Classic brick-and-mortar fireplaces aren't exactly hot these days, according to Joe LaVecchia of New Jersey's Abbey Hart Brick & Stone. "We used to sell a million firebricks a year in the 1970s ...

Removing fireplace's brick facade not so hard. By Bill Burnett, Kevin Burnett March 24, 2007. This goes with sweat equity column for 3-24-2006.

The fireplace has a 4-foot-long brick hearth. The firebox is a bit longer than an adult horse from nose to tail. It’s almost as deep as the distance between the rails of a train track, and more ...

If the fireplace front is brick, you should remove the entire brick. You can do this with a hammer and a cold chisel. First chip out the mortar around each brick to be removed.

It also has an old-fashioned, open-hearth brick fireplace that goes floor to ceiling. The brickwork extends to the outside of the house, so the interior bricks are very cold in winter.