August, 19 21 
45 
BUILDING THE SMOKELESS FIREPLACE 
The Principles of Design , Proportions and Construction Which Will Insure 
Good Draft and Heat Radiation 
HARRY F. C. MENNECKE 
M UCH that might be said concerning fire¬ 
places and their artistic elements would 
go for naught were the practical side of 
building a non-smoking fireplace overlooked. 
In order to avoid later disappointment, cer¬ 
tain elements are necessary in the designing 
and building in order that the smoke shall go 
up the chimney, the fuel burn freely, and a 
generous warmth be created throughout the 
room. And without sacrificing utility in con¬ 
struction, the architectural design of a fireplace 
can be considered in its relation to the room. 
To begin the construction of a practical, 
fireproof and non-smoking fireplace we shall 
have an ash dump door in the hearth con¬ 
nected with a flue to the ash pit in the base¬ 
ment, where a door is provided, 2' above 
the floor. This in itself is valuable as it 
spells cleanliness. 
Next we shall consider the fireplace opening 
and chimney flue, for these two depend upon 
each other, and the size of one must be in pro¬ 
portion to the other. The opening is generally 
determined before the flue is built, and is gov¬ 
erned by the kind of fuel to be burned and 
the size of the room. Also if the fire is to 
draw well, the height, width and depth of 
the fireplace should be in certain proportions 
one to the other, as well as to the lines of the 
throat and area of the flue. 
In a moderate size room the width is usu¬ 
ally 30" to 36" and the height generally 30". 
The dimensions vary, however, from 30" to 
60" in width and 30" to 48" in height, the rule 
being that the height of the opening shall be 
2/3 to 3/4 the width. The lower the opening 
the better the draft, as a higher one permits too 
much cold air to enter and prevents a good 
draft. Where this mistake has been made it 
may be corrected at small expense by a sheet 
metal shield or hood carried across the top of 
the opening, without marring the good appear¬ 
ance of the fireplace. 
The depth should never be less than 1/2 
the height, 2/3 being better, but never less 
than 16" for a coal fire nor 18" where wood 
is burned, 20" being better. For a large wood 
burning fireplace this is made 24", but to make 
it deeper would be poor designing and the 
heat would not radiate into the room. 
The sides in the interior of the fireplace 
should be run back straight about 4" and then 
splayed 2" to 5" per foot in depth, so that the 
opening into the room is wider in front than 
behind. 
The back should be brought upward with 
a forward slant or a curve, commencing at a ( 
point above the hearth. This will tend to 
contract the fireplace toward the top and in¬ 
sure the air at this important point being thor¬ 
oughly heated, which greatly improves the 
draft and causes the heat to be thrown forward 
and out, rather than upward. At_the same 
time it forms the smoke or back draft shelf 
above it, without which no fireplace should 
ever be built, as it prevents and deflects all 
downward drafts which cause smoke and ashes 
to be blown into the room. 
The throat should be built well to the front 
of the fireplace and its area should be 1 to 
\y 2 times that of the flue. Its width should 
(Continued on page 64) 
There is far more to a good fireplace than its external appearance. The 
depth width and height of the opening; the size and shape of the smoke 
chamb™ the design of the fine and its relation to the fireplace and 
other flues—all these must be properly worked out. These drawings 
show some of the errors of design which are frequently the cause of 
smoky fireplaces, and the ways in which they may be corrected 
