What's the deal with this fireplace surround?

June 20, 2020 10:15 PM

We recently bought a house. We are *thinking* of replacing the tile fireplace surround around the gas fireplace, but we're not sure what's going on with the insert. There is tile surrounding the entire fireplace, and underneath. Along the tops and side of the tile (but not along the floor tile), there's a wood border with metal grommets that come out easily. We've never seen anything like this.

It might help to know there used to be a wood-burning stove now, but it was switched out for gas. The wood burning stove is now in the garage, and has the same surround. Have you seen this before? Do you know what it is and what it does? Thanks!

posted by ancient star to Home & Garden (5 answers total)

Response by poster: And to clarify, we're mostly wondering about the wood/grommets part. Around the sides and back, the grommets are in the top. On the front of the wall, they face outward. The whole structure extends about 3” from the drywall.
posted by ancient star at 10:18 PM on June 20, 2020

I don't know what it is but it looks to me like a way to attach a barrier in front of the fireplace so that pets or kids don't touch it when it's hot. The barrier could have pins or pegs that go into the grommets to stay on place. That's my best guess right now.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 10:25 PM on June 20, 2020 [7 favorites]

Best answer: My guess is that there is an airspace behind the tile, and the grommets are to allow airflow in and out of that space. Probably not necessary with the gas stove.
posted by bricoleur at 7:26 AM on June 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

My initial thought was that there was a removable (probably flexible) "cover" that snapped in, maybe to eliminate drafts when the stove/fireplace wasn't in use. (I can't tell of the grommets continue across the top around the back.)
posted by achrise at 7:50 AM on June 21, 2020

I would guess some kind of heat barrier as well.
posted by The_Vegetables at 11:52 AM on June 22, 2020