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Historical fire pits were sometimes built from the ground, within caves, or in the center of a hut or home. Evidence of prehistoric, man-made flames is present on all five inhabited continents. The drawback of premature indoor flame pits was that they produced toxic and/or irritating 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 had a centrally situated hearth, where an open flame burned with all the smoke rising to the port in the roof. Louvers were developed during the Middle Ages to enable the roof vents to be coated so snow and rain would not enter.

Also during the Middle Ages, smoke canopies were devised to stop smoke from dispersing an area and vent it out through a wall or roof. These can be put against stone walls, rather than taking up the center of the room, and this allowed smaller rooms to be heated.Chimneys were devised in northern Europe from the 11th or 12th centuries and mostly fixed the issue of fumes, more reliably venting smoke outside. They made it possible to provide the fireplace a draft, and also made it possible to put fireplaces in numerous rooms in buildings conveniently. They didn't come into general usage instantly, however, since they were expensive to build and maintain.

In 1678 Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, raised the grate of the fireplace, improving the venting and airflow system. The 18th century saw two major 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 improved the airflow by pulling air from a cellar and venting out a longer place at the top. In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace using a tall, shallow firebox that has been better at drawing the smoke up and out of the building. The shallow design also improved greatly the quantity of radiant warmth projected into the space. Rumford's layout is the basis for modern kitchens.

The Aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s took to a more conventional spectra based on rock and also deflected unnecessary ornamentation. Rather it relied on simple designs with small unnecessary ornamentation. In the 1890s the Aesthetic movement gave way to the Arts and Crafts movement, where the emphasis was placed on supplying quality stone. Stone fireplaces now have been a sign of wealth, which to a degree remains the idea today.A fireplace is a construction made from brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for its relaxing ambiance they create and also for heating a space. Modern fireplaces change in heat efficiency, based upon the design.

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.

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On the exterior there's often a corbeled brick crown, in which the projecting courses of brick function as a drip course to keep rainwater from running down the outside walls. A cap, hood, or shroud functions to keep rainwater out of the outside of the chimney; rain in the chimney is a far greater problem in chimneys lined with impervious flue tiles or metal liners compared with the traditional masonry chimney, that soaks 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 various studies, fireplaces could pose a significant health risk. The EPA writes"Smoke may smell good, but it is not good for you.

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

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, some states and local businesses have laws limiting these kinds of fireplaces. Additionally, there are air quality control issues due to the quantity of moisture that they discharge in the room air, and oxygen sensor and carbon dioxide sensors are safety essentials. Direct vent fireplaces have been fueled by either liquid propane or natural gas. They are totally sealed from the place that is heated, and vent all exhaust gasses into the exterior of the structure.

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AccessoriesFor the inside, common in recent Western cultures comprise grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons, pellet baskets, and fire dogs, all which cradle gas and quicken burning. A grate (or flame grate) is a framework, usually of iron bars, to retain fuel for a fire. Heavy metallic firebacks are sometimes used to catch and re-radiate heat, to safeguard the rear of the fireplace, and as decoration. Fenders are low metallic frames set before the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ashes.

As time passes, the purpose of fireplaces has changed from one of requirement to one of interest. Early ones were more fire pits than contemporary fireplaces. They have been used for warmth on chilly days and nights, in addition to for cooking. They also functioned as a gathering place inside the house. These fire pits were generally based within a space, allowing more people to gather around it.

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Many defects were found in ancient fireplace designs. Together with the Industrial Revolution, came large scale housing developments, necessitating a standardization of fireplaces. The most famous fireplace designers of the period were the Adam Brothers. They perfected a style of fireplace design that was used for generations. It had been smaller, more brightly colored, with an emphasis on the quality of the substances used in their construction, as opposed to their dimensions.

From the 1800s most new fireplaces were composed of two components, the surround as well as the insert. The encircle comprised of the mantlepiece and sides affirms, typically in wood, marble or granite. The insert was where the fire burnt, and was built of cast iron often backed with decorative 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 include a blower which 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 piece of metal that sits behind the fire and reflects heat back into the room. Firebacks are traditionally produced from cast iron, but are also manufactured from stainless steel. Efficiency is a complex notion though with open hearth fireplaces. Most efficacy tests consider just the impact of heating of the air. An open fireplace is not, and never was, designed to heat the atmosphere. The ideal way to gauge the output signal of a fireplace is in case you detect you are turning the thermostat down or up.

Most elderly fireplaces have a relatively low efficiency rating. Standard, contemporary, weatherproof masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of 80% (legal minimum requirement such as in Salzburg/Austria). To improve efficiency, fireplaces may also be altered by inserting special heavy fireboxes developed to burn much cleaner and may reach efficiencies as large as 80 percent in heating the atmosphere. These modified fireplaces are often equipped with a large fire window, enabling an efficient heating process in two stages. During the first stage the initial heat is offered through a big glass window while the fire is burning. In this time period the construction, built of refractory bricks, absorbs the heat. This heat is then equally radiated for several hours during the next phase. Masonry fireplaces without a glass fire window just offer heat radiated from the surface. Depending on temperatures 1 to two daily firings are enough to guarantee a constant room temperature.fireplace remodel