For centuries fire has been at the service of man. Very often it is hidden from our eyes: either inside the radiators, or under the dishes on the stove. But the craving for an open source of fire among people did not disappear, so they feel a constant desire to contemplate it. People who know how to make fireplaces are stove makers. Many are sure that they have sacred knowledge, inaccessible to ordinary inhabitants.
Although the basis of the arrangement of the fireplace is solely the laws of physics, as well as engineering skill. In principle, anyone can comprehend this simple science and lay out a fireplace with their own hands. It takes only patience and a great desire. Some are wondering how to make a drywall fireplace. In fact, this material is used exclusively for exterior decoration. It will not be possible to build a furnace or chimney from it.
General information
The fireplace is a stove, but its design is a bit simpler. It has an open firebox. The design is less massive, for this reason it accumulates less heat than a furnace. The smoke channel is straight, has no fumes, firewood burns faster than in the stove, and most of the heat evaporates through the pipe. The fireplace has a decorative and aesthetic function, rather than heating. But this does not detract from its merits. You need to know a lot of nuances and understand how to make a fireplace with your own hands. Only elements that are located far from the furnace are allowed to be made from drywall. This is the main requirement.
The main advantage of fireplaces is the ability to quickly heat the room with radiant heat from the flame. A large amount of oxygen that burns in the furnace allows fresh air to enter. But only on condition that ventilation is properly organized. In the rooms where the fireplace is lit, it is always dry and there will be completely no musty smell. Even if there is no main heating system.
What are fireplaces?
In our article, you will get acquainted with a step-by-step guide on the manufacture of a decorative fireplace from a used cabinet. In addition, here you will find a detailed process of decorating a fireplace with stucco molding, as well as connecting an LED strip. In our article you will learn how to make a fireplace with your own hands. Step-by-step instructions will also be provided. In fact, you only need to adhere to the basic rules. Otherwise, you can rely on your imagination.
Fireplaces that are used today have a closed firebox. This is essentially a mini oven. After all, they organize air heating by convection. The efficiency of these fireplaces is quite high, since the fuel in them burns out as efficiently and completely as possible, so you can heat not just one room, but the whole house. Unless, of course, his area is not very large.
Open fireplaces
And now let's look at how to make a decorative fireplace with your own hands.
But before you equip a fireplace, you need to find out what components it is made of, as well as their purpose:
- A firebox or firebox is the main part, which is a niche made of refractory materials. As a rule, this is fireclay brick. It is in this place that fuel burns.
- Using the portal, the firebox is framing. This element performs exclusively decorative functions.
- Under - this is the lowest part of the firebox, it is made of refractory materials.
- Using a grate, fuel is maintained and air is supplied from below.
- Ash is collected in the ash pan. Usually it is made of metal. This is a box in which a certain amount of ash is stored.
- With the help of a pre-furnace platform, it is possible to limit the disk hit on the floor of the room. Also, this element is part of the decor.
- The back inclined part of the firebox, or mirror, allows you to display heat indoors. A smoke tooth is formed using a mirror. This is an extremely important element of the fireplace, because with its help the air flows do not mix, and smoke does not fall out and does not penetrate the building.
- The smoke collector, or hail, allows you to collect combustion products from the firebox, after which it transfers them to the smoke neck. Then into the branch and chimney.
- Using the valve, you can close the flow of cold air in buildings from the street with the fireplace running. With it, you can also adjust the level of traction.
Fireplace dimensions
It is rather not a heating system, but an interior item. But do not forget that a good fireplace should adequately fulfill its main purpose. That is, with its help it is possible not only to heat the room, but also to please the hosts with contemplation of open fire. But it is necessary, when determining the dimensions, to take into account not only the fantasies of designers and the preferences of the owners, but also engineering calculations. But now let's talk about how to make a fireplace with your own hands. Installation instructions for the most part consist of requirements and prohibitions. And they must be taken into account.
In the event that you place a large fireplace in a small room, then during operation it will begin to "eat" a large amount of oxygen. As a result, you get a very strong draft. If there is, of course, forced ventilation. Also, during work, a large amount of heat will begin to be released, so you are unlikely to be in the room.
Fireplace Engineering
What are they? The cross section and height of the chimney, as well as other dimensions of the fireplace. The calculation method is rather complicated, but there are simplified types. We will consider them now. Fulfilling these conditions, you can design your own fireplace, which will be perfect for your room. And you can not resort to expensive specialists, because you yourself will learn how to make a fireplace. Step-by-step instructions will help you in this matter.
Rules for calculating fireplaces
So, these are the rules:
- It is necessary to install a fireplace in a room of a certain area. All the heat comes from the area of the furnace, it is limited to the portal. The ratio of the area of the furnace to the room should be 1 to 50. In other words, if the room has an area of 20 square meters, then the fireplace installed in it should have a furnace part of about 0.4 square meters.
