ᐅ Smart ideas that make everyday life easier incorporated into the home

Grym schrieb:
I brought this topic back up because I was in a fireplace room over the weekend. I’m not sure if it was oversized or if it was operated correctly, but the temperature kept fluctuating between “Wow, it’s hot” and “Now it’s cold” every time wood was added and then burned down again. It was a real, built-in masonry fireplace, and of course we had windows open with drafts; otherwise, it was unbearable (wearing just a t-shirt).

Wind is drafty, frost is cold, water is wet, and fire is hot!

I’m so glad I can still feel these sensations—even in a new build, even intensely, and even rain between the garage and front door.
And fortunately, these feelings are not measurable for anyone else!
If you don’t want to experience that, then don’t bother—I’m off to go outside into the storm now.

Grym schrieb:
No buts about it. A fireplace and a new build are quite a problem, but maybe you have a solution or ideas? Saying "but" doesn’t solve the problem. And whether the heating load of your living area is 0.3, 0.6, or 0.8 kW (at standard design temperature) doesn’t really matter. The fireplace overheats the living room massively in any case.

Sorry, but you have no idea what you’re talking about!!! Unfortunately, you’re only good in theory
- What kind of fireplace?
- With thermal mass or just warm air vents?
- Size of the living room?

Just come over and enjoy our fireplace’s nominal heat output of 11 kW (37,500 BTU) in the living room. It’s purely for aesthetics – it overheats the living room significantly, raising the temperature from just under 22°C (72°F) to 24.5°C (76°F) over the evening. But it does need to be well fed to do so.
Windows open? Why bother, the fireplace can’t really heat the living space anyway… You won’t get toasted like a campfire breadstick if you sit comfortably with a glass of red wine right in front of the fireplace.

Let him be in his own world – I rather suspect the poor guy is just jealous of the things he tries to speak badly about.

He won’t build a house in 10 years

So, moving from theory to practice:

We have been living in our house with an air-to-water heat pump and underfloor heating for two months. Additionally, we have a fireplace in the living room with a 7 kW output.
We use the fireplace when we want to relax in the evening with a small fire and a glass of wine. At those times, I don’t mind if the room temperature rises to 24°C (75°F) within an hour. It simply creates a cozy atmosphere.
Even when we burned the fireplace all day on a Sunday, the temperature didn’t increase significantly (with normal ventilation three times a day without a mechanical ventilation system). You can control the wood and air supply, and thus the heat output, quite well in a properly built fireplace.
Furthermore, I see the fireplace as an option to maintain a comfortable temperature in the house in case of emergencies (e.g., extended power outages in winter) and potentially heat some water.
Lastly, it is also a visual highlight in our living room.

Conclusion: I’m glad we have our fireplace and would definitely install one again.

Jochen104 schrieb:


We use the fireplace when we want to relax in the evening with a small fire and a glass of wine. In that case, I don’t mind if the room temperature rises to 24°C (75°F) within an hour. It simply creates a cozy atmosphere.

Additionally, I see the fireplace as a backup option in emergencies (e.g., extended power outages during winter) to maintain a comfortable temperature in the house and possibly heat some water on it.

And last but not least, it is also a visual highlight in our living room.

I personally agree 100% with what Jochen wrote.

@Jochen104
Who made the fireplace? Very nice.