On this job in Murrieta CA (Greer Ranch), we removed one of the standard builder plaster mantels and replaced it with a custom mantel that also served as an entertainment center for the TV.
This is the mantel that was existing in the home. It’s pretty standard for builders to install these. The biggest complaint we get is that the shelf of these mantels could be wider. It’s hard to fit anything to display on top of them.
To the left of this mantel was the niche for the entertainment center. The homeowners didn’t like the way the furniture had to be set up in the room towards the niche. They wanted more seating and for that to work, the TV had to go over the fireplace.
So, we removed the existing fireplace and custom built a wider hearth. Then, we built a new fireplace mantel that went from the floor to the ceiling.
We hid all the wires down the leg of the mantel and ran them out of the bottom of the hearth. So, behind the TV is a couple HMDI cables and the power hook up.
We put some wide plank bead board hung horizontally inside the TV space to match a picture that the customer had given to me.
We then installed the crown molding over the mantel and continued it around the entire family room and kitchen. We actually did a bunch of rooms of crown molding in this house, including some 2 story ceilings and a couple vaulted ceilings.
The finished product really came out great! We made the TV niche wide enough to accommodate a 55″ TV in the future, but the existing TV looks really nice in there too.
What is really surprising about this job was that another bid came in at literally 1o times the cost of what we bid the job for. Wow!
The entire job from start to finish took about 4 1/2 days including the painting… just in time for the homeowners to enjoy their new room on a Friday night with friends.
