COMPETITIONS › Forums › Tips and Techniques › Our living room in Kirkland has a huge 1980s
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September 23, 2026 at 2:03 am #99433
soumitssParticipantHey. Our living room in Kirkland has a huge 1980s brick fireplace that takes up an entire wall and makes the room feel dark and heavy. We’d like to modernize it, maybe switch to gas, put in a clean surround with built-ins on each side. Not sure if this is a job for a fireplace store or a remodeler. Anyone done something similar? I’ve heard mixed things about builders who take forever or blow the budget. Would love to hear real numbers if anyone’s willing to share.
September 23, 2026 at 2:07 am #99435
hydrogennParticipantWe had almost the identical brick monster in our Redmond living room. A fireplace store can handle the insert, but the surround and built-ins are really a remodeling job, so it’s easier to have one team do it all. We used Alta Group Remodeling, and their High-End Remodeling Services for Homes cover fireplace remodeling specifically. They converted it to a gas insert, clad the wall in large-format porcelain, and built custom cabinets with floating shelves on both sides. The room feels twice as big now. Heads up, the gas line and venting added cost and some permit time. The dust during demo was real, but they sealed off the rest of the house pretty well.
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