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I'm going to fit a woodburner and have had an installer round to quote for the job. The fireplace is opened up, and is stripped back to the bare, but sooty, stone and bricks. The installer reckons the best finish on them would be render. I have done rendering in the past but always outside in garden/garage walls etc, never in this situation. I thus have several questions....

What sort of preparation should be done on sooty bricks and stone before rendering?

The back of the fireplace is very uneven where it has been hacked away to fit other fires over the years - for example there is a large indent that is 2 inches below the original level - I guess I should fill this first and then render over it?

What technique should I use? - several thin coats or one thick one?

What strength mix should I use?

Answers to any or all of these questions will be greatly appreciated. Alternatively, is there something other than render I could use, e.g. a heat resistant plasterboard?
Mike

you could render it ,but with heat it might crack with expansion.
what about marble or slate cut to size,It may cost you more but would look 100 times better

Could do, but as you say it will cost more and TBH, marble would look out of place. I am considering tiles (possibly slate?) but still need a flat surface, such as render or plasterboard.
Unless (seeing your name) you know of a cheap supply of large slate slabs.... :lol:
Cheers,
Mike

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[quote="madalicesdad"]Could do, but as you say it will cost more and TBH, marble would look out of place. I am considering tiles (possibly slate?) but still need a flat surface, such as render or plasterboard.
Unless (seeing your name) you know of a cheap supply of large slate slabs.... :lol:
Cheers,
Mike[/quote]

i had same problem, i had brickwork blasted and re pointed and it looks great.