Are you redecorating your living room or even your wall-mount fireplace with a mantel shelf entire home? Are you just trying to bring some life back into your old fireplace? Are you simply trying to find out what kind of mantel you should go with for your brand-new electrical fireplace? If any of these sound like they could be you, then we are definitely here to help.
What is the point in spending all of that money on a high-end electrical fireplace if the fireplace mantel surround doesn’t do it justice? You want to make sure that your fireplace mantel will be a beautiful focal point when someone walks into your home.
This post is going to cover everything you need to know about electric fireplace mantels and give you plenty of ideas no matter what kind of styling you have going on in your home.
All About Fireplace Mantels
- The Several Different Electrical Fireplace Types To Choose From – If you are still someone who doesn’t yet have an electric fireplace and you are thinking about getting one soon, this section will go over the many different types that you can find. It’s important to make sure you know what kind of electric fireplace you will be getting before you choose a mantel because not all fireplace mantels will fit or look good with every electric fireplace that is out there.
- The Importance of Investing In A Quality Electrical Fireplace – A lot of people fall into the trap of spending money on a generic electrical fireplace because they saw it was a good deal. You need to make sure you are choosing a top-of-the-line fireplace for your home or you can be facing a lot of regrets. This section will explain all of the benefits that come with investing in a proper electrical fireplace from a solid company.
- What Kind of Style Do You Currently Have In Your Home? – Before you even think about picking a fireplace mantel, you have to be completely aware of the style you currently have so that you know what will go well with it. If you are completely remodeling your home or the room the fireplace is in, that makes this process even easier and you will have a larger selection of styles to choose from as you nail down your home decor style.
- What Are Some Fireplace Mantel Ideas That Will Fit My Electric Fireplace? – Fireplace mantels and the brands that create them are a varied lot. There are way more options than a simple wood fireplace mantel. This section will cover many different high-quality mantel ideas for you to run with.
- How Should I Decorate My New Fireplace Mantle? – Need an idea for a great mantelpiece? This section will give you some tips on how to decorate your new fireplace mantel shelf without making it too cluttered or tacky looking.
- Is It Worth Getting A MagikFlame Fireplace? – It’s no secret that MagikFlame produces some of the most realistic electrical fireplaces on the market. However, many people don’t know that they offer so much more than that. This section will give all of the important facts about these amazing holographic flame fireplaces and why you can’t go wrong with one, no matter the mantel you choose.
The Several Different Electrical Fireplace Types To Choose From
Whether you still haven’t purchased an electrical fireplace or you just need to know what type of electrical fireplace you already have so you can properly match a mantel to it, here is the list of all of those different types:
- Complete Electrical Fireplace With Mantel Included – Many companies actually sell electrical fireplaces and the mantel as a combination unit to make it even easier on homeowners. Sometimes these fireplaces come as a single piece that is already connected, but most companies actually have it come in two pieces. This is because the fireplace unit that does all of the work will usually be the same for that company, but they give customers several different mantel styles to choose from that will be sent with it for easy installation. Most of the time, these will be units that are placed on the ground against the wall. Additionally, you can pick up these as a corner unit if you have a lot less space to work with or if a fireplace in the corner just makes more sense aesthetically.
- Media Centers With Electric Fireplaces Built In – If you are in a small apartment or just like the idea of consolidating your furniture into fewer items to save space, you might consider a fireplace that is also a Fireplace TV stand. Espresso is one popular company that makes these. The solid wood TV stands are sturdy enough to handle a large TV while the fireplace below remains reliable. Of course, if you purchased one of these units, you really wouldn’t need any fireplace mantels at all since it doesn’t look like a traditional fireplace.
- Electric Fireplace Insert – For people that have a traditional fireplace that burns wooden logs in the firebox for heat, they can convert it by installing one of these electrical inserts. These essentially fit right into the open firebox of an old fireplace. Usually, people who do this, don’t have to worry about fireplace mantels because they already have one attached to the existing fireplace structure. However, these are exactly what you will want to buy if you are planning to get a mantle from a company that is different from the one that makes your electric fireplace.
