IKEA HAVSTA and BILLY Built-ins Around an Amantii Electric Fireplace

Chris of HandyDadTV helped his friend Joe turn a living room into a space with a permanent electric fireplace, built-in cabinets and a custom mantle. The cabinets came from IKEA: two HAVSTA cabinets and two BILLY bookcases, paired with an Amantii TRD-33 bespoke electric fireplace. Two earlier electrical videos in the project covered moving a wall switch to make way for the bookcase and adding outlets for the fireplace and TV.

Planning and bases

The plan was drawn in SketchUp first, so the materials list was known up front: the IKEA pieces, pine boards, 2x3s for the mantle, baseboard, crown molding, other trim and LED strips. The stock bases on the HAVSTA cabinets did not match the height of the baseboard, so they were removed and replaced with bases built from 2x6s, attached to the studs with long screws.

Outlets and fitting the cabinets

The video states it is a code violation to cover outlets behind permanent cabinets. The cabinet backs were therefore cut so the outlets are reachable from inside, which also powers the lights and the cable box. The cabinets were fastened to the wall with drywall anchors and to the bases with small trim head screws. The distance from the cabinet tops to the crown molding was measured and the bookcases were cut down to fit, with painter's tape on the cut line to minimize chipping.

The mantle

The mantle is a hollow facade around the fireplace. Three frames were made from 2×3 lumber: a vertical frame at the front to hold tile, and two horizontal frames that attach to the wall and hold the fireplace. Hardy Board was screwed to the frame to form the surround for the tile. The legs were made of 1×8, 1×4 and 1×2 pine, glued and nailed together. A 1×10 apron sits on two small 1x2s on the legs, and the 18 in. deep shelf is supported by the apron and a cleat on the wall.

The glass Arabesque tile was hard to cut even with a wet saw. A temporary cleat around the opening kept the tile from sliding while it dried. It was tiled one day and grouted the next morning.

Lighting

The LED kit came with two 5 m rolls of strips, cut to the shelf lengths and connected with 24 gauge speaker wire. The wire and the copper pads on the strips were tinned before connecting. Because the lights use DC current, polarity matters: the striped wire went to the positive side, and the lights were tested after every connection. The power supply sits inside one of the cabinets with the control nearby, and the lights have memory, so a smart plug could be used.

Trim and finish

The old crown molding above the bookcases was left in place, and the new crown was coped and caulked to match it. The bookcases were attached to the wall with the included L brackets. Matching crown and baseboard make the stock cabinets look built into the room. Box molding went on the front of the mantle with a pin nailer, using spacer blocks for positioning, and an outlet was installed in the mantle shelf for Christmas decorations.

The fireplace

The Amantii TRD-33 is a traditional, tall-shaped model, as opposed to a wider linear one. It comes with a 5-year warranty, can be used indoors or out, and has a speaker with artificial crackling, many flame and media options, Wi-Fi and a thermostatic remote. It is pre-wired with a standard 120 volt plug and has two heat levels, 750 W and 1465 W. Chris found the crackling too artificial and the mood lighting too bright, since it cannot be dimmed. The common thread across his fireplace builds, he says, is IKEA cabinets and lighting in the built-ins.