Fireplaces, used for ages have been always enhancing houses and rooms with their peaceful and warm impression. As we search the history facts, maybe you didn't know that there are proofs which say first fireplaces have existed one million years ago in almost every civilization. Ancient fireplaces were too simple in comparison to those which are being produced nowadays and absence of chimney caused that smoke was sometimes blown back into the house. After long years, the chimney was invented in 1300 a.d. Unlike old ages when the only ways how to make the smoke escape from a house were simple holes in the roof, latest technologies allow you to choose between wood or coal along gas and electric fireplace which all can heat major part of dwellings depending on their output which can be easily measured before you buy any.
Fireplaces are usually natural parts of houses thanks to their inexpensive prices, usability and easy-to-install attributes. If talking about easiness, we must compare the effort which would be required for a central heating system installation to an effort spent by installation of a fireplace. Naturally, not every fireplace is the same and they differ from each other depending on materials which are they built from, prices, dimensions, fuel, colours, etc. However, they all consist of some basic elements, where the most common components are foundation, firebox, hearth, mantelpiece, doors, chimeny, damper, grate, smoke chamber, spark arrester, cap, crown, overmantel, bars, and probably some others. Naturally, there are prefabricated products which are cheaper than fireplaces built upon specific requirements. On the other hand, not everyone requires unique fireplace made of stone. We could say that fireplaces are like cars; Mass-produced fireplaces satisfy the reason why they were build, as well as made-to-measure ones with one difference only; If you have a unique one, no-one will have the same fireplace in his house ever. You should ask yourself if you need such, and if your wallet allows it.
Generally speaking, apartments, bedrooms, offices, and rooms as a whole look pretty with fireplace and central heating can't replace it's design and general feeling. On the other hand, it's difficult to picture how an ordinary fireplace could be used in blocks. That's why they're preferred in houses. Since every coin has two sides, there are several types of fireplaces and they divide themselves into coal, peat, wood, electric and gas. Unlike the first three-mentioned types which can be thrown into group called "ordinary",
electric fireplaces are more safer and you don't need to worry about carbon monoxide, additional dust or ash. Moreover, you don't need any real chimney or gas lines and they look terrific even when not turned on. And this is why an electric fireplace can be used in flats too. Additionally, electric fireplaces produce realistic flame-like effect, offer heating function to be turned on or off, many of them provide automatic shutdown function in case of overheating, remote control, no hot surface, and so on. Unspeakable advantage is that you can move them from room to room without demolishing the walls. Output of 1 - 3 kW is usually enough to heat the room of 30 - 50 square meters, sometimes even larger rooms if they're using latest isolation techniques.
Of course, when speaking about advantages, electric fireplaces are environment-friendly since they don't produce any emissions. In the sense of using electricity only, no heat leaves the room through the chimney. Wallet-friendly solution includes no hidden charges such as pipes or problems with chimney. Hi-tech fireplaces eat about 0.10-0.20 US Dollars per 1 kW in general. Price may vary depending on geographical location and momentary relation between US Dollar and currency in your country.
Dimensions are very important advantage. Basically, you can buy a fireplace which is 60x50x30 cm (height X width X depth) big. You must agree that such dimensions are acceptable for every house or flat. Small dimenstions are reason for low weight, which can be easily 50 kilograms. Naturally, larger products weigh more. Colours, which can be a little problem for stone or brick fireplaces, are fully customizable no matter if you require black, white, red, orange or any other colour at all.
Maybe I forgot to mention some advantages. As every story, there are potential disadvantages too. It wouldn't be wise to speak about advantages only, since you could go to a shop, buy a fireplace, and later you could get disappointed for some reason. Well, the only disadvantage is electricity which means possibility of fire. However, we use electric devices every day... TV, cooking table, hair drier, computer (which you use right now:) ), electric kitchen range, microwave oven, and many others. All of those devices can cause fire if electric cables aren't installed properly. Because electric fireplaces don't use fossil fuel and they don't generate real flame, they're very safe. Another point of view says that electricity brings warranty problems. Of course, every electric device has it's lifespan and we can't expect any product to serve us for decades, even though some of them could satisfy this requirement.
All in all, electric fireplaces are very good investment and they're worth it. Just ask people for experiences with firm or product which you're going to buy. There's nothing better than feedback from satisfied/discontent customers.
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