rustic-roots

Should You Hang Your Mantel Before or After Rocking or Bricking Your Fireplace?

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:52:36 GMT

"it depends" on your fireplace

Here at Rustic Roots Reclaimed we get asked about how to properly install reclaimed wood fireplace mantels. The answer we give is "it depends".

There are millions of different fireplace hearth designs in the US. Every fireplace design is different from the next and how the mantel should be mounted varies by what you are mounting it too.

The easiest way to break down the best way to hang your reclaimed wood fireplace mantel is to put your project into one of 2 categories. Those 2 categories are renovation or new construction. Putting your mantel project into one of these categories helps us to give answers to "it depends".

Let's start with a renovation.

Typically with a renovation our clients are replacing their built in or builder designed wood fireplace surround. In doing so you are starting with a blank slate or close to a blank slate. In a renovation if you are removing all of the surround and you have access to the studs it is best to hang the mantel first especially if you are coming back with rock or brick. If you are putting shiplap or some other wall covering on the wall where the mantel will be mounted it is best to put that material up and then mount your mantel to the wall. One very important part of mounting a mantel to shiplap wall is that you have a flat surface(the wall) and we are trying to mount a 150 year old hand hewn beam that is not perfectly straight so we need a straight backside to the mantel.

Mantels have 4 sides and each side is unique and could be used for the front of the mantel. So after you choose a mantel and you are mounting it directly to a flat surface such as brick, shiplap or barn wood you'll need to pick the backside of the mantel. Folks generally decide fairly easily as they usually find a side they love so the back is opposite that side. You then will need a bracket to hold your reclaimed mantel to the wall. At Rustic Roots we sell Ultrashelf brand floating mantel brackets. These brackets hold hundreds of pounds of weight and are easy to install.

After you have chosen your backside and have had the backside flattened we then route out the back of the mantel and drill the holes for the floating bracket rods. The fit of the bracket is very tight it is imperative that all of your holes are straight. As a 6" metal rod will not go into a hole that is off centered 1/16" of an inch. We then route the back out this allows the bracket to be recessed into the back of the mantel so that your mantel bracket disappears after mounting the mantel. Installation is simple. The most important part is to makes sure that your bracket is level and that it is secured to the wall. Once you have mounted the bracket the mantel simply slides over the bracket!

Now if we have a new construction and we are building a beautiful brick or rock fireplace it is best to hang the mantel first. The reason is fairly simple...it is extremely difficult to mount a straight beam to an uneven surface. Rock is especially uneven and so we highly suggest that the mantel be hung using the same process as above. Then after it is mounted to the studs the mantel can be wrapped with plastic to keep mortar and debris off it and rock can be put up surrounding the mantel and hearth.

If you have brick going up we still feel it is best to mount the bracket and mantel first. However if this is not possible it's okay! We simply follow the process of jointing the backside of the mantel, routing and drilling our holes, securing the bracket with concrete screws and then sliding the mantel over the bracket.

We have a short video here showing the backside, the bracket and the routing so you can better understand. Of course if you have any questions or are in the Atlanta and surrounding area give us a shout or swing by the shop. We are located in historic downtown Monroe GA. Check us out on YouTube

Rustic Roots Reclaimed now Offers Briwax Products

Dougroot9606@gmail.com (Doug Root) — Sun, 19 Sep 2021 17:28:15 GMT

At Rustic Roots Reclaimed we love to promote the products that make our wood look unique and beautiful! We are super excited to now be a distributor for Briwax wood care products. Briwax is our go to wood finish for our reclaimed wood mantels, floating shelves and furniture.

In 1860, Henry Flack began blending waxes and manufacturing polishes in East London. The wood wax and polishes were so superior that they earned recognition by the British Crown. His business was acquired by the J. W. Bollom & Co. in 1961 and since then the brand has gone from strength to strength in both the consumer and professional markets. They are now sold worldwide and have become the “craftsman’s choice” of professional woodworkers and refinishers, as well as homeowners that demand quality.

Since 1860, Henry Flack’s blend of carnauba and beeswax polish has not changed. Patina is defined as the natural, original finish of a wood, and was extremely difficult to maintain and/or regain before the BRIWAX brand of products came into being. Since the BRIWAX brand of wood finish products was created in 1860, however, Patina is the new standard. In the 1990s, environmental concern arose over the use of toluene in paint and stain products. In 2000, Briwax responded to the needs of customers with a toluene-free alternative.

If you are a wood worker and are looking for that one of a kind finish that will make your products pop...try Briwax. Available online now at RusticRootsWood.com

HISTORY & STORY BEHIND A LIMITED RESOURCE: OLD GROWTH HEART PINE

andrew@faithworksmarketing.com (Andrew Spikes) — Fri, 17 Jan 2020 13:24:43 GMT

OLD GROWTH HEART PINE FROM 1770'S HOMESTEAD - OVER 400 YEARS OLD

The story of heart pine begins in the Southeastern coastal plains where virgin forests of Longleaf pine thrived. The Longleaf pine grew well in the Southern soil and by the 1700's nearly 60-70 million acres of the Southeast were covered with these longleaf pine forests.

The forests covered large areas, some were over 150 miles wide and had millions of longleaf pine trees. These forests ran through most of the Southeast and covered lands from Virginia to Florida, and westward along the gulf coast. These majestic old growth longleaf pine trees reached heights of 150 to 175 feet and took over 200 years to mature.

