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Ancient fire pits were sometimes constructed in the ground, within caves, or in the middle of a hut or dwelling. Evidence of ancient, man-made fires is present on all five inhabited continents. The disadvantage of premature indoor flame pits was that they produced hazardous or annoying smoke within the dwelling.Fire pits grown into elevated hearths in structures, but ventilation smoke depended on open windows or openings in roofs. The medieval great hall typically needed 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 allow the roof vents to be coated so snow and rain would not enter.

Additionally throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to stop smoke from dispersing an area and vent it out via a ceiling or wall. These can be placed against rock walls, rather than taking up the middle of the space, and this allowed smaller chambers to be warmed.Chimneys were invented in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and mostly fixed the issue of fumes, more reliably venting smoke outside. They made it feasible to provide the fireplace a draft, and also made it possible to place fireplaces in multiple rooms in buildings conveniently. They didn't come into general usage instantly, however, since they were more expensive to build and maintain.

In 1678 Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, increased the grate of the fireplace, improving the airflow and venting system. Benjamin Franklin developed a convection room for the fireplace that greatly improved the efficiency of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a basement and venting out a lengthier area on very 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 out of the construction. The shallow design improved greatly the quantity of radiant heat projected to the room. Rumford's layout is the basis for modern fireplaces.

The Aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s took on a more conventional spectra based on rock and also deflected unnecessary ornamentation. Rather it depended on simple designs 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 now were a sign of prosperity, which to some degree is still the idea today.A fireplace is a construction made of brick, stone or metal made to contain a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for its relaxing ambiance they create and also for heating a room. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficiency, based on the design.

Historically they have been utilized for heating a home, 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 base, a hearth, a firebox, a mantelpiece; a chimney (used in laundry and kitchen 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 frequently 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 hood, cap, or shroud serves to keep rainwater out of the exterior of the chimney; rain at the chimney is a far greater problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners compared with the traditional masonry chimney, which divides up all but the most violent rain. A few chimneys have a spark arrestor incorporated into the cap or crown.

Organizations like the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Washington Department of Ecology warn that, according to different studies, fireplaces can pose a substantial health risk. The EPA writes"Smoke may smell great, but it's not great for you.

Kinds of fireplacesManufactured fireplaces are made out of 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.A couple of types 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 types of fireplaces. They need to be properly sized to the area to be heated. Additionally, there are air quality management issues due to the amount of moisture that they release into the room air, and oxygen sensor and carbon monoxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces are fueled by liquid propane or natural gas. They are completely sealed from the place that is heated, and port all exhaust gasses to the outside of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the interior, common in current Western cultures include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire puppies, all of which cradle gas and quicken burning. A grate (or fire grate) is a frame, usually of iron bars, to retain fuel to your fire. Heavy metal firebacks are occasionally utilized to catch and re-radiate warmth, to safeguard the back of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metallic frames set in front of the fireplace to include embers, soot and ashes.

Over time, the intent behind fireplaces has changed from one of necessity to one of visual interest. Early ones were fire pits compared to modern fireplaces. They were used for heat on chilly days and nights, in addition to 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. Together with the Industrial Revolution, came large scale housing developments, necessitating a standardization of fireplaces. The most renowned fireplace designers of this time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a kind of fireplace design that was used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly lit, with an emphasis on the level of the materials used in their construction, instead of their dimensions.

By the 1800s most new fireplaces were made up of two parts, the surround and the insert. The encircle consisted of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, marble or granite. The insert was where the fire burnt, and was constructed of cast iron frequently backed with ornamental tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were believed to bring a cozy ambiance to 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 space and a lower heating load. Fireplace efficiency can also be enhanced by means of a fireback, a sheet of metal that sits behind the flame and reflects heat back into the room. Firebacks are traditionally produced from cast iron, but are also manufactured from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complicated notion although with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficiency tests consider only the effect of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, designed to warm the atmosphere. A fireplace with a fireback is a radiant heater, and has done so as the 15th century. The ideal way to gauge the output signal of a fireplace is in case you notice you are turning the thermostat up or down.

Most elderly fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency score. Standard, modern, wood-burning 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 adding special heavy fireboxes designed to burn 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 stage the initial heat is provided through a big glass while the fire is burning. During this time period the structure, built of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This warmth is then equally radiated for several hours during the second phase. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window only provide heat radiated from its surface. Depending on temperatures 1 to two daily firings are sufficient to guarantee a constant room temperature.fireplace mantel