Firebox

Build a Fireplace, Brick by Brick
Use these tips to design and create a long-lasting, heat-throwing firebox based on the traditional Rumford fireplace.
Fireplace mantel and surround clearances
Q: I have a 1960s home with a floor-to-ceiling brick fireplace. I am converting an entertainment center into a fireplace surround, and I’d like to add a stone or granite…
Repairing a firebox
Q: The fireplace in my house was rebuilt sometime in the late 1960s. The walls of the firebox are still in beautiful condition, but the floor seems to be deteriorating.…
Smoke shelves and chimney draft
Q: The fireplace in Richard T. Kreh Sr.’s article Building an Efficient Fireplace has a smoke shelf, but it also has an interior chimney. As I understand it, the smoke shelf…
Building an Efficient Fireplace
A variation of the Rumford design reflects heat into the room rather than letting it disappear up the chimney.
How to Stop a Fireplace Draft
Q: My home was built in 1953 with two brick fireplaces. Even with the glass doors and the flue dampers closed, I can feel drafts. What can I do to stop…
Building a Tiled Masonry Heater
Hot combustion, heat-exchange channels, and six tons of brick for energy efficiency and a clean burn.
Building a Fireplace
One mason's approach to framing, layout, and bricklaying technique.
Rumfordizing Brick by Brick
How to convert an energy-wasting fireplace to an efficient heater.

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