough wood.

The mantel was pre-cast as well, but the hearth was poured on-site. "The base is only two-inches thick," says Frazer, "but it looks like a massive piece of concrete. We built a mold for it to reduce the weight. We let it cure for 1 ½ weeks then lightly sanded the top, and that was its final finish."

At its widest point, the fireplace surround is 12' wide. It stands 11' tall. To install it, the concrete "timbers" were stacked and bolted onto steel framing against the wall. "We embedded 5/8-inch all-thread bolts into the pieces," explains Frazer. "Then we hoisted each piece, and bolted them into the steel framing we had secured to the wall. There were six pieces that gave the stacked wood look. One unique feature was that the joints between timbers are camouflaged where the wood appears to be stacked."

DC Custom Concrete is San Diego's premier custom concrete designer and fabricator. They are two-time Cheng award winners for 2008 "Best Kitchen Countertop" award and 2007 "Best-at-Show" award. In addition to concrete countertops, sinks, and much more, DC Custom Concrete offers a full design service.

DC Custom Concrete
San Diego, CA

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