Fireplaces are structures that are safely designed to house wood and fire. It’s possible to include them in your home architecture, or you can choose the freestanding options. See more info about a hearth on this page.
They are an excellent heat source during the cold winter months, or you can add them because you feel nostalgic about your childhood. Historically, the hearth is the center or the focal point of one’s living room where the occupants gather for comfort and warmth.
Modern homeowners still want to get the functional benefits of the hearth, but they might be looking for more aesthetics that fit their current interior design. Another thing is that most people want to avoid the risks of burning firewood traditionally, and modern technology has stepped up to address this and provide more options to the owners. Other varieties are flameless, energy-efficient gas and electric fireplaces.
Factors to Consider
When it comes to the area of the room that you’ll need to heat, it’s essential to consider various parameters, including altitude, insulation, flooring, glazing, and region. If you’re going to install a fireplace as a form of aesthetic rather than a primary heating unit, choose a hearth that will give you a nice view. For example, the glass varieties will enable the best view of crackling firewood. The need for a sizable spatial heat is not as critical.
If you’re going to consider the hearth as a heating unit during the winter season, you might need to use wood fuel because it’s more affordable. In case of an electrical blackout, you don’t need electricity if you have a wood-based fireplace. Other options may exist if you have the budget, and you can save a lot because you’ll probably need the hearth only when the snow starts to fall.
Various Kinds to Know About
1. Gas
If you have any chimney flue or inlet of fresh air, there’s the option to install ethanol or electric fireplaces. Good choices can be found on Watson’s gas fireplaces, where the website will offer you a lot of varieties that you can choose from. They are energy-efficient, inexpensive, and smokeless alternatives to wood fireplaces. The gas options may use freestanding models of chimneys or fireboxes for ventilation.
They don’t pose the same environmental hazards as their other counterparts. With them, it’s possible to heat the house with authentic flame ambiance in a more efficient way. It’s essential to have an existing gas line or install one when you choose the gas option. A small risk is that the fuel may release too much carbon monoxide into the air, so you may want to add safety sensors and detectors in your home.
2. Wood
The classic wood fireplaces will provide you with a certain nostalgia, cozy ambiance, and heat. They are irreplaceable when it comes to the particular aroma they have and the distinct crackling of fire that you can hear from time to time.
Many of the owners may hire professional chimney sweep indianapolis so they can clean up the build-up of creosote or burnt wood residue, so their houses won’t catch fire. This is an option that’s the least efficient among the other choices, and it may release a lot of pollutants into the air. This is also a risk for housefires, so you might want to prepare an extinguisher and smoke alarms before installing this kind.
3. Electric
Electric hearths are more common and affordable for many homeowners nowadays. The fake flames and their flickers often replicate the traditional hearths, but you don’t need to ignite a kindling for this. You just plugin on the wall and see the flames through the glass doors. This will use fans and coils to distribute the heat into the room.
These options are ventless and very cost-effective, especially if you’re on a budget. Others even offer portable options so you can quickly transfer them into another part of your home whenever you need to. However, know that they don’t produce as much heat as the other models, so they are often ideal for houses in tropical areas and warmer climates.
4. Ethanol
This alternative is environmentally-friendly, and ethanol is burned in a closed container. This creates a real flame, and the burning of the ethanol does not produce any smoke. Overall, you’ll find that the fuel source is more distinct since you will pour the alcohol directly into the box. Check this link for more info about ethanol: https://www.britannica.com/science/ethanol.
This feature is often included in modern fireplaces, and there’s an option to create a more innovative design to match your interior décor. As with the electric types, you can’t expect to produce much heat, and they are not very reliable during the winter season. You may want to research more about the different types and see which ones will fit your needs, and the information can be found online.
