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Ancient fire pits were sometimes constructed in the ground, in caves, or in the middle of a hut or dwelling. Evidence of ancient, man-made fires is present on all five inhabited continents. The drawback of premature indoor flame pits was that they produced toxic and/or annoying smoke within the dwelling.Fire pits grown into elevated hearths in buildings, but ventilation smoke depended on open windows or openings in roofs. The great hall typically needed a centrally located hearth, where an open fire burned with all the smoke climbing into the port in the roof. Louvers were developed during the Middle Ages to allow the roof vents to be covered so rain and snow would not enter.

Additionally throughout the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were invented to stop smoke from spreading through an area and vent it out via a wall or roof. These can be placed against stone walls, instead of taking up the center of the room, and this allowed smaller chambers to be warmed.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and largely fixed the problem of fumes, more faithfully venting smoke outside. They made it possible to provide the fireplace a draft, and made it feasible to put fireplaces in numerous rooms in buildings handily. They didn't come into general usage instantly, however, since they were more expensive to develop and maintain.

In 1678 Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, raised the grate of the fireplace, improving the airflow and venting system. Benjamin Franklin developed a convection room for the fireplace which greatly enhanced the efficacy of fireplaces and wood stoves. In addition, he enhanced the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting out a longer place on top. At the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox that was better at drawing the smoke up and out of the construction. The shallow design also improved greatly the quantity of radiant warmth projected to the room. Rumford's layout is the basis for modern fireplaces.

Rather it depended on simple designs with small unnecessary ornamentation. From the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way to the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was still placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces now were a sign of prosperity, which to a degree remains the idea today.A fireplace is a structure made of brick, stone or metal made to contain a fire. Fireplaces are utilized for its relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, based on the plan.

Historically they have been used 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 other flue allows exhaust to escape.

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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 functions to keep rainwater out of the exterior of the chimney; rain at the chimney is a far larger problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners than with the traditional masonry chimney, that divides up all but the rain. Some chimneys have a spark arrestor integrated into the cap or crown.

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

Kinds of fireplacesArtificial fireplaces are made with sheet metal or glass flame boxes.Electric fireplaces can be built-in replacements for either 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. In the United States, some states and local businesses have laws limiting these types of fireplaces. There are also air quality control issues due to the quantity of moisture they discharge in the room atmosphere, and oxygen sensor and carbon dioxide sensors are security 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 exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesA vast assortment of accessories are used with fireplaces, which range between countries, regions, and historical periods. For the interior, common in current Western civilizations include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire puppies, all of which cradle fuel and accelerate burning. A grate (or fire grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to maintain fuel to your fire. Heavy metal firebacks are sometimes utilized to catch and re-radiate heat, to safeguard the rear of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metal frames set before the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ash. For fireplace tending, tools comprise pokers, bellows, tongs, shovels, brushes and instrument racks. Other wider accessories may include log baskets, companion sets, coal buckets, cabinet accessories and much more.

As time passes, the purpose of fireplaces has changed from one of requirement to one of visual interest. Early ones were fire pits compared to contemporary fireplaces. They have been used for warmth on chilly days and nights, as well as for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place inside the home. These fire pits were usually centered within a room, allowing more individuals to gather around it.

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Many defects were found in early fireplace designs. The most renowned fireplace designers of this time were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a kind of fireplace design which has been used for generations. It was smaller, more brightly colored, with an emphasis on the quality of the substances used in their construction, as opposed to their dimensions.

By the 1800s newest fireplaces were made up of 2 components, the surround and the add. The encircle comprised of the mantlepiece and sides supports, usually in wood, granite or marble. The fit was where the fire burned, and was constructed of cast iron often backed with decorative tiles. As well as providing warmth, the fireplaces of the Victorian era were believed to add a cozy ambiance into homes.

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Some fireplace components 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 decrease heating load. Fireplace efficiency is also enhanced with the use 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 notion though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficiency tests consider only the effect of heating of the atmosphere. An open fireplace is not, and never was, intended to warm the atmosphere. The best method to gauge the output signal of a fireplace is if you notice you're turning the thermostat down or up.

Most older fireplaces have a comparatively low efficiency rating. Standard, modern, wood-burning masonry fireplaces still possess an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum requirement for example in Salzburg/Austria). To boost efficiency, fireplaces can also be modified by inserting special heavy fireboxes designed to burn much cleaner and can reach efficiencies as large as 80% in heating the air. These modified fireplaces are usually equipped with a massive fire window, allowing an efficient heating process in two phases. During the first stage the first heat is provided through a large glass window while the flame is burning. During this time the construction, constructed of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This heat is then evenly radiated for many hours during the next phase. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window just offer heat radiated from its surface. Based on outside temperatures 1 to two daily firings are sufficient to ensure a constant room temperature.fireplace inserts