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Ancient fire pits were sometimes constructed from the floor, in caves, or in the center of a hut or home. Evidence of prehistoric, man-made fires is present on all five inhabited continents. The disadvantage of early indoor flame pits was that they produced hazardous or annoying smoke within the dwelling.Fire pits grown into raised hearths in buildings, but ventilation smoke relied on open windows or holes in roofs. The medieval great hall typically had a centrally located hearth, where an open fire burned 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 rain and snow wouldn't enter.

Also throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to stop smoke from spreading through a room and vent it outside via a wall or roof. These could be placed against rock walls, rather than taking up the center of the space, and this allowed smaller rooms 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 possible to give the fireplace a draft, and also made it possible to put fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings handily. They did not come into general usage instantly, however, since they were expensive to build and maintain.

The 18th century saw two major developments in the history of fireplaces. Benjamin Franklin developed a convection chamber for the fireplace that greatly improved the efficacy of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he improved the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting a longer place on very top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace using a tall, shallow firebox that has been better at drawing up the smoke and from the building. The shallow design improved greatly the quantity of radiant heat projected into the room. Rumford's design is the foundation for modern fireplaces.

Rather it relied on simple layouts with small unnecessary ornamentation. From the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way to the Arts and Crafts movement, in which the emphasis was still placed on providing quality gems. Stone fireplaces at this time have been a symbol of prosperity, which to a degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a structure 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 vary in heat efficacy, based upon the design.

Historically they were 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 alternative flue allows exhaust to escape. A fireplace might 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, home overmantel, a damper, a smoke chamber, a throat, a flue, and a chimney filter or afterburner.

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On the exterior there's frequently a corbeled brick crown, where the casting courses of brick act as a drip route 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 at the chimney is a far greater difficulty in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners than with the standard masonry chimney, which soaks up all but the rain. A few chimneys have a spark arrestor integrated into the crown or cap.

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

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

Masonry and prefabricated fireplaces can be fueled by wood, natural gas, biomass and gas fuel sources. Ventless Fireplaces (duct free/room-venting fireplaces) are fueled by gel, liquid propane, bottled gas or natural gas. In the United States, several states and local counties have laws limiting these types of fireplaces. Additionally, there are air quality control issues due to the quantity of moisture they discharge into the room atmosphere, and oxygen detector and carbon monoxide sensors are security essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed from 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 recent Western cultures include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire puppies, all of which cradle fuel and accelerate burning. A grate (or flame grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to retain fuel to your fire. Heavy metallic firebacks are sometimes used to capture and re-radiate heat, to safeguard the rear of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames set before 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 fire pits compared to modern fireplaces. They have been used for warmth on cold days and nights, in addition to for cooking. They also served as a gathering place within the home. These fire pits were generally based within a space, allowing more people to collect around it.

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Many flaws were found in early fireplace designs. Along with the Industrial Revolution, came large scale housing developments, necessitating a standardization of fireplaces. The most famous fireplace performers of the time 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 materials used in their construction, instead of their dimensions.

From the 1800s most new fireplaces were made up of two components, the surround and the add. The encircle comprised of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, marble or granite. The fit was where the fire burned, and was constructed of cast iron frequently backed with decorative tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were thought to add a cozy ambiance into homes.

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Some fireplace components include a blower that 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 can also be increased by means of a fireback, a sheet of metal which sits behind the flame and reflects heat back into the room. Firebacks are traditionally made from cast iron, but are also manufactured from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complex concept though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficiency tests consider just the impact of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, designed to warm the air. The ideal way to gauge the output of a fireplace is in case you detect you're turning the thermostat down or up.

Most elderly fireplaces have a comparatively low efficiency score. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces still possess an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum requirement such as in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces may also be modified by inserting special heavy fireboxes designed to burn much cleaner and may reach efficiencies as large as 80 percent in heating the atmosphere. These altered fireplaces are usually equipped with a large fire window, enabling an efficient heating process in two phases. During the first stage the first heat is offered through a large glass window while the fire is burning. In this time period the construction, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the warmth. This heat is then equally radiated for several hours during the second stage. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window just provide heat radiated from its surface. Depending on outside temperatures 1 to 2 daily firings are enough to ensure a constant room temperature.fireplace wood