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Historical fire pits were sometimes constructed in the ground, in caves, or in the middle of a hut or dwelling. 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 irritating smoke inside the dwelling.Fire pits developed 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 a open flame burned with all 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 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 ceiling or wall. These can be put against stone walls, rather than taking up the center of the room, and this allowed smaller chambers to be warmed.Chimneys were invented in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the problem of fumes, more reliably venting smoke out. They made it feasible to provide the fireplace a draft, and also made it possible to put fireplaces in numerous rooms in buildings handily. 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, increased 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 improved the efficacy of fireplaces and wood stoves. He also enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a basement and venting a longer area on very top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford made a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox which has been better at drawing the smoke up and out of the construction. The shallow design improved greatly the quantity of radiant heat projected into the space. Rumford's design is the foundation for modern fireplaces.

Rather it relied on simple layouts with little unnecessary ornamentation. In the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, in which the emphasis was still placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces at this time have been a sign of prosperity, which to a degree is still the notion today.A fireplace is a construction made of brick, stone or metal designed to include a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for the relaxing ambiance they create and also for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficacy, based on the plan.

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. A fireplace might have the following: a foundation, a hearth, a firebox, a mantelpiece; a chimney crane (utilized in kitchen and laundry fireplaces), a grate, a lintel, a lintel bar, home overmantel, a damper, a smoke room, a throat, a flue, and a chimney filter or afterburner.

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

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

Kinds of fireplacesArtificial fireplaces are made with sheet glass or metal flame boxes.Electric fireplaces can be built-in replacements for wood or gas or retrofit with log inserts or electric fireboxes.A few kinds are, wall mounted electric fireplaces, electric fireplace stoves, electrical mantel fireplaces and fixed or free standing gas fireplaces.

In the USA, some states and local counties have laws limiting these kinds of fireplaces. They must be properly sized to the area to be heated. There are also air quality control issues because of the amount of moisture they release in the room air, and oxygen detector and carbon monoxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by either liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed in 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 current Western cultures include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, bark baskets, along with fire dogs, all of which cradle fuel and accelerate burning. A grate (or fire grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to maintain fuel for a fire. Heavy metallic firebacks are occasionally used to capture and re-radiate heat, to safeguard the back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metallic frames set before the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ashes. Other wider accessories may include log baskets, companion sets, coal buckets, cabinet accessories and more.

As time passes, the intent behind fireplaces has transformed from one of necessity to one of visual interest. Early ones were more fire pits than contemporary fireplaces. They have been used for heat on cold days and nights, in addition to for cooking. They also served as a gathering place inside the home. These fire pits were usually centered within a space, allowing more people to collect around it.

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Many defects were found in ancient fireplace designs. Together with the Industrial Revolution, came large scale housing developments, requiring a standardization of fireplaces. The most famous fireplace performers of the period were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a style of fireplace design that has been used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly colored, with an emphasis on the level of the materials used in their construction, instead of their size.

From the 1800s most new fireplaces were composed of 2 parts, the surround and the insert. The encircle consisted of the mantlepiece and sides affirms, usually in wood, marble or granite. The insert was fire burned, and was built of cast iron frequently backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were thought to bring a cozy ambiance into houses.

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Some fireplace units incorporate a blower that transports more of the fireplace's heat to the atmosphere via convection, resulting in 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 can also be made from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complicated notion although with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficacy tests consider just the effect of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, intended to heat the atmosphere. A fireplace with a fireback is a radiant heater, and has done so since the 15th century. The best way to estimate the output signal of a fireplace is in case you notice you are turning the thermostat up or down.

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 boost efficiency, fireplaces can also be modified by inserting special heavy fireboxes developed to burn much cleaner and may reach efficiencies as high as 80% in heating the atmosphere. These modified fireplaces are often equipped with a massive fire window, allowing an efficient heating system in two stages. During the first phase the first heat is offered through a large glass while the flame is burning. In this time the construction, built of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This warmth is then evenly radiated for many hours during the next stage. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window only provide heat radiated from the surface. Based on outside temperatures 1 to two daily firings are sufficient to ensure a constant room temperature.wall mounted fireplace