Eco-Friendly Fireplaces
A fireplace is a warm and pleasant place to spend time with your loved ones on a chilly night, lending cozy ambiance to any home that is more satisfying than other forms of heating technology. Unfortunately, traditional fireplaces are fueled by either wood or gas, and are not environmentally sound.
While wood logs for fireplaces are technically renewable, new tree growth takes many years. The propane and natural gas used in gas fireplaces are not from renewable resources, and require costly and dangerous mining using destructive processes. Not only do these require the use of limited resources, they also cause smoke and harmful emissions that can be deadly if not carefully monitored and controlled.
Wood smoke contains carbon monoxide and other gases and chemicals that can cause or worsen serious health problems, especially in children, people with breathing problems, and pregnant women.These groups are especially vulnerable in homes with wood-burning fireplaces, suffering from increased rates of inflammation, breathing difficulties, pneumonia, asthma, and more. The EPA warns that people with congestive heart failure or other heart problems, emphysema, or asthma should avoid wood smoke if at all possible. Wood smoke also contributes to smog, acid rain, and other environmental problems.
Conventional fireplaces are unsuitable for use with newer housing designs, which due to advanced insulation and weatherization do not allow for enough air circulation. This lack can create significant indoor air quality problems and possibly have tragic results. Fireplaces also tend to be extremely inefficient, sometimes even performing with negative energy efficiency. Most fireplaces are difficult to light and smoke when started, create unpleasant cold drafts, and cause other invisible problems of which the homeowner is often unaware. They supply little if any heat in any part of the house but the immediate area of the fireplace.
It is only in recent, environmentally aware times that it was possible to take pleasure and warmth from a fire without common irritating or dangerous derivatives like odors, smoke and other toxins of traditional units. Fireplaces have been redesigned for the efficient use of bio-ethanol, so it’s possible to enjoy a fire in the comfort of your home without suffering health effects or feeling guilty about negative environmental consequences.
Newer fireplaces have been designed to use bio-fuels that are completely renewable and produced using environmentally conscious processes. Dramatic modern designs created from recyclable and recycled materials are built to burn bio-fueled flames with no pollution. New fireplace technologies are not only environmentally sound and better for human health, they offer beautiful designer decor that creates a calming mood for winding down alone or for spending time with friends and family.
While many brands of bio-ethanol-fueled fireplaces are ultra-contemporary in design, more rustic or traditional fireplaces made from brick or stone are available as well. It is also possible to buy inserts for fireplaces, so you can design any desired fireplace surround as long as the material utilized is fireproof. To find the eco-friendly fireplace in the design of your choice be sure to visit Viesso today!