Boral Cultured Stone Gallery

Historical fire pits were sometimes built from the ground, within caves, or at the middle of a hut or home. Evidence of ancient, man-made fires exists on all five inhabited continents. The drawback of premature indoor flame pits was that they produced hazardous or irritating smoke within the dwelling.Fire pits grown into elevated hearths in buildings, but venting smoke relied on open windows or holes in roofs. The medieval great hall typically needed a centrally located hearth, where a open flame burnt with the smoke rising to the vent in the roof. Louvers were developed throughout the Middle Ages to enable the roof vents to be coated so rain and snow wouldn't enter.

Additionally during the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were devised to prevent smoke from spreading through a room and vent it outside through a wall or roof. These can be put against stone walls, rather than taking up the center of the space, and this enabled smaller chambers to be heated.Chimneys were invented in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the problem of fumes, more reliably venting smoke outside. They made it feasible to give the fireplace a draft, and made it possible to place fireplaces in numerous rooms in buildings conveniently. They didn't come into general usage instantly, however, since they were expensive to develop and maintain.

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 efficiency of fireplaces and wood stoves. He also enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting a lengthier area on top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox that was better at drawing up the smoke and out of the construction. The shallow design also improved greatly the quantity of radiant heat projected into the room. Rumford's design is the foundation for modern kitchens.

Rather it depended on simple designs with small unnecessary ornamentation. In the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way into the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was still placed on providing quality gems. Stone fireplaces at this time were a sign of prosperity, which to some degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a structure made from brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficacy, based upon the plan.

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

Related Images with Boral Cultured Stone Gallery

Lagos Furness Limestone Fireplace

On the exterior there is frequently a corbeled brick crown, in which the projecting 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 in the chimney is a far larger problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners compared with the traditional masonry chimney, which soaks up all but the rain. Some chimneys have a spark arrestor incorporated into the cap or crown.

The EPA writes"Smoke may smell good, but it is not good for you.

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

In the USA, several states and local businesses have laws restricting these kinds of fireplaces. Additionally, there are air quality control issues because of the amount of moisture they discharge into the room atmosphere, and oxygen detector and carbon dioxide sensors are safety 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 into the exterior of the structure.

Boral Cultured Stone Gallery

AccessoriesFor the inside, common in current 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 back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames set in front of the fireplace to include embers, soot and ashes.

As time passes, the intent behind fireplaces has transformed from one of requirement to one of visual interest. Early ones were fire pits compared to contemporary fireplaces. They were 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 usually based within a space, allowing more people to gather around it.

Limestone Fireplaces YouTube

MONARCH LIMESTONE FIREPLACE GAS SUITE Fireplaces

Many flaws were found in ancient 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 kind of fireplace design which was used for generations. It had been smaller, more brightly colored, with an emphasis on the quality of the materials used in their construction, as opposed to their size.

From the 1800s newest fireplaces were composed of two components, the surround and the add. The surround comprised of the mantlepiece and sides affirms, usually in wood, granite or marble. The insert was where the fire burned, and was built of cast iron frequently backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing heat, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were believed to bring a cozy ambiance into houses.

MONARCH LIMESTONE FIREPLACE GAS SUITE Fireplaces Video

Some fireplace units include a blower which transports 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 can also be increased by means of a fireback, a piece of metal which sits behind the fire and reflects heat back into the room. Firebacks are traditionally produced from cast iron, but are also made from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complicated concept though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficacy tests consider just the effect of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace isn't, and never was, designed to heat the atmosphere. The ideal way to gauge the output of a fireplace is if you detect you're turning the thermostat down or up.

Most older fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency score. Standard, modern, wood-burning masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of 80% (legal minimum necessity for example in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces may also be altered by inserting special heavy fireboxes designed to burn cleaner and can reach efficiencies as large as 80% in heating the air. These modified fireplaces are often equipped with a large fire window, allowing an efficient heating system in two phases. During the first stage the initial heat is offered through a large glass while the fire is burning. In this time the structure, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This heat is then evenly radiated for several hours during the next phase. Masonry fireplaces with no glass fire window just provide heat radiated from the surface. Depending on temperatures 1 to two daily firings are enough to ensure a constant room temperature.limestone fireplace