For the settlers they were easy to harvest. They were very straight and longleaf pine is an extremely durable wood. So using longleaf pine was a "no brainer" for the early settlers. The settlers would fell a tree, and then use broad axes to shape or "hewn" the tree down to the "heart pine" beams. Later when logging became big business horses and steam engines hauled the wood out of the hills and forests to the sawmill. Here the sawmill would produce 2x10's and such.

Heart Pine is is the heartwood of the pine tree. The heartwood is the non-living center of the tree trunk, while the outer living layer transports sap and nutrients throughout the tree. Heart pine characteristically has extremely tight lines rather than "cathedral" markings which are prevalent in new pine.

OLD GROWTH LONGLEAF HEART PINE

Longleaf old growth heart pine was abundant in colonial times and through the early 1900's. It is around the turn of the century when the old growth longleaf pine forests were harvested into extinction. Heart Pine was used in buildings, barns, homesteads and large mills. Because Heart Pine was so abundant and durable, it was used to build towns and business across the US. Most buildings constructed in the 1700's to late 1890's were almost solely heart pine.

After doing some reading I found out that alot of the heart pine made it's way to Europe. Apparently there were large shortages of wood and heart pine (at the time) was cheap and plentiful. The Industrial revolution that fueled our great Nation and the World put an end to the great longleaf old growth pine forest as we know it. Now all we have is new growth pine because the growth cycle of longleaf pine is slow. An inch of heart pine takes on average 30 years to grow. The old growth 200 year old pine forests do exist but are hard to find.

That is why we turn to old buildings, mule barns, textile mills, cotton mills and gins for our old growth antique heart pine. The character and tight growth rings can only be found when you carefully remove the flooring and beams. When we find these buildings and barns we delicately take them down and upcycle the wood that we can re-purpose.

OLD GROWTH "TIGHT LINES" OLD GROWTH HEART PINE VS "CATHEDRAL" NEW GROWTH

Our mission at Rustic Roots Reclaimed is to supply "RECLAIMED WOOD FOR THE PEOPLE" - Thanks for reading! Let us know if we can help you on your next project involving reclaimed antique old growth heart pine beams, mantels and flooring.

WHAT IS A HAND HEWN RECLAIMED WOOD BEAM MANTEL?

andrew@faithworksmarketing.com (Andrew Spikes) — Fri, 10 Jan 2020 13:25:08 GMT

22' HAND HEWN HEART PINE BEAM

Hand hewn beams are nostalgic beautiful pieces of history. The hand hewn mantel is a beam that we cut down so you can enjoy the character and charm of a centuries old relic in your home or mountain cottage.

The hand hewn beam is a fallen log that was shaped into a square or rectangular beam. Hand hewn beams were designed to support the sub structure of barns, buildings and homes. Hand hewn beams have been used since the colonial times. As a matter of fact some of our beams were made over 240 years ago. Hand hewn beams were hewn into shape using a broad axe tool called an ‘adze’. Old timers and artisan craftsman sometimes refer to them as ‘hand adzed’.

For many centuries shaping a log into a beam with an axe was commonplace. Settlers and pioneers used the resources they had which were trees and axes. During the 18th & 19th century nails and sawmills were hard to come by. Nails were expensive and when sawmills came about many were located far from Appalachia homesteads. So, hand hewn beams were used in construction up until the 20th century. When steam power moved into the sawmill, milling practices changed dramatically. At the turn of the 19th century rough sawn beams started showing up in construction. These rough sawn beams were cut with a large circular saw powered by steam engines. These beams have circular saw marks that make them very different from their earlier hand hewn cousins.

25 TO 30 FOOT HAND HEWN OLD GROWTH HEART PINE BEAMS

Hand hewn beams were the 2x4 of the early settlers. Hand hewn beams were necessary in the construction of sturdy barns, homesteads and town buildings. Settlers heading out west found that using trees helped them propagate the land. For most settlers the land needed to be cleared for farming and their grazing animals. When the settlers cleared the land they now had fallen logs to use in the construction of their homes. Most settlers were poor and did not have the iron and metal braces needed to tie these beams together so wooden pins or pegs were used. Beams would be shaped and carved to perfection so they could fit one beam vertically into a horizontal beam with a wooden peg. This practice is called "mortise and tenon". The practice makes for an extremely sturdy building and is still widely used today by expert wood craftsman. Many "mortise and tenon" barns and buildings are still standing today and the buildings that fall into disrepair are "reclaimed".

That is where your hand hewn reclaimed fireplace mantel comes from!

WE SUPPLY "RECLAIMED WOOD FOR THE PEOPLE"

HAND HEWN MORTISE AND TENON JOINT

Here is a great example of a hand hewn beam that was holding up a large girt or cross bar beam. The large girt would be supported by the angled 8x10 beam. Hand hewn beams come in various types of wood. White Oak, Heart Pine, Poplar, Chestnut are some of the more popular ones. Most Southern beams were old growth heart pine.

CUSTOM OAK HAND HEWN FIREPLACE BEAM MANTEL

A beautiful reclaimed hand hewn mantel with supporting hand hewn beams. This is a great look for any stone fireplace. The beams supporting the mantel look great and serve a purpose. If you are looking to create a custom mantel design. Look no further.

SIDE CUT OF A 240 YEAR OLD SOUTHERN HAND HEWN OLD GROWTH HEART PINE BEAM

Old growth heart pine was very commonly used in the Southern US by early settlers. The trees were straight and easy to cut. So hewing them into a beam was a delight...just kidding. It was really hard brutal work. The beam pictured came from a homestead in South Georgia and was 36 feet long before it was cut due to rot and termite damage - now it is a 19 foot hand hewn heart pine beam.