Discovering the true extent of energy efficiency in open fires unveils an insightful perspective on the traditional heating method.
Open fires are charming but inefficient (5-20% efficiency). Heat escapes via the chimney, and they draw warm air, needing constant fuel. Gas/electric fireplaces or inserts offer better efficiency and lower environmental impact.
Curious to learn more about the energy efficiency of open fires? Read on to discover the surprising insights!
How do open fires heat the room?
A fireplace may heat your home in two different ways: first, through radiation heat, and second, through convection heat. The stove emits radiation heat that warms the area around the fire. As you get further away from the stove, the intensity of this sort of heat gradually decreases. With a radiation stove, it’s crucial to have the right energy output for the space and your home so the heat isn’t too intense.
The air in the room and surrounding the fireplace will warm thanks to the convection heat from the stove. Since hot air is lighter than cold air, it will rise and force the latter to descend. With convection, the cycle of hot and cold air is continued as the cold air is drawn into the fireplace through a channel, warmed as it rises through the fire, and then pushed out the top of the stove.
How efficient are open fires?
According to some research, only around 30% of the energy generated by an open fire is transferred as heat into the room, with the other 70% being lost up the chimney. Open flames that are actively maintained are the most effective. You should be ready to use a log roller and/or tongs to intervene in your fire and keep it burning optimally if you want it to burn efficiently. If you see that your fire is losing heat, add a few more logs and then use the log roller to position them so that they will sit in the center of the flame and burn efficiently.
How to improve the efficiency of my fireplace
What can you do if you love your open fireplace but want it to heat your house more effectively? There are a few really easy strategies to improve the effectiveness of your open fire. The warmth of your house and your fuel cost will undoubtedly change, even if they don’t raise it to stove levels.
Cleaner chimney
The importance of proper chimney care cannot be overstated. Maintaining a clean chimney will result in cleaner smoke discharge and prevent smoke from entering the space.
Chimney insulation
Additionally, chimney insulation can stop creosote from accumulating (a residue left over from the burning of solid fuels). Creosote buildup in your chimney will make it ineffective and cause your room to fill with smoke if you light a fire.
Chimney dampers
The finest resource you have to stop heat loss in your house if you don’t already have one is a chimney damper. When your chimney is not in use, this effectively functions as a stopper to prevent heat from climbing up the chimney and to prevent down draughts from sending cold air into your home. You just open it to let smoke enter your chimney as normal when you build a fire and close it when your fireplace is not in use. Very basic things! Dampers can be fixed fixtures in your chimney or inflatable objects referred to as “Chimney Balloons.” However, dampers and balloons are not the long-term solutions.
Add a fireback
Installing a fireback is another technique to increase the efficiency of your fireplace. A fireback is essentially a sheet or panel of metal that rests against the back wall of your fireplace behind the fire, generally made of cast iron. A fireback actively reflects heat from the fire out into your living space, making you feel warmer in addition to safeguarding the bricks of your chimney.
Due to the thermal qualities of cast iron, many firebacks will also retain heat and continue to radiate heat into your room even after the fire has gone out or been put out.
Before starting your fire, prime your chimney.
Make sure the air in your chimney cavity has warmed up before you begin stacking fuel into your fireplace.
Because it won’t have to battle against chilly air in the chimney flue, warming up your chimney has the added benefit of making it easier for your fire to ignite. Before lighting the fire, the draw will have essentially started.
Rolling up many sheets of newspaper, igniting them, and keeping them at the base of the chimney for a short period are the simple steps for priming a chimney. Forcing out any wet or cold air will enable warm air and smoke to start percolating up the chimney.
Create an ash bed.
In addition to priming your chimney, make sure your fireplace has a thin layer of ash. Spreading a modest bit of ash beneath your fire basket or grate can assist provide a layer of insulation against the chilly floor below. It doesn’t have to be a lot.
Why does my open fire not heat the room?
The space around a fireplace does get warmer. All nearby objects and people are kept warm by the flames’ radiating heat. However, if the air necessary for combustion is removed from the space, the fireplace will chill the house’s other rooms.
As hot flue gas rises via the fireplace’s chimney, a draught is produced. This prevents harmful smoke and gases from entering the home, but it also makes the fireplace less efficient. The draught pulls air from adjacent rooms into the room where the fireplace is placed by creating a region of low pressure there. (I’m assuming that a central heating system is used to heat the home.) Cold air from outside enters the home and replaces that air as it passes via doors and windows. The cooling impact of the entering air is higher than the heat produced by the fireplace unless the chimney is controlled by a stack damper, which the vast majority of chimneys are not. Fireplace doors can lessen the heat lost to the fireplace, but they also diminish the heat that the fireplace emits into the room.
Open Fire alternatives that are more energy efficient
The most authentic fireplace experience may be had with a classic open fireplace, however, they aren’t the ideal type of fireplace to utilize for heating.
Consider placing a different style of the fireplace inside your open fireplace if you want to get more heat out of it. To increase effectiveness, you can build the following types of fireplace within an open fireplace:
- Fuel inserts
- Electric inserts
- Wood-burning fireplaces
- multiple-fuel stoves
- Inserts for burning wood
Electric fireplace.
Another choice for improving the effectiveness of your current open fireplace is an electric fireplace. You may put electric fireplace inserts inside of your existing fireplace, or you can do what we do and just install an electric stove inside of it when the open fireplace isn’t being used.
Wood stoves
Stoves often have efficiency ratings that are substantially greater than open fireplaces, which typically have ratings of 10% or less.
The removal of the option to have “open” flames is a drawback of adding an insert or stove to an existing open fireplace. This loss, however, may be more than made up for by the possible increase in heat output from your flames.
Inserts for gas fireplaces
The existing fireplace and chimney are used to support venting and retain the gas fireplace insert, which is made to be installed inside an existing brick fireplace. An old wood fireplace may be converted into a high-efficiency gas heater that runs on either natural gas or propane with the help of a gas fireplace insert, and many of them qualify for local government incentives.
Conclusion – Summarize key points
Your home may be heated by a fireplace in one of two ways: first, through convection heat, and second, by radiation heat. Only around 30% of the energy produced by an open fire is said to be transported as heat into the room, with the other 70% being lost up the chimney. But we’ve spoken about a few fairly simple methods to make your open fire more efficient.
Why You Shouldn’t Rely On Chimney Balloons