Fireplace
For the interior, common in recent Western cultures include grates, fireguards, log boxes, andirons and pellet baskets, all of which cradle fuel and accelerate combustion.
Fenders are low metal frames set in front of the fireplace to contain embers, soot and ash.
The disadvantage of early indoor fire pits was that they produced toxic and/or irritating smoke inside the dwelling.
Fire pits developed into raised hearths in buildings, but venting smoke depended on open windows or holes in roofs.
The medieval great hall typically had a centrally located hearth, where an open fire burned with the smoke rising to the vent in the roof.
Louvers were developed during the Middle Ages to allow the roof vents to be covered so rain and snow would not enter.
Chimneys were invented in northern Europe in the 11th or 12th century and largely fixed the problem of smoke, more reliably venting it outside.
In 1678, Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, raised the grate of the fireplace, improving the airflow and venting system.
In the later 18th century, Count Rumford designed a fireplace with a tall, shallow firebox that was better at drawing the smoke up and out of the building.
[6] In the US state of Wisconsin, some elementary classrooms would contain decorated fireplaces to ease children's transition from home to school.
Fireplace efficiency can also be increased with the use of a fireback, a piece of metal that sits behind the fire and reflects heat back into the room.
Standard, modern, wood-burning masonry fireplaces though have an efficiency rating of at least 80% (legal minimum requirement, for example, in Salzburg, Austria).
These modified fireplaces are often equipped with a large fire window, enabling an efficient heating process in two phases.
Many studies that focused specifically on RWC [Residential Wood Combustion] have concluded that young children living in homes heated by a wood-burning stove had a greater occurrence of moderate and severe chronic respiratory symptoms than children of the same age and sex who did not live in homes heated with a wood burning stove.
Exposure of preschool children living in homes heated with wood burning stoves or in houses with open fireplaces yielded these effects: decreased pulmonary lung function in young asthmatics; increased incidence of acute bronchitis and severity/frequency of wheezing and coughing; and increased incidence, duration, and possibly severity of acute respiratory infections.
Some of these pollutants are known to cause cancer but their effects on human health via exposure to wood smoke have not been extensively studied.
Wood smoke can cause disease and even death in children, because it is associated with lower respiratory tract infections.
These harm health: they weaken the immune system, and increase infections, blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, and insulin resistance.
[18] Burning hydrocarbon fuels incompletely can produce carbon monoxide, which is highly poisonous and can cause death and long-term neurological disorders.
