Hi moto,

I did exactly that, except it is a stone fpl. So far .... less than a year, so good. I assume some day it will be a project ... but if it is old, mottled and imperfect, I doubt much will show.

It's simply against OTK design code.

CindyKlein, great to see you again.

Thanks Mtnrd, good for you, good for me.

If it's a brick fireplace, can you paint it? My guess is it would look just like subway tiles. Depending on the color, it could also be to OTK code and therefore make cindyklein very happy.

Is it a freestanding stove with a raised control / display panel in the back? Or a slide in type?

We have had really good luck with not putting a backsplash behind our freestanding stoves, so I personally would go for it. I love the aesthetics of brick in the kitchen.

If it's a slide-in though then it would be much riskier in terms of being more easily exposed to spills, splatters, etc.

It would be lovely and so authentic to the house. I see a lot of brick and natural stone in photos so the best way is to try it and see if it works for you. Check with a tile store for sealers that work on masonry.

I'm planning on using natural stone for a backsplash and behind the cooktop too.

I have brick behind my stove. 3 years running and no problems. as mtnrd said, mine is the old, mottled, imperfect look so VERY rarely do i even have to clean it. but there have been a few splats here and there and they wipe off with cleaner and a rag. once there was some grease splat and i used a scrub brush and it was gone no problem.

Thank you everyone. My stove is an old Thermador with the high stainless steel and shelf. I would like to take that back part off and swap it with an 'island' type back though because (i) it is discolored from the heat of the burner and I can't for the life of me get that to come out; and (ii) even though the shelf has vents in it, it seems like a lot of grease would get caught there instead of blowing up into the baffles which can be cleaned.

I'm going to try some sealer on the brick first and if that doesn't work at the end of the day, I also like the idea of putting a distressed copper sheet behind the stove. This part of the kitchen will be done a while before cabinets so I will have time to play with it while still having contractors mulling about to fix things.

I sometimes think this is the longest running kitchen project ever - until I hear about enterprising DIY's going for 3 years. I could get myself in all kinds of design envy trouble if I went that long :)

Moto....I forgot to tell you that my tile conctractor applied 3 coats of the sealer he put on the range art. I think those extra layers have made a huge difference in how well it has held up with all of the cooking over the years. So, something you might want to consider.

We have rough-faced quartzite behind our stove. I wondered what I might be getting myself into, but sealed it with stone sealer and it's perfectly fine. Of course, it's not the smooth, glossy, easy-to-wipe surface that ceramic subways are, but it's not discoloring or staining, and isn't that hard to wipe off. I believe it helps that we installed the rangetop about 3 inches out from the wall in order to flush out with deeper countertops to each side. A lot of the splashes land on the spacer in between the stove and wall, instead of getting on the stone.

Here is a link that might be useful: Backsplash pics and info