Author Archives: Jmayes

BASICS OF FIREPLACE INSERTS

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Fireplace inserts can add value to a home. These patented devices can make your fireplace more efficient as they generate more heat outward to warm the home and they are energy efficient. Whether you have a gas fireplace or a wood burning fireplace, consider inserts as an investment worth making.

They can be purchased in most home improvement retail stores, in dedicated fireplace and stove stores as well as online. They are made of cast iron and steel and have insulated glass in the front of them.  Most fireplaces are lovely to look at, but are not great at generating heat.  Inserts will make any fireplace more efficient.  Many do this just by their design others will actually include a blowing mechanism that blows heat outward into the room housing the fireplace.

The cast iron  or steel box itself of course is fireproof, its designed to hold a fire not fuel one. They are more efficient at generating heat than a traditional room heater and much prettier, warmer and cozier as well.

Gas inserts work in gas fireplaces and the amount of heat they generate is extreme compared to the regular push button free standing gas fireplaces that are really meant for decoration and show more than for heat efficiency.

With wood burning fireplaces, inserts come in a variety of styles and shapes as they are intended to fit a less structured fireplace such as those that were built initially for use with gas, as they tend to be fairly regulated in their design and structure.

Studies have shown that fireplaces without inserts generate about less heat in cold winter months than is worth the effort of having the chimney opened to the outside air.

The styles and designs of the face of the inserts can complement any living room style and the ease of installation makes these items a near necessity.  Still though, it is wise to have a professional install the inserts.

In order to decide what type of inset to buy, you need to know what type of fireplace you have. Obviously the first issue is:

  • Is it gas or wood burning?
  • Then how old is the unit?
  • What material is the fire place constructed out of ?
  • Careful measurements need to be taken such as the width, depth and height of the flue in the back of the fireplace?
  • How far does the fireplace stick out from the wall? Is there trim surrounding the area that protrudes from the wall?

Always focus particular attention on the chimney. If you are re-doing a fireplace that has not been used, it would be foolish not to have the chimney professionally inspected and even cleaned.  Don’t rely on those fake logs that promise chimney cleaning if it has been several years since you used a fireplace.

How old is the chimney and what condition is it in? For professionals these are standards factors to consider. You will save time and resources if you know this information prior to asking for an estimate. Even considering any installation costs, if you use the fireplace as an alternate heat source, you will save money in the long run.

FIREPLACES IN HISTORY

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Fireplaces in Early Times

From the discovery of fire, man has always used fireplaces. The modern use of décor or ambiance was not on the minds of early cavemen. However, a way to harness and enclose fire was necessary to keep warm on particularly cold days and nights.

More importantly enclosures of fire were used for cooking food. They have always been the center place where people (families or tribes) gathered. Initially this was due to the warmth they provided in an era when heaters had not yet evolved. Later the comfort and homey feeling of the fireplace continued to have it serve as the central location for family gatherings or entertainment.

Ancient Fireplaces

In ancient times, there were no chimneys or fancy woodburning fireplace inserts. Smoke that would be produced by the fire was removed from the home via a hole in the ceiling.
When more architecturally sophisticated structures began to be built, one person’s ceiling was another persons floor in multi-level units. This led to the invention of the chimney.

Chimneys allowed for smoke to travel upwards through more than one floor in order to be let out into the sky.  This was of utmost important as the smoke that was the necessary output from the fireplaces in use would often be trapped by poor ventilation. Chimneys allowed for multiple levels to have proper ventilation throughout.

Many other advancements were made to the crude fire enclosures of the early days. These include:

Cast Iron
Grates
New Shapes

Cast iron was used to make the stoves which could heat whole rooms. Grates allowed for the fuel that was being burned (wood usually) to be raised from the ground, thereby allowing for more oxygen flow and better burning fires.

The shape of the fireplaces and stoves were also changed. They used developments in engineering to create boxes that directed the smoke upward and also concentrated the heat outward. This last invention is the basis for fireplace inserts of today.

Form over Function

The idea that fireplaces would be the centerpiece of a home’s design is a very modern idea. Cooking was moved to the kitchen almost exclusively and the fireplace was now mainly used for warmth and conversation. The intricate designs that accompany this change in use echo the move from utilitarian to decorative.

 

Wood burning stoves and fireplaces became somewhat commonplace. Recently there has been movements suggesting that the environmental impact of wood burning needs to be reconsidered. At its outset, wood was deemed the preferential choice for fuel for home heating. Even as the design portion overtook the heat portion of the fireplace equation, wood was still the fuel of choice.

Many modern buildings are opting for natural gas or pellet burning fireplaces. Natural gas fireplaces have come a long way from the blue log and meager flame. Modern gas burning fireplaces can fool even the most experienced fireplace connoisseur.

With fake logs that look like freshly cut cedar and rising flames that seem completely natural, these fireplaces show that ingenuity in the art form has far from run its course.

AMBIANCE OF FIREPLACES

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AMBIANCE OF WOOD BURNING FIREPLACES

Fireplaces evoke nostalgic and sentimental memories of times when whole families would gather in the family room and listen to a show on the radio or read books together in quiet company.  When the weather turned cold and the outdoor adventures had to wait for Spring, the fireplace was the gathering place of many families.

They have always been manufactured to serve several purposes at once:

  • Cooking
  • Heating
  • Aesthetic Design

Initially rooms needed to be heated in order to stay alive in cold winter months, but even as modern heat sources developed, most homes were still built with a functional wood burning fireplace, both as an alternate source of heat, but also as an attractive design feature of the main room.

 CASTING FIREPLACES

Casting techniques as well as new technology have made the modern fireplace very sophisticated.  The inserts available for these modern fireplaces are often decorated cast iron pieces frequently decorated with tiles. The insert is the area where the fire itself will burn.

The Industrial Revolution really paved the way for the ubiquity of fireplaces as iron became plentiful and easy to work with for both utilitarian and decorative purposes. As companies developed the ability to smelt iron more easily fireplaces themselves became more affordable.

The popularity of fireplaces has waned little since Victorian times and newer technology gives one the options of designing with this retro feel in mind or going completely modern with remote controls that control not only the flame by the ventilation and the heat produced.

 STOVE FIREPLACES

One feature from old homes that is making a resurgence in modern design is  the stove fireplace.  These can be situated in any area that could house a traditional fireplace, the only requirement being access to a chimney so that the air can flow through. These can use coal or wood for fuel, though most modern ones use wood.

If one opts against wood burning fireplaces, the other options available include natural gas or coal.  The latter falling largely out of favor in modern times.  Wood will always be the easiest as it takes no extra piping.  Gas is very inexpensive though and there are many environmental groups who lobby against wood fireplaces because of their damage to the environment.

In fact, London lawmakers have urged a ban on wood burning fireplaces because of the high level of pollution.

Today, most of the fireplaces are fueled by natural gas mainly because it does not cause too much pollution as compared to firewood and it is easy to ignite and to control.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS

Other ways to deter the environmental concerns include cleaner burning wood that is not only better for the ozone layer but also easier to set fire to. Gas fireplace manufactures have made great strides in making their “wood” look more natural to evoke the same ambiance of the wood burning fireplaces and there are ones that accomplish this so well, it is difficult to believe actual wood is not burning.

Fireplaces will always be reminiscent of relaxing and warming up on cold winter nights. They are iconic enough to be symbolized in Christmas cards every winter and many families would not consider Christmas morning begun until the fireplace was lit.