I currently have a surface mounted gas fire in my living room with fireplace behind which is to be replaced.

I prised the incumbent fire off the wall a little to measure for an inset one & picked up a suitable sized one. Or so I thought.

I disconnected the old fire this morning (I know the new one is to be connected by a corgi) and the bottom 3/4 of the fireplace has been built up with bricks reducing the depth from 30cm to 20cm. As such the new fireplace won’t fit.

Question is, can I remove the bricks from the back of the fireplace restoring depth to 30cm or will that cause a fire of biblical proportions making all robins extinct?

Assuming the house is old and those bricks are not tied into the surrounding chimney breast they are not structural and just there to take up space
That said it is hard to say without seeing a picture to be certain but it most likely they are just rubble rather than structural

Almost certainly, yes.

When it was first built, it would have a ‘builders fireplace’. This is (sort of) structural.
Then the owners etc fill it in to fit their own gas fire.
The builders fireplace is usually flat sides, so the bricks you speak of should be able to come out..I suspect..

DrP

Quick update – bricks were mostly well stacked rubble under decades of dust – all removed easily by hand thanks.

New fireplace slides in now like a glove.

Now just to wait for the gas man to connect up. 🙂

You know that you should have fitted a log burner in that space don’t you. 🙂