Removing Our Kitchen Wood Stove: How We Reclaimed the Fireplace for Safety and Style
Today marks six months in our house, and in that time we never officially introduced you to Bart. Bart—aka Black Bart, the old woodstove insert—has been a dominant fixture in our kitchen since we moved in. The previous owners used him a lot, and warned us he could make the house smoky and leave a fine black dust on nearby surfaces. We always planned to replace him eventually when we convert the fireplace into a double-sided feature that can be enjoyed from both the living room and the kitchen. But life, and a curious toddler named Clara, sped up that timeline.
Bart drew Clara like a magnet. No amount of redirection—play, the dog, even absurd dance moves—kept her from investigating the sharp metal edges and the stove door. Because the unit is at least 30 years old and gets very hot when in use, it presented a real safety risk. We hadn’t even fired it up since moving in the middle of winter, but Clara’s relentless fascination made the risk unacceptable. After she managed to open the stove door and get soot on her hand, we decided enough was enough: it was time to remove Bart.
We considered several childproofing strategies—door locks, foam padding, baby gates, or a homemade barricade—but creating an elaborate blockade around something we didn’t use and planned to replace felt excessive. Instead, we took inspiration from a fireplace makeover we admired and performed a quick, practical removal. Don’t worry: we didn’t trash Bart. He’s currently waiting in our dining room for a new home, sale, or donation.
Removing the unit wasn’t as straightforward as a quick unscrew—Google offered little helpful guidance for our exact setup—so I tackled the job during Clara’s nap and started by gently prying at the flashing. The side flashing came away easily, which surprised me; I’d have expected the previous owners’ use to have made it more secure. Behind the flashing I found that only a small amount of adhesive held three pieces in place, which explained why the insert had appeared flush with the surrounding brick.
One tense moment came when I exposed a cluster of wires and worried I’d stumbled into electrical work. Fortunately those wires were connected to a fan mounted on the back of the unit; nothing in the house wiring needed to be disconnected. I simply left the fan wiring attached and removed the whole assembly together, which simplified the process.
With the sides freed, the insert was only bolted to a vent at the top that fed into the chimney. Those bolts were the only things holding the stove in place—but they were stubborn. One bolt in particular had a soft, rounded head that my wrench struggled to grip. The working space was tight, so between my longer reach and Sherry’s shorter arms, we had to improvise. After some effort, ash-covered hands, and a few scraped knuckles, we unbolted the insert and detached it from the vent.
Extracting Bart from the fireplace was a workout. He was unexpectedly heavy, and sliding him out required a bit of maneuvering and a piece of scrap cardboard to ease the process. The fireplace shifted from a closed-in insert to an open firebox in a single afternoon, and although the result wasn’t pretty at first, it felt like a major safety win for our household.
After the physical labor came cleanup. I scrubbed the interior of the firebox with warm water and mild soap to remove soot and grime, while Sherry did the heroic job of removing a stubborn circular glue blotch on the brick near the top-left of the firebox. The metal flashing had peeled off easily, but the gummy adhesive resisted until she carefully sliced it away with a utility knife. The result is far cleaner and a much safer space for our daughter.
Bart now lives in our dining room, out of Clara’s regular reach, awaiting a decision: Craigslist, a local donation program, or another buyer who appreciates a classic woodstove insert. Meanwhile, the fireplace itself is the focus of short-term cosmetic plans and longer-term design options.
Next steps for the fireplace: paint the firebox a dark charcoal to even out the stained brick, then paint the brick surround and mantel. We’re leaning toward a bright glossy white for the surround to contrast with planned wall colors in the kitchen. Beyond paint, we’re considering tiling, beefing up or reframing the mantel, or extending the surround to the ceiling to add height and presence. We also still plan to explore the double-sided fireplace option down the road. For now we’ll take these updates one step at a time and share details as we go.
Have you ever removed a wood stove or fireplace insert? Was online guidance limited or unhelpful for your situation? Do you have a child who’s obsessed with a heat source like ours was? We’d love to hear other people’s experiences and tips—especially if you’ve sold or donated a similar unit and can share what worked best.
We’re also sharing a simple, affordable kids’ art corner idea over on BabyCenter today—check out family-focused project ideas for small spaces and practical solutions for toddler-safe creativity.