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Ancient fire pits were sometimes constructed from the ground, in caves, or at the center of a hut or home. Evidence of prehistoric, man-made fires exists on all five inhabited continents. The disadvantage of early indoor fire pits was that they generated hazardous or irritating smoke within the house.Fire pits developed into raised hearths in structures, but ventilation smoke depended on open windows or openings in roofs. The great hall typically had a centrally situated hearth, where an open fire burnt with all the smoke climbing into the port in the roof. Louvers were developed throughout the Middle Ages to enable the roof vents to be covered so rain and snow wouldn't enter.

Also during the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to stop smoke from dispersing an area and vent it outside through a ceiling or wall. These can be put against rock walls, instead of taking up the center of the room, and this enabled smaller rooms to be heated.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and mostly fixed the problem of fumes, more reliably venting smoke out. They made it feasible to provide the fireplace a draft, and made it feasible to place fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings handily. They did not come into general usage instantly, however, since they were expensive to develop and maintain.

In 1678 Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, raised the grate of the fireplace, improving the airflow and venting system. 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 basement and venting out a longer area at the top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace using a tall, shallow firebox which has been better at drawing up the smoke and out of the construction. The shallow design improved greatly the amount of radiant heat projected into the room. Rumford's layout is the foundation for modern kitchens.

The Aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s took on a more conventional spectra based on rock and deflected unnecessary ornamentation. Rather it depended on simple layouts with small unnecessary ornamentation. In the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces at this time were a symbol of prosperity, which to some degree remains the idea today.A fireplace is a construction made from brick, stone or metal made to contain a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for its relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficiency, based on the plan.

Historically they were utilized for heating a home, cooking, and heating water for laundry and domestic uses. A fireplace might have the following: a base, a hearth, a firebox, a mantelpiece; a chimney (utilized 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 frequently 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 cap, hood, or shroud functions to keep rainwater out of 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 divides up all but the rain. Some 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 various studies, fireplaces could pose a substantial health risk. The EPA writes"Smoke may smell good, but it is not great for you.

Kinds of fireplacesManufactured fireplaces are made out of sheet glass or metal flame boxes.Electric fireplaces could be built-in replacements for either gas or wood or retrofit with log inserts or electric fireboxes.A couple of types are, wall mounted electric fireplaces, electric fireplace stoves, electrical mantel fireplaces and fixed or free standing electric fireplaces.

In the United States, several states and local counties have laws restricting these types of fireplaces. They need to be suitably sized to the area to be heated. There are also air quality control issues due to the amount of moisture that they release in the room atmosphere, and oxygen sensor and carbon monoxide sensors are security essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are completely sealed from the area that is heated, and port all exhaust gasses to the exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the interior, common in current Western cultures include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire puppies, all of which cradle gas and quicken burning. A grate (or flame grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to retain fuel to your fire. Heavy metal firebacks are occasionally utilized to catch and re-radiate warmth, to protect the back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames placed before the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ash.

Over time, the intent behind fireplaces has changed from one of requirement to one of visual interest. Early ones were more fire pits compared to modern fireplaces. They have been used for heat on cold days and nights, in addition to for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place within the home. These fire pits were usually centered within a space, allowing more individuals to collect around it.

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Many defects were found in ancient fireplace designs. Together with the Industrial Revolution, came large scale housing developments, necessitating a standardization of fireplaces. The most famous fireplace performers of this time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a kind of fireplace design that has been used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly colored, with an emphasis on the level of the materials used in their construction, as opposed to their size.

From the 1800s newest fireplaces were made up of two parts, the surround as well as the insert. The encircle comprised of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, marble or granite. The insert was fire burned, and was built of cast iron often backed with decorative tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian age were believed to add a cozy ambiance to homes.

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Some fireplace units include a blower which transports more of the fireplace's heat to the air via convection, leading to a more evenly heated space and a decrease 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 are also manufactured from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complicated concept though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficiency tests consider only the impact of heating of the air. An open fireplace isn't, and never was, designed to warm the air. The ideal way to gauge the output signal of a fireplace is if you notice you are turning the thermostat up or down.

Most elderly fireplaces have a comparatively low efficiency rating. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces still possess an efficiency rating of 80% (legal minimum requirement for example in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces may also be modified by inserting special heavy fireboxes designed to burn cleaner and may reach efficiencies as large as 80% in heating the air. These altered fireplaces are usually equipped with a large fire window, enabling an efficient heating system in two stages. During the first phase the initial heat is offered through a large glass window while the flame is burning. During this time the structure, built of refractory bricks, absorbs the warmth. This warmth is then equally radiated for several hours during the next stage. Masonry fireplaces with no glass fire window just provide heat radiated from the surface. Depending on temperatures 1 to two daily firings are sufficient to guarantee a constant room temperature.fireplace insert