Hi! I am trying to determine what I want to do with my fireplace remodel. This is our fireplace (ive made other posts before about it). There is paneling at the top and brick below. There is a stone mantle that seems like it would be very easy to remove.

I am thinking of building a false wall against this FP and adding drywall and cabinet built ins. The brick protrudes a couple of inches out further than the brick, so I would have to double up the studs at the top. There is no electrical outlet on this wall but I do want to add one.

I have no idea what is behind the paneling (besides the chimney obviously) when you knock on the paneling you can tell it is hollow above the fireplace. On the sides of the wall it seems more solid. I would like to remove a panel to see whats back there.

My questions are- do you think this brick is a façade, or is it necessary to keep it up for structural purposes?

If it is a façade, would removing it require us having to remove it brick by brick, or were these applied in sheets? (House built in 1974ish) The bricks do not look like they were mortared individually and have a very consistent and uniform appearance. This house was built by a developer at the same time as other houses, so I am assuming they didn't take the time to have a true craftsman mason come do this install.

How hard would it be to add an electrical outlet to this wall? This wall is an exterior wall. There is a room above it that does have an outlet on the wall but it is dead and we cannot figure out why. I am considering adding an electric fireplace in the future, as we never use the wood burning FP and having a FP that produces real heat would be nice. I also plan to hang the TV above the FP once the new wall is finished.