[Cob] regarding fireplaces

[Amanda Peck]

(Hotmail is being weird, as usual, seems as if it didn't wan't to send a 
message if the ads weren't on the site--something on that order, so Bill got 
his own message back.  Sorry.)

It's probably true that the passionate defenders of fireplaces don't live in 
the higher reaches of the Canadian Rockies.  Connecticut, probably, though.

I've spent a couple of winters shivering in fire-place heated buildings, as 
a child, once we did have an oil burner as well, but my parents were afraid 
of CO and open flames, although that house really was pretty leaky.  Nice in 
the summer.  And as an (alleged) adult in an 1850's row house--it had 
electricity! but coal in the fireplace grate was the normal fuel.

But the guy on that site seems to think that if a fireplace CAN be done 
wrong, it's ALWAYS going to be done wrong (kind of a sore point with me 
right now).

Rumford fireplaces are designed to be shallow enough that smoke, not much in 
the way of smoke+room air, is what goes up the chimney.  For reasons 
involving tradition, politics, and the development of the Franklin stove, 
they didn't catch on too much in this country especially.  But they still 
have a following.  Ocean from Intabas restaurant on this list is familiar 
with them.

People from at least Ken Kern on have addressed the other problem by 
building in pipes from the outside to the fireplace so that combustion air 
is coming from the outside.  Ken Kern (he also liked Rumfords) designed a 
masonry stove with the same property, but it's probably easier with a 
fireplace--one's not even tempted to disconnect everything in the spring to 
move the stove outside.

...............
Bill wrote:

Please don't get me wrong. There is something neat about
a fireplace. I would have one for looks...  But in an area
that you MUST have high amounts of heat...
I would be very sorry if I tried to depend on a fireplace
alone.
I did a little research, and found this. Although it does not
go into the science behind why a fireplace isn't the way to
go for High Heat Output...
It is worth looking at....
http://www.consciouschoice.com/sensible/sensible1411b.html

But like I said before,,,,  if you are trying for the Mountain
Hunting Lodge look....   then the Split Stone Fireplace is the way
to go...

~¿~  bill


----- Original Message -----
From: "Amanda Peck" <ap615 at hotmail.com>
To: <coblist at deatech.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 06, 2005 12:08 AM
Subject: Re: [Cob] regarding fireplaces


 >
 > True.  The Rumford fireplaces are apparently pretty good, though.  Ken
Kern
 > liked them.  Ocean on this list has mentioned them a couple of times.
 >
 > and I expect you can run makeup air into them.  But the instructions
usually
 > say to put the wood in tipi style against the back wall.  Most of the
 > pictures have wood on andirons--although I saw one with the andirons
holding
 > a couple of pieces of wood upright.
 >
 > Explanation here says why they are better.
 >
 > http://www.rumford.com/articleWhat.html
 >
 > ...........
 >
 > Bill wrote:
 >
 > Hidare,,, The big problem with open ended fireplaces, is
 >
 > that with the incoming air to the fire not controlled,
 >
 > the outgoing air up the chimney has to also be free flowing.
 >
 > Other wise , you get smoke in the room. And this is what
 >
 > Ben Franklin fixed by putting a front on the fire place.
 >
 > Without something to control the air coming into the fire
 >
 > and up the chimney, one must keep the fire at or near
 >
 > its maximum, or other wise warm air from the room will
 >
 > be suck out and up the chimney..
 >
 > Back when we had no choice, and all the wood that we could
 >
 > ever use was with 50 yds of our door.. We did not worry
 >
 > about 20 % efficiency.
 >
 > But there are a lot of things today that style is more important
 >
 > that practicality or efficiency. So if it trips your trigger, and that
 >
 > is what you want,,, then go for it...
 >
 >
 >
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