Whats Hot About Your Fireplace? HGTV

Historical fire pits were sometimes constructed from the floor, within caves, or at the middle of a hut or dwelling. Evidence of prehistoric, man-made fires exists on all five inhabited continents. The drawback of premature indoor fire pits was that they produced hazardous or irritating smoke inside the house.Fire pits grown into elevated hearths in structures, but venting smoke depended on open windows or holes in roofs. The great hall typically needed a centrally located hearth, where an open flame burned with all the smoke climbing into the port in the roof. Louvers were developed during the Middle Ages to enable the roof vents to be coated so snow and rain would not enter.

Also throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were devised to prevent smoke from dispersing a room and vent it outside via a wall or roof. These could be put against rock walls, instead of taking up the middle of the room, and this allowed smaller rooms to be heated.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the issue of fumes, more reliably venting smoke out. They made it possible to give the fireplace a draft, and also made it possible to place fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings conveniently. They did not come into general use instantly, however, since they were more expensive to develop and maintain.

In 1678 Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, raised 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 room for the fireplace that greatly enhanced the efficacy of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting out a longer place at the very top. At the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox that has been better at drawing the smoke up and out of the construction. The shallow design also improved greatly the amount of radiant heat projected to the room. Rumford's layout is the foundation for modern fireplaces.

Instead it depended on simple layouts with small unnecessary ornamentation. From the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, in which the emphasis was placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces now were a sign of prosperity, which to some degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a construction made from brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for the relaxing ambiance that they create and for heating a space. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending upon the design.

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

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On the exterior there is often a corbeled brick crown, where the projecting courses of brick act as a drip course to keep rainwater from running down the exterior walls. A hood, cap, or shroud serves to keep rainwater out of the outside of the chimney; rain in the chimney is a much greater problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metallic liners compared with the traditional masonry chimney, which divides up all but the rain. Some chimneys have a spark arrestor incorporated into the crown or cap.

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

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

In the USA, some states and local counties have laws restricting these types of fireplaces. They must be suitably sized to the area to be heated. Additionally, there are air quality control problems because of the quantity of moisture that they discharge in the room atmosphere, and oxygen sensor and carbon monoxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed in the area that's heated, and vent all exhaust gasses into the exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the inside, common in current Western cultures comprise 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 heat, to protect the rear of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames placed in front of the fireplace to include embers, soot and ashes. For fireplace tending, tools comprise pokers, bellows, tongs, shovels, brushes and tool racks.

As time passes, the intent behind fireplaces has transformed from one of requirement to one of visual interest. Early ones were fire pits than modern fireplaces. They have been used for heat on chilly days and nights, in addition to for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place within the house. These fire pits were generally centered within a space, allowing more individuals to collect around it.

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How to Build a Concrete Fireplace Hearth HGTV

Many defects were found in ancient fireplace designs. The most renowned fireplace performers of the time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a kind of fireplace design which was used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly lit, with an emphasis on the level of the substances used in their construction, as opposed to their dimensions.

From the 1800s newest fireplaces were made up of two components, the surround as well as the insert. The encircle consisted of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, marble or granite. The insert was where the fire burned, and was constructed of cast iron frequently backed with decorative tiles. In addition to providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were believed to bring a cozy ambiance to houses.

How to Build a Concrete Fireplace Hearth HGTV Video

Some fireplace units incorporate a blower that transfers more of the fireplace's heat to the air 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 notion though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficacy tests consider just the effect of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, designed to heat the air. A fireplace with a fireback is a toaster, and has done so since the 15th century. The ideal way to gauge the output of a fireplace is in case you detect you are turning the thermostat down or up.

Most elderly fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency score. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of 80% (legal minimum requirement for example in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces can also be altered by adding special heavy fireboxes designed to burn cleaner and can reach efficiencies as large as 80% in heating the air. These altered fireplaces are often equipped with a massive fire window, allowing an efficient heating system in two stages. During the first stage the initial heat is offered through a large glass while the fire is burning. In this time period the construction, built of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This heat is then evenly radiated for several hours during the next stage. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window just provide heat radiated from the surface. Depending on outside temperatures 1 to two daily firings are enough to ensure a constant room temperature.fireplace hearth