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Historical fire pits were sometimes constructed in the ground, within caves, or in the center of a hut or home. Evidence of prehistoric, man-made flames is present on all five inhabited continents. The disadvantage of early indoor fire pits was that they produced toxic and/or annoying smoke inside the house.Fire pits developed into raised hearths in buildings, but ventilation smoke depended on open windows or holes in roofs. The medieval great hall typically had a centrally situated hearth, where a open flame burned with all the smoke rising to the port in the roof. Louvers were developed during the Middle Ages to allow the roof vents to be covered so snow and rain would not enter.

Also throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to prevent smoke from dispersing an area and vent it outside via a wall or roof. These could be placed against rock walls, rather than taking up the middle of the space, and this enabled smaller chambers to be warmed.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the problem of fumes, more reliably venting smoke outside. They made it feasible to provide the fireplace a draft, and made it feasible to put fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings handily. They didn't come into general usage immediately, however, since they were more expensive to build and maintain.

In 1678 Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, increased the grate of the fireplace, improving the venting and airflow system. The 18th century saw two important developments in the history of fireplaces. Benjamin Franklin developed a convection chamber for the fireplace that greatly improved the efficiency of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting out a longer area on very top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox that 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 space. Rumford's layout is the foundation for modern kitchens.

The Aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s took to a more conventional spectra based on stone and also deflected unnecessary ornamentation. Instead it depended on simple layouts with little unnecessary ornamentation. In the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way to the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was still placed on providing quality stone. Stone fireplaces at this time have been a symbol of wealth, which to some degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a structure made of brick, stone or metal made to include a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for its relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficacy, depending on the plan.

Historically they have been utilized for heating a home, cooking, and heating water for laundry and domestic uses. A fire is contained in a firebox or firepit; a chimney or other flue allows exhaust to escape.

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On the exterior there is frequently a corbeled brick crown, where the projecting courses of brick function as a drip route to keep rainwater from running down the exterior walls. A hood, cap, or shroud functions to keep rainwater from the outside of the chimney; rain at the chimney is a much larger difficulty in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metallic liners compared with the traditional masonry chimney, which divides up all but the most violent rain. A few chimneys have a spark arrestor incorporated into the crown or cap.

The EPA writes"Smoke may smell great, but it's not great for you.

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

Masonry and prefabricated fireplaces can be fueled by wood, natural gas, biomass and gas fuel sources. In the USA, several states and local counties have laws restricting these kinds of fireplaces. There are also air quality control issues due to the quantity of moisture they discharge into the room air, and oxygen detector and carbon monoxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by either liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed in the place that's heated, and vent all exhaust gasses to the outside of the structure.

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AccessoriesA vast assortment of accessories are used with fireplaces, which range between states, regions, and historical periods. For the inside, common in recent Western civilizations include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire puppies, all of 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 metallic firebacks are occasionally used to capture and re-radiate warmth, to safeguard the back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metallic frames set in front of the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ashes.

Over time, the intent behind fireplaces has transformed from one of necessity to one of visual interest. Early ones were fire pits compared to contemporary fireplaces. They were used for heat on cold days and nights, as well as for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place inside the home. These fire pits were generally centered within a space, allowing more individuals to gather around it.

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Many defects were found in ancient fireplace designs. Along with the Industrial Revolution, came big scale housing developments, necessitating a standardization of fireplaces. The most renowned fireplace performers of the time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a style of fireplace design that was used for generations. It had been smaller, more brightly lit, with a emphasis on the quality 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 surround comprised of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, granite or marble. The insert was where the fire burned, and was built of cast iron frequently backed with decorative tiles. In addition to providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian age were thought to add a cozy ambiance into homes.

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Some fireplace units include a blower which transfers 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 with the use of a fireback, a piece of metal which sits behind the flame 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 complicated concept although with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficacy tests consider only the effect of heating of the air. An open fireplace isn't, and never was, designed to heat the atmosphere. The best method to estimate the output of a fireplace is if you detect you are turning the thermostat down or up.

Most elderly fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency rating. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces still possess an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum necessity for example in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces can also be modified by adding special heavy fireboxes developed to burn cleaner and can reach efficiencies as high as 80% in heating the air. These altered fireplaces are often equipped with a large fire window, allowing an efficient heating system in two stages. During the first phase the initial heat is provided through a big glass window while the fire is burning. In this time period the construction, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This warmth is then evenly radiated for many hours during the next phase. Masonry fireplaces with no glass fire window only offer heat radiated from the surface. Depending on outside temperatures 1 to two daily firings are enough to guarantee a constant room temperature.fireplace mantel decorating ideas