How did Victorian fireplace work?
Most Victorian houses were heated by fireplaces burning coal or logs in every room. Victorian fireplaces were initially made of marble or slate but later cast iron frames became popular and had colourful tile insets down either side and a decorative mantelshelf made of slate or pine.
Victorian fireplaces were made from marble stone or timber and very often combined with an arched insert. The arched insert itself reflecting advances in design that allowed more heat to be generated from a smaller fire and a more efficient means of evacuating smoke from the room.
A wood fire looks dramatic because it produces a lot of flames but for a longer burn and even more heat go for a smokeless coal which is high in carbon and doesn't contain volatile materials. Smokeless coal produces less smoke and burns more efficiently.
Early and mid Victorian fireplaces are typically very ornate with intricate designs focusing somewhat on a more floral pattern to the casting. This design has proved to become very popular in modern day reproduction fireplaces as they take their inspiration from these original antique fireplace designs.
How to Light a Victorian Coal Fireplace - YouTube
A fireplace creates a column of heated gas inside the chimney. As that air rises, more heated air from the fire is pulled after it. The result is a draft -- a steady flow of smoke and hot gases -- up the chimney. The draft serves another purpose, too.
Can I install a woodburner in a Victorian fireplace? Yes, but you may have to make a few modifications to the cast iron surround in order to squeexe a woodburner in. There's only a selection of woodburners which can be used due to sweeping requirements and size.
Where Is A Fireplace Damper Located? A traditional fireplace damper will usually be positioned just inside the base of the chimney (called the 'throat' of the chimney), at the top of the fireplace.
You can't burn coal in just any fireplace; coal requires more careful handling and more exacting ventilation than wood. If you have a working Rumford-style coal fireplace and the right fixtures, you're set. Otherwise, check with an expert to ensure your fireplace is coal-compatible.
Coal ignites at a temperature more than 100 degrees higher than wood, and it requires a hot bed of wood coals to get it started.
What era are cast iron fireplaces?
Cast iron combination fireplaces are small and compact fireplaces that come as one single unit – so there is no need to buy an insert and fire surround separately. They were popular in the 18th century and Victorian bedrooms, as their small size was ideal for smaller rooms.
Rumford fireplaces are tall and shallow to reflect more heat, and they have streamlined throats to eliminate turbulence and carry away the smoke with little loss of heated room air. Rumford fireplaces were common from 1796, when Count Rumford first wrote about them, until about 1850.
The Inglenook (literally meaning chimney corner) fireplace generally came into being in the mid-late 16th century. The exceptions were for very wealthy properties such as castles, monasteries and the like. Many of these had Inglenook Fireplaces up to a century before.
HOW TO LIGHT A TRADITIONAL LOG FIRE (IN A FIREPLACE) - YouTube
Because of the properties of cast iron, these inserts can retain heat for a long period of time. This means that even a long while after a fire has been extinguished, a cast iron insert will continue to radiate heat into a room. Longevity – compared to other materials, cast iron is incredibly long lasting.
The very earliest American hearths were flush with the wall. In English colonial homes, fireplaces typically were surrounded by simple, floor-to-ceiling paneling, usually plain vertical or bead-edged planks. If the house was Dutch, the fireplace flue projected into the room, concealed by a massive hood.
Most Victorian fireplaces are cast iron with decorative tiled panels either side. If the tiles and indeed the cast iron is covered in paint, you should scrape this off with a scraper and possibly using paint stripper to reveal the original tiles.
Early fireplaces were made of stone; later, brick became more widely used. A medieval discovery revived in modern times is that a thick masonry wall opposite the fireplace is capable of absorbing and re-radiating heat. From early times fireplace accessories and furnishings have been objects of decoration.
Rumford fireplaces are tall and shallow to reflect more heat, and they have streamlined throats to eliminate turbulence and carry away the smoke with little loss of heated room air. Rumford fireplaces were common from 1796, when Count Rumford first wrote about them, until about 1850.
