island - I don't miss those fireplace doors at all! :) We'll try and sell them on Craigs List but wonder if anyone will want them. LOL. Yes, we did replace the entire firebox. We purchased a Heat & Glo direct vent gas fireplace and had to pull out the old firebox and reframe for the direct vent unit. There are many styles of doors they offer, and the prices vary. We liked the fancy arched ones, but not for $999! We went with the Folio, clean face front which was no charge. Figured we would put the "savings" toward the flooring. We can always get a nice fireplace folding screen if we want. Check out the Heat & Glo website for more information. www.heatnglo.com. We went with the CLX 6000 model which comes with a remote, nice embers and log set, and a blower. Let me know if you have questions! tinan - Yes, the smell was awful! I wondered the same thing about the noxious coatings. Ugh! At least the smell is gone now. Enjoy your new furnace!

I have opposite problem/question. My house came with fireplace that has 8" tall hearth with slab on top which seems to be sandstone, and which now has a hole in it the size of a few quarters. I never liked the color anyway, and I would like to have granite instead. It seems the easiest least expensive make-over would be to just put a slab of granite on top of the sandstone (with mortar in between). Is this feasible, or is the sandstone too weak to support the granite?

There is a RustOLeum muted gray spray paint intended for BBQ grills. You might consider painting it with that or a similar product designed to withstand high heat. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Rust-Oleum-Specialty-High-Heat-Ultra-Silver-Spray-Paint-12-oz/196486786?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=2419&adid=22222222227066487799&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=192936394920&wl4=pla-306315930177&wl5=9011064&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=113134491&wl11=online&wl12=196486786&veh=sem&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0pqIu6ve5AIVRR6tBh0Oyw_0EAQYBiABEgLbwPD_BwE No fireplace "needs" a mantel if you don't want one; however, if/when you remove it, do expect to find some brackets that were holding it that will need to be removed if you remove the support board, too. You might be able to remove the mantel shelf and its supports and leave the board that is flat against the chimney and, perhaps, cover it with a new fireplace surround or build the surround beneath it and paint that board either the same color as the chimney or the same color as the surround.

Since your bookshelves are short, taking anything to the ceiling may emphasize this. I would take inspiration from Beverlys 1st photo above and keep the center portion uniform and raised to 10" below your ceiling height with no mantle. You could use wood panels or paint maybe BM Kendall Charcoal. Then update your cabinet doors and keep it white to match your existing trim and accessorize with your green colors and wood objects.