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12 Things To Know About Carpet Cleaning
Carpets, there in all of our homes. Of course it's a given that
at some point you will be doing some carpet cleaning. Here are
12 things to know about carpet cleaning that will make your life
easier.
1. Toxic
Most of the...
3 Things to Consider when Building a Greenhouse
A greenhouse has the potential to provide many benefits for the average flower-lover. However, if they are not built in the appropriate location the results can be detrimental. That said, before you build a greenhouse, it is important to consider...
Easy ways to build home ponds
Easy ways to build home ponds
Having a pond in the backyard will definitely be an eye catching
sight for everyone. The sound of water, beautiful fishes and
exotic plants all makes your mind cool and relaxed besides
feeling fresh. So if you...
Grandfather Clocks Bring a Sense of Awe…They're So Tall
Standing tall and big are the stately grandfather clocks. They are huge, immense beings with personalities of their own, and do they tell time. Boy oh boy - do they tell time. They also go ding dong a lot. At least the antique grand father clocks...
Know How to Find a Building Contractor? I do!
My husband and I have an acre and a half behind our home and really wanted to do something special on part of it. We also just recently decided to renew our wedding vows and thought what better place to do it, than our very own home. Our...
Reduce Your Heating Bills This Winter - Overlooked Sources of Heat Loss in the Home
Imagine leaving a window open all winter long – the heat loss, cold drafts, and wasted energy! Well if your home has a folding attic stair, a fireplace, and/or a clothes dryer, that may be just what is occurring in your home! These often...
Rodent Proofing Your Home
It's that time of year where rats and mice are apt to enter our homes. Lets talk a bit about their abilities and senses first. Rats and mice cannot see very good beyond 3 or 4 feet but have a very good sense of motion up to 30 to 50 feet...
Style Your Home With Decorative Plantation Shutters
Choosing plantation shutters for form or function? Plantation shutters offer both to today’s homeowner. These unique window treatments trace their roots to ancient Greece. The Greeks used them for both privacy and security. Interior shutters...
The Basics of the Murphy Bed Plan
As living space becomes more efficient, two social trends have converged to foster the Murphy bed’s regained popularity. First, because housing is more expensive, every available area needs to be used in as many ways as possible. Multi-use rooms are...
Thinking about building a Log Cabin?
Thinking about building a Log Cabin? This is how your determine your foundation There are at least three types of foundation that may be used with many of the popular cottage plans available today. These are: a concrete slab on grade; a full...
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Get More Heat from Your Same Ol' Fireplace with Simple Technique
For some people, a fireplace might as well be a video of flaming logs. Their primary interest is the welcoming ambiance a fireplace’s blaze presents. If, however, you expect your fireplace to provide heat in exchange for your log-carrying, fire-building efforts, (or in the case of gas logs, in exchange for your gas bill), it’s time to maximize your fireplace’s heat output.
There are various contraptions designed to return more of a wood or gas fireplace’s heat into the room and stanch the flow of that precious heat from escaping up the chimney. Many of them involve fans and vents and considerable expense. But one of the most time-honored, hassle-free, and least expensive methods of increasing a fire’s heat output is making a comeback: the fireback.
A fireback is a sheet of metal, sized in proportion to the fireplace, that’s placed against your back fireplace wall. Firebacks can be set on the hearth’s floor and just leaned against the back fireplace wall, but often they are secured by placing them in supporting braces which keep the fireback from sliding. Firebacks come in two main styles: the cast iron fireback and the stainless steel fireback.
The traditional cast iron fireback, popular in earlier times and making a revival now, is a sheet of heavy, black, cast iron. Often they are cast with a design, such as a fleur de lis or eagle, to add a decorative touch to this functional fireplace accessory.
The cast iron firebacks work on the same principle as heating radiators. The metal is heated (by hot water in the case of
radiators and by the fire in the case of firebacks), and then that heat is radiated into the room.
Although attractive and functional, the cast-iron firebacks are too heavy for many people to manage easily. Their weight also adds to their shipping costs, and therefore to their total price.
A more modern fireback design, one that is growing in popularity, is made of a sheet of very gently curved, tempered stainless steel. These stainless steel firebacks warm your room in two ways. First, like the cast iron firebacks, they radiate the heat of the fire forward into the room. But they also reflect the heat, as well as the light, of the fire into the room.
Stainless steel firebacks weigh only one-sixth as much as a similarly sized cast iron fireback, so they are easier to manage and less costly to ship. But their main appeal may be their price: They cost only a fraction as much as their cast iron cousins. Whereas a cast iron fireback, depending on size, can cost $250 to $700, the stainless steel versions usually go for $50 to $150.
Both cast iron and stainless steel firebacks dramatically increase the room-warming capacity of your wood or gas fireplace fire. The addition of this simple fireplace accessory to your hearth can mean warmer toes and lower heating bills.
About the Author
Susan Penney appreciates simple ways to make our homes renewing spaces for our families. She invites you to visit http://www.FireplaceMall.com for fireplace accessories to serve your fire-less or your fire-filled fireplace.
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