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Ancient fire pits were sometimes built from the ground, in caves, or in the middle of a hut or dwelling. Evidence of ancient, man-made fires is present on all five inhabited continents. The drawback of early indoor fire pits was that they produced toxic and/or annoying smoke inside the dwelling.Fire pits developed into raised hearths in structures, but venting smoke relied on open windows or openings in roofs. The medieval great hall typically had a centrally located hearth, where a open flame burnt with the smoke rising to the port in the roof. Louvers were developed during the Middle Ages to enable the roof vents to be covered so snow and rain would not enter.

Additionally throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to stop smoke from spreading through a room and vent it outside via a ceiling or wall. These could be placed against rock walls, rather than taking up the center of the room, and this allowed smaller chambers to be warmed.Chimneys were invented in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the issue of fumes, more reliably venting smoke out. They made it feasible to provide the fireplace a draft, and made it possible to place fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings conveniently. They did not come into general usage immediately, however, since they were more expensive to build and maintain.

The 18th century saw two important developments in the history of fireplaces. Benjamin Franklin developed a convection chamber for the fireplace which greatly enhanced the efficacy of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he improved the airflow by pulling air from a basement and venting a longer area at the top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford made a fireplace using a tall, shallow firebox that was better at drawing up the smoke and from the construction. The shallow design also improved greatly the quantity of radiant warmth projected to the space. Rumford's design is the foundation for modern fireplaces.

The Aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s took on a more conventional spectra based on stone and deflected unnecessary ornamentation. Instead it relied on simple designs with little unnecessary ornamentation. In the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, in which the emphasis was still placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces now have been a sign of prosperity, which to some degree is still the notion today.A fireplace is a structure made of brick, stone or metal made to include a fire. Fireplaces are used for its relaxing ambiance that they create and also for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficacy, depending upon the design.

Historically they were used for heating a dwelling, cooking, and heating water for domestic and laundry uses. A fireplace may have the following: a base, a hearth, a firebox, a mantelpiece; a chimney crane (used in kitchen and laundry fireplaces), a grate, a lintel, a lintel pub, house overmantel, a damper, a smoke room, a neck, a flue, and a chimney filter or afterburner.

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On the exterior there's often a corbeled brick crown, where the casting courses of brick function as a drip course to keep rainwater from running down the outside walls. A cap, hood, or shroud functions to keep rainwater from the exterior of the chimney; rain at the chimney is a far larger problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metallic liners compared with the standard masonry chimney, which soaks up all but the rain. Some chimneys have a spark arrestor incorporated into the cap or crown.

Organizations like the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Washington Department of Ecology warn that, according to various studies, fireplaces could pose a substantial health threat. The EPA writes"Smoke may smell great, but it is not good for you.

Types of fireplacesManufactured fireplaces are made with sheet glass or metal fire boxes.Electric fireplaces can be built-in replacements for either gas or wood or retrofit with log inserts or electrical fireboxes.

Ventless Fireplaces (duct free/room-venting fireplaces) are fueled by gel, liquid propane, bottled gas or natural gas. In the USA, some states and local businesses have laws restricting these kinds of fireplaces. They must be suitably sized to the area to be heated. Additionally, there are air quality control issues due to the amount of moisture that they release into the room air, and oxygen detector and carbon monoxide sensors are security essentials. Direct vent fireplaces are fueled by either liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed from the place that is heated, and port all exhaust gasses into the exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the inside, common in recent Western cultures comprise grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire dogs, all of which cradle gas and quicken burning. A grate (or fire grate) is a frame, usually of iron bars, to maintain fuel for a fire. Heavy metal firebacks are sometimes utilized to capture and re-radiate warmth, to safeguard the back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames placed in front of the fireplace to include embers, soot and ashes. Other wider accessories can consist of log baskets, companion sets, coal buckets, cabinet accessories and more.

Over time, the intent behind fireplaces has transformed from one of requirement to one of interest. Early ones were more fire pits compared to contemporary fireplaces. They were used for warmth on chilly days and nights, as well as for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place within the house. These fire pits were usually based within a space, allowing more people to gather around it.

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Many defects were found in ancient fireplace designs. The most renowned fireplace designers of the period were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a style of fireplace design which has been used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly colored, with an emphasis on the quality of the substances used in their construction, instead of their size.

From the 1800s newest fireplaces were made up of 2 parts, the surround and the insert. The encircle consisted of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, marble or granite. The fit was fire burnt, and was built of cast iron often backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing heat, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were thought to add a cozy ambiance into houses.

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Some fireplace units include a blower which transports more of the fireplace's heat to the atmosphere via convection, resulting in a more evenly heated space and a lower heating load. Fireplace efficiency is also enhanced by means of a fireback, a piece of metal which sits behind the flame and reflects heat back into the room. Firebacks are traditionally produced from cast iron, but can also be made from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complicated concept although with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficacy tests consider only the impact of heating of the air. An open fireplace is not, and never was, designed to warm the atmosphere. A fireplace with a fireback is a toaster, and has done so since the 15th century. The ideal way to gauge the output signal of a fireplace is in case you detect you're turning the thermostat down or up.

Most older fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency score. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum requirement for example in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces can also be modified by inserting special heavy fireboxes developed to burn much cleaner and can reach efficiencies as high as 80 percent in heating the atmosphere. These modified fireplaces are often equipped with a large fire window, enabling an efficient heating system in two phases. During the first phase the initial heat is provided through a big glass window while the fire is burning. During this time the structure, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the warmth. This warmth is then equally radiated for many hours during the next phase. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window only provide heat radiated from its surface. Depending on outside temperatures 1 to two daily firings are sufficient to ensure a constant room temperature.fireplace mantel