Hello, I'm hoping for some advice. I'm redoing a fire hearth in my new house as we're going to have a log burner installed. My plan is to put down some cement, then lay a couple of stone garden slabs down. A couple of questions: Would I need a grinder with a stone blade to cut them to shape? The surrounding floor is wooden floorboards. Can the stone just sit on the wood flooring slightly (probably 2-3 inches) because the slabs will be wider than the current opening? Reason being - ideally I don't want to have to cut the floorboards back. If I do this, can I therefore put sand/cement directly onto the floorboards where it overlaps? Lastly, the bricks in the fire opening are black and mucky. What's the best way of cleaning them up? I was going to get some brick acid but not sure that's best. Also, when I repoint those bricks, do I need to add lime or will normal sand/cement be okay? Thanks a lot
I can't offer advice on the hearth, but I have a couple of thoughts. A diamond blade will whizz through slabs. I'm not a fan of brick acid. You don't want to damage the surface of the bricks. A scrubbing brush with some soap and water may remove some of the debris. If your house was built with lime mortar, use lime mortar (no cement needed). Search for 'Conserv', who can supply it. If it's built with cement based mortar, use that. And we left the blackened bricks in our fireplace when we put the woodburner in. I think it looks great!