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Historical fire pits were sometimes constructed in 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 premature indoor flame pits was that they generated toxic and/or annoying smoke inside the dwelling.Fire pits developed into raised hearths in structures, but ventilation smoke relied on open windows or holes in roofs. The medieval great hall typically needed a centrally situated hearth, where an open fire burned with all the smoke rising to the vent in the roof. Louvers were developed throughout the Middle Ages to allow the roof vents to be coated so rain and snow would not enter.

Additionally throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to stop smoke from dispersing an area and vent it outside via a ceiling or wall. These can be placed against stone walls, instead of taking up the middle of the room, and this enabled smaller chambers to be warmed.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the problem of fumes, more reliably venting smoke out. They made it feasible to provide the fireplace a draft, and also made it feasible to place fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings handily. They did not come into general usage immediately, however, as they were expensive to build and maintain.

Benjamin Franklin developed a convection chamber for the fireplace which greatly improved the efficiency of fireplaces and wood stoves. He also enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting out a lengthier area on very top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford made a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox that was better at drawing up the smoke and out of the building. The shallow design also improved greatly the quantity of radiant heat projected to the space. Rumford's layout is the basis for modern kitchens.

Instead it relied on simple designs with small unnecessary ornamentation. From the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, in which the emphasis was still placed on supplying quality gems. Stone fireplaces now were a sign of prosperity, which to some degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a construction made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for its relaxing ambiance they create and also for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficacy, based on the plan.

Historically they were utilized for heating a home, cooking, and heating water for laundry and domestic uses.

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On the exterior there's often a corbeled brick crown, in which the projecting courses of brick function as a drip route to keep rainwater from running down the exterior walls. A hood, cap, or shroud serves to keep rainwater from the exterior of the chimney; rain in the chimney is a far greater problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners compared with the standard masonry chimney, that soaks up all but the rain. A few chimneys have a spark arrestor integrated into the cap or crown.

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

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

In the United States, several states and local counties have laws restricting these types of fireplaces. There are also air quality control problems because of the quantity of moisture that they release into the room atmosphere, and oxygen detector and carbon dioxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces are fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are completely sealed in the place that's heated, and vent all exhaust gasses to the outside of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the inside, common in current Western civilizations comprise grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire dogs, all which cradle gas and quicken burning. A grate (or fire grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to maintain fuel to your fire. Heavy metal firebacks are sometimes used to capture and re-radiate warmth, to safeguard the back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metallic frames placed in front of the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ashes. For fireplace tending, tools comprise pokers, bellows, tongs, shovels, brushes and tool racks.

As time passes, the purpose of fireplaces has changed from one of necessity to one of visual interest. Early ones were more fire pits compared to modern fireplaces. They have been used for heat on chilly days and nights, in addition to for cooking. They also served as a gathering place inside the house. These fire pits were generally centered within a room, allowing more individuals to gather around it.

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Many flaws were found in ancient fireplace designs. Together with the Industrial Revolution, came big scale housing developments, necessitating a standardization of fireplaces. The most renowned fireplace designers of the time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a style of fireplace design that has been used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly lit, with an emphasis on the level of the substances used in their construction, instead of their size.

From the 1800s most new fireplaces were made up of 2 parts, the surround and the add. The surround consisted of the mantlepiece and sides affirms, typically in wood, marble or granite. The insert was where the fire burnt, and was constructed of cast iron often backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian age were believed to bring a cozy ambiance to homes.

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Some fireplace units incorporate a blower which transports more of the fireplace's heat to the air via convection, leading to a more evenly heated space and a lower heating load. Fireplace efficiency can also be increased by means of a fireback, a sheet of metal that sits behind the fire and reflects heat back into the room. Firebacks are traditionally made from cast iron, but can also be made from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complex concept though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficiency tests consider just the effect of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, intended to warm the atmosphere. The best way to gauge the output of a fireplace is if you notice you're turning the thermostat up or down.

Most older fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency score. Standard, modern, wood-burning masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of 80% (legal minimum necessity for example in Salzburg/Austria). To improve efficiency, fireplaces can also be altered by inserting special heavy fireboxes developed to burn cleaner and may reach efficiencies as large as 80 percent in heating the atmosphere. These modified fireplaces are usually equipped with a massive fire window, allowing an efficient heating system in two stages. During the first stage the first heat is provided through a large glass window while the flame is burning. In this time period the structure, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the warmth. This warmth is then equally radiated for many hours during the second phase. Masonry fireplaces with no glass fire window only provide heat radiated from its surface. Based on temperatures 1 to 2 daily firings are sufficient to guarantee a constant room temperature.glass fireplace screen