Indexing
A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick , stone or metal designed to contain a fire . Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design. Historically, they were used for heating a dwelling, cooking, and heating water for laundry and domestic uses. A fire is contained in a firebox or fire pit; a chimney or other flue allows exhaust gas to escape. A fireplace may have the following: a foundation, a hearth, a firebox, a mantel; a chimney crane (used in kitchen and laundry fireplaces), a grate, a lintel, a lintel bar, a overmantel, a damper, a smoke chamber, a throat, a flue, and a chimney filter or afterburner. [1] On the exterior, there is often a corbelled brick crown, in which the projecting courses ...