- Now you need to determine the width and height. According to all the rules, they should have a ratio of 2 to 3. Let's say the portal has a height of 51 cm. In this case, the width should be equal to 76.5 cm. Be sure to check the area. In our case, it is 0.39 square meters. And this is approximately equal to the parameter that was calculated a little earlier.
Another important parameter is the depth of the firebox. It has a strong enough effect on the operation of the fireplace. By all rules, it should be equal to two-thirds of the height of the portal. If we continue the example in previous calculations, it turns out that the depth should be 34 cm.
If you increase the depth, the heat will run away from the furnace immediately into the chimney. But if you reduce the depth, then all the combustion products will be in the room. In principle, you can consider a way to make a fireplace out of metal boxes. But this is too dangerous, since the reliability of such a design is doubtful.
Fire safety
For fire safety, it is necessary that the lift protrudes about 50 cm in front of the portal. You will also need to observe the following rules:
- Make protrusions on the sides of the portal by 30 cm.
- The back wall of the firebox should be tilted by about 20 degrees. Moreover, the slope must be done from about one third of the height.
- Walls for the best reflection of heat indoors should be positioned at an angle of about 50 degrees.
- The total length of the chimney should be more than 5 m.
- But if you make the chimney length of 10 meters or more, the draft will become very large. In this case, the fireplace will "devour" the wood, but the heat transfer will be extremely low. In this case, it is necessary to make angular components that will reduce traction.
The cross-sectional area at the chimney should be about 10 times lower than the size of the furnace window.
Chimney
It should be noted that the most suitable section of the chimney should not only correspond to the size of the fuel window, but also to the height of the pipe. There is also a dependence of this parameter on the shape of the channel. It is best to use bran. A lot of twists that interfere with the formation of normal draft are present in rectangular chimneys.
How to choose a place for a fireplace
When building a fireplace, you need to spend a lot of effort, as well as invest a lot of money. And so that it is not in vain, you need to choose the right place in the room. There are several options for placing fireplaces:
- The structures built into the wall are most often done during the construction of a house. After all, you have to disassemble a piece of the wall. And to do this is quite difficult. The advantages of such fireplaces are that they do not take up the useful area of the room.
- Corner fireplaces are quite comfortable in square-shaped rooms.
- Wall mounted fireplaces need space to accommodate.
- Separate or island fireplaces are quite conveniently located in the center of large rooms. They can open firebox both on the one hand, and from all.
Where installation is allowed
But you should know that you can not install fireplaces in all rooms.
Let's look at examples when you can put fireplaces, and when not:
- With a room area of less than 12 square meters, it is not recommended to install a fireplace.
- Do not install fireplaces on the paths of air flow.
- Be sure to direct the fireplace portal to the center. And on the way from the center to the portal there should be no barriers.
- You can not install a fireplace in the path of moving people.
- It is recommended to place fireplaces on the internal capital walls of the room.
- When installing wall, built-in or corner fireplaces, it is necessary that there is more than one meter free space on the left and right.
What materials are needed for construction
The quality of work depends largely on the materials used in construction. And the main thing is a brick. The requirements for the materials used are quite high. The use of bricks of the following types is allowed:
Solid red brick for laying stoves. It can withstand temperatures up to 1000 degrees. It is also quite energy-intensive, and receives and stores a huge amount of thermal energy. It is recommended to use a brick brand M-200 and above. Check the material by gently hammering it. A clear and clear sound should appear.
Fireclay bricks must be used where temperatures are highest. It is also used where there is contact with the flame. For this reason, the fireplace firebox must be laid out with such a brick. In the manufacture of fireclay clay is used, it makes up about 70% of the total mass. These bricks withstand high temperatures for a long time, and also accumulate heat and transmit it. It should be noted that the size of the brick may differ from the standard. There are fireclay bricks of special shapes to produce the laying of arches.
Brick selection
You do not need to completely trust the sellers and manufacturers when purchasing bricks. Do not think that all bricks are of the same quality. All material must be independently checked before you buy it. Of course, this process is quite lengthy. But then the fireplace will be able to work without breakdowns for quite a long time. It is necessary to pay attention to such moments:
- First knock on the brick with a small hammer. You should hear a loud sound. Fireclay bricks make an almost metallic sound.
- Compare the dimensions of the brick with the passport values. The maximum deviation should be 2 mm.
- If during the inspection you notice a mica-like film on the bricks, then this indicates that the temperature regime was violated during firing. Such bricks are not recommended for use in construction.
- Both red and fireclay bricks should have the same color on the entire surface. Quality fireclay bricks should be yellow-straw in color. If a white shade is present, then this indicates that the temperature during firing was too low.
Conclusion
When choosing bricks, look at the cracked specimens that are in the same batch. A red brick should not have various inclusions, dark patches. In fireclay bricks, the internal structure should be darker than the surface on the outside. If you hit hard with a hammer, then fireclay brick breaks into large pieces.