- Wall Mount And Recessed Electric Fireplaces – Instead of installing an electric fireplace on the ground, you can get fireplaces that mount off the ground and onto the wall. They use sturdy wall brackets attached securely to several studs in the wall so it can keep the heavy fireplace from crashing to the floor. For the simplest installation, these are just mounted onto the wall. For some more interesting and modern looks, these can be recessed directly into the drywall. They can be partially recessed with a small lip jutting out, or they can be completely recessed to sit flush with the wall for a really clean look. You might think that you can’t put a mantle over these since they are already a couple of feet off of the ground, and you would be right about that. However, these fireplaces allow a new way to install a mantle, below the wall-mount fireplace. Of course, you wouldn’t want to use a traditional mantel just below it. Instead, you would use a fireplace mantel shelf without legs. Instead of legs, it would hold itself up with a cleat on either side that is also attached to the studs. In place of cleats, you can use corbels under the mantel shelf. Keep in mind that installing a wall-mount electric fireplace with a mantel shelf is an excellent way to break from tradition and go with something more modern. It opens up a lot of interior design possibilities.
- Freestanding Electric Fireplaces – Picture a portable space heater that you can easily move from room to room and plug it in wherever you need it. This is essentially the same as that except these freestanding heaters are made to look like fireplaces in their design aesthetic. The problem with these is that portable electrical fireplaces like this usually fall short on quality in almost every category. First, they aren’t nearly as safe because they can be tripped over more easily or they can tip over and break or cause injury. Their built-in heaters usually aren’t that powerful and don’t work nearly as well as a proper, high-end electrical fireplace that you install against a wall in some fashion. The visual flame effects of these cheap fireplaces are really bad. Just like the heating element, they will never compare to the superior flame visuals that a larger, top-tier electrical fireplace provides.
The Importance of Investing In A Quality Electrical Fireplace
Electrical fireplaces already have so many different strengths that make them better than wood or gas fireplaces. They are more environmentally friendly and cost-effective when it comes to the heating bill you get every month. You aren’t required to install venting with electric fireplaces. As long as it isn’t right next to the blower, you don’t have to worry about any combustible materials around the electrical fireplace since there is no flame present. You can easily place a TV above the mantel shelf without worrying about the hot smoke from a fireplace ruining it.
Given all these points, there is still one thing to keep in mind: not all of the different electrical fireplaces out there are on the same level. For many reasons, it is very important to invest in the best possible fireplace that you can afford. Here are a few of those reasons:
- Efficient Heating – Investing in a better electrical fireplace with a powerfully efficient heater inside of it means a single fireplace will keep a much larger area warm. Really good electrical fireplaces can easily warm a 1,000 square feet area or more. This means it would be able to heat an apartment or condo, a small house, a very large room, or several rooms of a large house. For really big houses, high-end fireplaces also have something called supplemental zone heating. This means that you put enough fireplaces in different rooms to cover everywhere. Using the same remote or smartphone app for all of them, you can make sure fireplaces are only switched on when people are occupying that part of the house. Regardless if you need one fireplace or multiple for a larger home, a high-quality electrical fireplace will save you so much on your heating bill, it is like it is paying for itself.
- Better Safety – The high-end electrical fireplaces are the ones with all of the best safety features. Low-end fireplaces are lacking and could cause you a lot more problems than they are worth. High-end fireplaces have features like overheat detection. If something is causing the fireplace to overheat, it will instantly initiate an auto shutdown so no damage can be done. It will also show an error code so you can easily look up the code in the owner’s money to troubleshoot it. Usually, it is something simple like the blower was blocked. Many cheap electrical fireplaces don’t have all of these features. They overheat, break, and even cause damage to your home or an injury. Since safety is important, getting the best fireplace you can is vital.
- Longer Lasting – When you invest in an electric fireplace that is on the high luxury end of the spectrum, you can be confident that it will last for years and years to come. Top-of-the-line fireplaces are always built with better materials, and higher quality parts, and the workmanship that goes into building the unit is always higher. On the other hand, low-end fireplaces have shoddy workmanship, and possibly defective parts, and the materials they are made with can be wanting. This means that the fireplace will break down in a very short amount of time and you will need to replace it. This is reflected in their terrible warranty that barely covers anything and doesn’t last that long. High-end fireplaces always have much better warranties because they are so confident in their product. They truly seem to take pride in their ability to meet the customers’ needs.
