Anyone make a mantel before?

Love2shoot

Love2shoot

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Looking to buy a mantel because I dont have the tools or honestly probably the skill to do it justice. Alot of businesses etc say they can make one, my question is is there a certain best type of wood? Any type to stay away from? What do I need to know? Looking for a "floating" design no showing supports or framing. Thanks for any input.
 
Will you paint it or finish it to expose the wood?
 
If you want to see the grain thru the stain, Iā€™d consider oak.
 
I can't help you, but the subject matter reminded of a life lesson my friend's Dad bestowed on me.

I mentioned some gal being a butterface. He replied, "You don't look at the mantel when you're poking the fire."
 
Scsmith42 said:
What kind of budget do you have and do you have any style preferences other than free floating? We keep kiln dried oak 4x10 mantle blanks in stock, and have some pretty cool thick slab type mantles too.
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I really have no idea of budget because I dont know what is a fair price never had to buy one before. Also, the 4x10 mantle blanks are solid 4 inch thick by 10 inch wide? That sounds like you dont have to "build" anything although not sure how id get it to float with the weight it must be? Also not sure what a slab type mantle is unfortunately. Sorry if I sound ignorant on the subject but admittedly I am. I can provide pics of the area etc not sure if that would help at all or not.

Appreciate all the info so far.

Also quick question, is softwood not recommended such as pine? My wife just had me put up a couple shelves next to the fireplace that look nice but i believe are pine.
 
Here's a pic of mine..
Some day I'm going to be rich like you and buy a piece of oak from Scott to replace it.

image.jpeg
 
That looks awesome. Judging by your comment im scared to hear how much a piece of oak can cost!

How did you get it flush to the stone? Mine has to be mounted with the stone already installed and its very uneven. Will the stone need to be cut to make it flush and level?
 
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Love2shoot said:
That looks awesome. Judging by your comment im scared to hear how much a piece of oak can cost!

How did you get it flush to the stone? Mine has to be mounted with the stone already installed and its very uneven. Will the stone need to be cut to make it flush and level?
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It takes some time, but you scribe along the rock,and remove the offending wood to get a clean, perfect mating.
Most people cheap out and caulk it or grout the joint.
 
Love2shoot said:
Its very simple. When we had the house built I said I want a box right there with 2 hdmi cables and power with ethernet :D
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Great. And now I'm gonna need to know if it can be retrofitted and still look like that.
 
Love2shoot said:
I really have no idea of budget because I dont know what is a fair price never had to buy one before. Also, the 4x10 mantle blanks are solid 4 inch thick by 10 inch wide? That sounds like you dont have to "build" anything although not sure how id get it to float with the weight it must be? Also not sure what a slab type mantle is unfortunately. Sorry if I sound ignorant on the subject but admittedly I am. I can provide pics of the area etc not sure if that would help at all or not.

Appreciate all the info so far.

Also quick question, is softwood not recommended such as pine? My wife just had me put up a couple shelves next to the fireplace that look nice but i believe are pine.
Click to expand...

Typically rough sawn mantle blank size would be around 4 x 10. Surfaced on 4 sides would be closer to 3.5" x 8".

Below is an example of a 3.5" x 8" solid oak mantle. Something like this in a 6' length sells unfinished for around $350. It's about 50 bucks more to be surfaced on 4 sides. This is fully kiln dried and sterilized. Lesser expensive mantles are either not fully dry, not sterile, or both.

In this part of the country, hardwood tends to attract powder post beetles, which can live in the wood for up to 7 years before they bore out and lay eggs on the surface of the lumber. If the lumber is located inside your home, this is not a good thing.....

Most (but not all) kiln operators will sterilize the lumber at the end of the kiln cycle in order to kill any pests. Solar kilns may not get hot enough to sterilize, so you need to make sure of what you're buying.

Pine can make some nice mantles, and it cost less to dry pine than oak. Also, pine is not a host for powderpost beetles, which is also a good thing. Southern yellow pine does not take a stain as well as oak though.
Dunn Mantle side 1.jpg
 
Check with your local inspector just in case. When we built the mountain place our wood mantle was picked out by my wife and it turned out a wood mantle has to be a certain height above the firebox up there. It looks too high to me. With stone mantles there is no issues. But the wood is a nice contrast to the stones. Ours is pine so it fits in with the rest of the logs in the cabin. But the wood grain doesn't stand out like a good hard wood. Might be a future project or upgrade.
 
Scsmith42 said:
Typically rough sawn mantle blank size would be around 4 x 10. Surfaced on 4 sides would be closer to 3.5" x 8".
Below is an example of a 3.5" x 8" solid oak mantle. Something like this in a 6' length sells unfinished for around $350.
View attachment 88681
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I need to stop by your place. I wish I would have spoken to you a couple weeks ago. I'm almost finished with this, the trim needs to go on, then the stain.
IMG_0050.jpg
 
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Here's a pic of the one I built.
25a658075e943e44ed740eafa520999b.jpg
 
Mantels can be everything from a simple rough sawn plank to elaborate plaster/marble work. You just do what you want.
 
Mirac said:
Now you need to make some built in stained oak book cases on both sides !
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SHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!
I just tore down a white mini-mantle. I built the 9ā€™ bookshelves as s birthday present for my wife in a previous house. We knew they were not going to match here. The cost of 1ā€ thick oak for shelving would be ridiculous.
 
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