Wood Fireplace Mantels for Fireplaces Surrounds Design The Space

Historical fire pits were sometimes constructed from the floor, in caves, or in the center of a hut or dwelling. Evidence of ancient, man-made fires is present on all five inhabited continents. The disadvantage of early indoor fire pits was that they produced toxic and/or annoying smoke within the house.Fire pits grown into raised hearths in buildings, but venting smoke depended on open windows or holes in roofs. The great hall typically needed a centrally situated hearth, where an open fire burnt with all the smoke climbing into the vent in the roof. Louvers were developed throughout the Middle Ages to allow the roof vents to be coated so snow and rain wouldn't enter.

Also throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were devised to stop smoke from spreading through a room and vent it outside via a wall or roof. These could be placed against stone walls, rather than taking up the middle of the space, and this enabled smaller rooms to be warmed.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the problem of fumes, more faithfully 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 didn't come into general use instantly, however, since they were more expensive to develop and maintain.

Benjamin Franklin developed a convection room for the fireplace which greatly improved the efficiency of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he improved the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting a lengthier place on top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox which was better at drawing the smoke up and out of the construction. The shallow design also improved greatly the quantity of radiant warmth projected into the room. Rumford's design is the foundation 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, where the emphasis was still placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces at this time have been a sign of wealth, which to a degree remains the notion today.A fireplace is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for the relaxing ambiance that they create and also for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficiency, based upon the design.

Historically they were utilized for heating a home, cooking, and heating water for domestic and laundry uses. A fireplace may have the following: a foundation, a hearth, a firebox, a mantelpiece; a chimney (used in laundry and kitchen fireplaces), a grate, a lintel, a lintel bar, 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 often a corbeled brick crown, where the casting courses of brick function as a drip course to keep rainwater from running down the outside walls. A hood, cap, or shroud functions to keep rainwater from the exterior of the chimney; rain at the chimney is a far larger problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners than with the traditional masonry chimney, that 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 good for you.

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

Masonry and prefabricated fireplaces can be fueled by wood, natural gas, biomass and propane fuel sources. Ventless Fireplaces (duct free/room-venting fireplaces) are fueled by gel, liquid propane, bottled gas or natural gas. In the USA, some states and local counties have laws limiting these types of fireplaces. Additionally, there are air quality management issues due to the amount of moisture that they discharge into the room atmosphere, and oxygen sensor and carbon dioxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by either liquid propane or natural gas. They are completely sealed from the place that's heated, and vent all exhaust gasses to the exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesA vast assortment of accessories are used with fireplaces, which range between countries, regions, and historical periods. For the inside, common in recent Western cultures include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, bark baskets, along with fire puppies, all which cradle fuel and accelerate burning. A grate (or flame grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to maintain fuel to your fire. Heavy metallic firebacks are sometimes used to catch and re-radiate heat, to safeguard the back 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.

Over time, the purpose of fireplaces has changed from one of necessity to one of visual interest. Early ones were more fire pits compared to contemporary fireplaces. They were used for warmth on chilly days and nights, as well as for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place inside the home. These fire pits were usually centered within a space, allowing more people to gather around it.

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Many flaws were found in early fireplace designs. The most famous fireplace designers of the time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a kind of fireplace design which has been used for generations. It had been smaller, more brightly colored, with a emphasis on the quality of the materials used in their construction, instead of their dimensions.

By the 1800s most new fireplaces were composed of 2 components, the surround and the add. The surround comprised of the mantlepiece and sides affirms, usually in wood, granite or marble. The fit was fire burned, and was constructed of cast iron frequently backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing heat, the fireplaces of the Victorian age were believed to add a cozy ambiance to homes.

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Some fireplace components incorporate a blower that transfers more of the fireplace's heat to the air via convection, resulting in a more evenly heated area and a decrease heating load. Fireplace efficiency is also enhanced by means of a fireback, a piece of metal that 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 efficacy tests consider only the impact of heating of the air. An open fireplace is not, and never was, intended to heat the air. The best method to estimate the output of a fireplace is in case you notice you are turning the thermostat down or up.

Most elderly fireplaces have a comparatively low efficiency rating. Standard, modern, wood-burning masonry fireplaces still possess an efficiency rating of 80% (legal minimum necessity such as in Salzburg/Austria). To improve efficiency, fireplaces can also be altered by adding special heavy fireboxes designed to burn cleaner and can reach efficiencies as high as 80 percent in heating the atmosphere. These altered fireplaces are usually equipped with a massive fire window, enabling an efficient heating system in two stages. During the first phase the first heat is provided through a big glass window while the flame is burning. During this time period the construction, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the warmth. This warmth is then evenly radiated for several hours during the next phase. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window just offer heat radiated from its surface. Based on outside temperatures 1 to 2 daily firings are sufficient to guarantee a constant room temperature.fireplace mantels and surrounds