Wood Mantels, Fireplace Surrounds, and Shelving

Ancient fire pits were sometimes built in the floor, in caves, or in the middle of a hut or home. Evidence of ancient, man-made fires is present on all five inhabited continents. The drawback of premature indoor flame pits was that they produced hazardous or annoying smoke inside the dwelling.Fire pits grown into raised hearths in structures, but ventilation smoke relied on open windows or openings in roofs. The great hall typically had a centrally located hearth, where an open fire burnt with 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 rain and snow wouldn't enter.

Also throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were devised to stop smoke from spreading through a room and vent it out via a wall or roof. These could be put against rock walls, instead of taking up the center of the space, and this allowed smaller chambers to be heated.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th centuries and mostly fixed the problem of fumes, more faithfully venting smoke outside. They made it possible to provide the fireplace a draft, and also made it possible to put fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings handily. They didn't come into general use instantly, however, since they were more expensive to build and maintain.

Benjamin Franklin developed a convection room for the fireplace which greatly enhanced the efficiency of fireplaces and wood stoves. He also improved the airflow by pulling air from a basement and venting a longer area on top. At 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 quantity of radiant heat projected into the space. Rumford's layout is the basis for modern kitchens.

Instead it depended on simple designs with little unnecessary ornamentation. From the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was placed on providing quality gems. Stone fireplaces at this time were a symbol of wealth, which to some degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a structure made from brick, stone or metal designed to include a fire. Fireplaces are used for its relaxing ambiance that they create and for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficiency, depending on the plan.

Historically they were used for heating a dwelling, cooking, and heating water for domestic and laundry uses.

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On the exterior there's often a corbeled brick crown, where the projecting courses of brick act as a drip route to keep rainwater from running down the outside walls. A cap, hood, or shroud serves to keep rainwater from the outside of the chimney; rain at the chimney is a far larger difficulty in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metallic liners compared with the standard masonry chimney, that soaks up all but the most violent rain. Some chimneys have a spark arrestor integrated into the crown or cap.

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

Kinds of fireplacesManufactured fireplaces are made with sheet glass or metal fire 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. In the USA, several states and local counties have laws restricting these kinds of fireplaces. They need to be suitably sized to the area to be heated. There are also air quality control problems because of the amount of moisture that they discharge in the room air, and oxygen detector and carbon dioxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed from the place that is heated, and vent all exhaust gasses into the exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the inside, common in current Western civilizations include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, along with fire dogs, all of which cradle gas and quicken burning. A grate (or flame grate) is a frame, usually of iron bars, to maintain fuel to your fire. Heavy metallic firebacks are occasionally utilized to catch and re-radiate heat, to safeguard the rear of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metallic frames placed before the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ashes. Other wider accessories can consist of log baskets, companion sets, coal buckets, cabinet accessories and more.

Over time, the purpose of fireplaces has changed from one of requirement to one of visual interest. Early ones were fire pits compared to modern fireplaces. They have been used for heat on chilly days and nights, as well as for cooking. They also served as a gathering place within the home. These fire pits were generally centered within a space, allowing more people to collect around it.

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Monarch 54In x 39In Wood Fireplace Mantel Surround

Many defects were found in early fireplace designs. The most famous fireplace designers of this period were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a style of fireplace design that was used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly lit, with a emphasis on the quality of the materials used in their construction, as opposed to their dimensions.

From the 1800s newest fireplaces were composed of 2 parts, the surround and the add. The encircle consisted of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, granite or marble. The insert was fire burnt, and was constructed of cast iron frequently backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing heat, the fireplaces of the Victorian age were thought to add a cozy ambiance to houses.

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Some fireplace components include a blower that transports more of the fireplace's heat to the atmosphere via convection, leading to a more evenly heated space and a decrease heating load. Fireplace efficiency is also enhanced 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 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 atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, designed to warm the air. A fireplace with a fireback is a toaster, and has done so since the 15th century. The best way to gauge the output signal of a fireplace is in case you notice you're turning the thermostat up or down.

Most elderly fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency rating. Standard, modern, wood-burning masonry fireplaces still possess an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum necessity such as 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 atmosphere. These altered fireplaces are often equipped with a large fire window, enabling an efficient heating system in two phases. During the first stage the initial heat is provided through a big glass window while the fire is burning. During this time the structure, built of refractory bricks, absorbs the warmth. This heat is then evenly radiated for many hours during the next stage. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window only offer heat radiated from its surface. Based on outside temperatures 1 to 2 daily firings are enough to ensure a constant room temperature.fireplace mantels and surrounds