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Ancient fire pits were sometimes constructed from the floor, in caves, or in the middle of a hut or dwelling. Evidence of prehistoric, man-made flames exists on all five inhabited continents. The disadvantage of premature indoor flame pits was that they produced toxic and/or annoying smoke inside the house.Fire pits developed into elevated hearths in structures, but venting smoke depended on open windows or openings in roofs. The medieval great hall typically had a centrally located hearth, where a open flame burned with the smoke climbing into the vent 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 during the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to prevent smoke from dispersing a room and vent it out through a ceiling or wall. These could be placed against rock walls, instead of taking up the center of the room, and this enabled smaller rooms to be heated.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th centuries and mostly fixed the problem of fumes, more reliably venting smoke outside. They made it possible to provide the fireplace a draft, and also made it feasible to put fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings handily. They didn't come into general use instantly, however, as they were more 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. He also improved the airflow by pulling air from a basement and venting a longer area at the top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox which was better at drawing up the smoke and from the building. The shallow design also improved greatly the amount of radiant heat projected into the room. Rumford's layout is the basis for modern kitchens.

The Aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s took on a more traditional spectra based on rock and deflected unnecessary ornamentation. Rather it relied on simple layouts with small unnecessary ornamentation. From the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way to the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was placed on providing quality stone. Stone fireplaces now 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 used for the relaxing ambiance that they create and also for heating a room. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficacy, depending upon the design.

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

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On the exterior there is often a corbeled brick crown, where the casting courses of brick function as a drip course to keep rainwater from running down the exterior 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 metallic liners compared with the standard masonry chimney, that soaks 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 is not good for you.

Kinds of fireplacesManufactured fireplaces are made with sheet metal or glass flame boxes.Electric fireplaces could 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 propane 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 restricting these kinds of fireplaces. They must be suitably sized to the area to be heated. There are also air quality management issues because of the amount of moisture they discharge in the room air, and oxygen detector and carbon monoxide sensors are security essentials. Direct vent fireplaces are fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed in the place that is heated, and vent all exhaust gasses to the outside of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the inside, common in recent Western civilizations comprise grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, bark baskets, and fire dogs, all of which cradle fuel and accelerate burning. A grate (or flame grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to retain fuel for a fire. Heavy metallic firebacks are sometimes utilized to catch and re-radiate heat, to protect the rear of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames set before the fireplace to include embers, soot and ashes. For fireplace tending, tools comprise pokers, bellows, tongs, shovels, brushes and instrument racks.

As time passes, the purpose of fireplaces has changed from one of necessity to one of interest. Early ones were more fire pits than modern fireplaces. They were used for heat on cold days and nights, as well as for cooking. They also served as a gathering place inside the house. These fire pits were generally centered within a space, allowing more people to collect around it.

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Many flaws were found in ancient fireplace designs. The most famous fireplace performers of the time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a kind of fireplace design that has been used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly colored, with a emphasis on the level of the materials used in their construction, as opposed to their dimensions.

From the 1800s newest fireplaces were composed of two components, the surround and the insert. The surround comprised of the mantlepiece and sides supports, typically in wood, marble or granite. The insert was fire burnt, and was constructed of cast iron often backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian age were believed to add a cozy ambiance into homes.

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Some fireplace units incorporate a blower that transfers more of the fireplace's heat to the atmosphere via convection, resulting in a more evenly heated area and a lower heating load. Fireplace efficiency is also enhanced with the use 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 notion although 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 heat the atmosphere. A fireplace with a fireback is a toaster, and has done so since the 15th century. The ideal way 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 score. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum necessity for example in Salzburg/Austria). To improve efficiency, fireplaces can also be modified by inserting special heavy fireboxes designed to burn much cleaner and may reach efficiencies as high as 80% in heating the atmosphere. These altered fireplaces are often equipped with a massive fire window, enabling an efficient heating system in two phases. During the first phase the first heat is provided through a big glass while the fire is burning. During this time period the structure, constructed 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 only provide heat radiated from the surface. Depending on outside temperatures 1 to 2 daily firings are enough to guarantee a constant room temperature.fireplace mantel decorating ideas