- Superior Fireplace Experience – Bottom-rung electrical fireplaces always have the worst flame effect visuals and usually don’t come with any additional features. The really bad fireplaces just have lights pointed at a spinning mechanical piece to reflect the lights as some sort of incredibly basic flickering flames. If you make the wise decision to choose a quality electrical fireplace like MagikFlame, you can expect things like 3D hologram flames that genuinely look like the real thing. You can expect things like realistic auditory log crackling so it sounds like you are standing in a room with a real fireplace. You can expect many more features, all easily controlled by an intuitive smartphone app.
What Kind of Style Do You Currently Have In Your Home?
Before you choose your new mantel, you need to know what kind of style you are already working with so it matches. If you are redecorating your home, make sure the new mantel fits that style. If you already have an interior decorating and architectural style that won’t be changing, it is even that much more important that your new mantel matches.
Do you have a country style? Maybe you are looking for a floating shelf or traditional mantel that is hand-hewn from barn wood or alder.
Do you have a lot of masonry on the wall behind your fireplace? Maybe you want a cast-stone fireplace mantel. A cast stone fireplace mantel might even look good if you have a lot of rustic cabinetry or shelving nearby to juxtapose the different colors and textures of the materials.
Are you looking for something more modern or unique? You can install a recessed, wall-mount electrical fireplace and then just below it mount a floating shelf with alder again, but this time it has a colorful resin inlay.
Just make sure that whatever mantel you pick, the styling of your mantel compliments the styling of the rest of the house instead of fighting against it. Although there are some really cool mantels in pictures online, they might not look right in your house because the room you put it in is decorated so differently than the pictures you got the idea from. That being said, what a wonderful excuse to remodel and redecorate the entire room.
What Are Some Fireplace Mantel Ideas That Will Fit My Electric Fireplace?
Besides the ideas above, the best way to get ideas is to search online. You can search on Google for mantel ideas or go to a website like Pearl Mantels. Pearl Mantels has a lot of different mantels to choose from. You can get a Crestwood mantle that is made out of MDF. MDF is a composite wood material commonly used in a fireplace surround. You can also choose a Berkley mantel from them that is paint grade. For real wood, they have beautiful mantels made out of Shenandoah pine.
For even more ideas, you can check out the Dogberry collection. Dogberry offers a lot of rustic fireplaces for people that are more interested in that sort of thing. They pay particular attention to the wood quality and grain for a rustic fireplace that still has a luxury feel.
The goal when looking for ideas is to find many different ones that catch your eye. Then, while looking at the product pictures and setting examples, see if they will fit the aesthetic of your home, or how you might be able to tweak things to make it work.
How Should I Decorate My New Fireplace Mantle?
Decorating the mantel of your electric fireplace comes mostly down to your personal taste. There are a few tips you should keep in mind though. First, remember that less is almost always more. This means that by choosing fewer, interesting items, your fireplace will look a lot more interesting than if you filled the mantle with lots of small lackluster decorations. Aim for no more than two to five pieces to place on your mantle.
Things that look good on mantles are:
- High-End Candles That Match Your Decorating Colors
- Interesting Art
- A Family Portrait Take During A Professional Photo Shoot
- A large Mirror To Make The Space Feel Larger
- A High-End Ornate Clock
These are just a few ideas. When looking for mantle styles, you can also see how the mantles are decorated in a lot of the pictures and get more ideas for decorating that way. Just be sure your personality is still coming through and you’re not just copying the picture without a second thought.
Is It Worth Getting A MagikFlame Fireplace?
MagikFlame Electric Fireplaces are absolutely worth every penny. The fireplaces themselves are the most realistic due to their holographic flame technology. Real crackling log sounds are sure to impress any of your guests when they don’t even realize the fireplace is electric. Warmth won’t be an issue with a 5,200 BTU heater inside.
MagikFlame fireplaces can be bought separately to go with a mantle you already have or will be purchasing. However, they also have many mantles to choose from. Not only are their modern electric fireplace mantel styles aesthetically pleasing, but you know the MagikFlame fireplace unit will fit them perfectly.
MagikFlame fireplaces are easy to use with the smartphone app. The app has large, graphical buttons so you can quickly get to the setting you want to change.
Additional Sources:
https://www.countryliving.com/home-design/decorating-ideas/advice/g677/fireplace-designs/?slide=3
https://www.pearlmantels.com/
