How to make a fireplace with your own hands?

Decorating the interior of an apartment or house with a fireplace fills with an atmosphere of dreaminess and reflection. Resting next to the hearth, it is always a pleasure to enjoy the fire in the fireplace, drink hot tea.

The fireplace performs the function of heating the building, and it is beautiful as a decoration for the interior of the room.

When installing a fireplace in your home, you should remember about fire safety!

• the distance between the hearth, furniture and decor items should be at least 1 meter;
• the floor covering is made of refractory material.

Where is the best place to install a fireplace?

Let’s look at some interesting options for the location of home fireplaces:

One of the most common types is the use of wall types, as a rule, they are laid out already in built houses.

The corner fireplace is practical and comfortable, it heats three rooms at once. Chimneys of such structures are designed next to one of the main walls.

Built-in ones take up little space, but they are complex structures, they need to be built into a column or wall. The best option is the construction of the building in the process of building the walls of the building.

Island fireplaces — reminiscent of an island, the location of which is above floor level

Construction of brick fireplaces

It is believed that the construction of a wood-burning fireplace is a complex process, but this is just a simplified version of the stove. They differ from each other in different heat transfer coefficients and ordering of brickwork.

Important to study fireplace device before laying it out with your own hands.

If wood-burning fireplaces are installed for the purpose of heating, then it is advisable to use varieties of long burning for this.

Such installations have closed fireboxes and are divided into two types:

• the first type of long burning — has the ability to heat up for 3 hours;
• the second type — a long-burning furnace is capable of heating for 10 hours and holding a maximum power of more than 50%.

Basic tools and materials

How to build a fireplace in the house? Realizing that this is a creative process that requires attention and concentration, let’s first determine what tools and materials are needed for this?

When erecting, you will need your own tool, and if it is not available, then you need to purchase:

• hammer and pickaxe;
• hacksaw;
• a trough for preparing a solution;
• a container for soaking bricks and a plastic construction bucket;
• sieve, sift sand and clay;
• brush for masonry seams;
• trowels;
• plumb;
• construction level;
• square;
• marking set (ruler, markers, tape measure, folding rule, pencils).
• construction line;
• pickaxe, rubber mallet;
• stitching
• mason’s trowel (trowel), the sharp end is cut off and rounded;
• angle grinder (grinder);
• bucket, drill and mixer nozzle, for mixing the solution;
• shovel bayonet and shovel.

What material is needed?

• Red brick;
• cement (m-500);
• clay (no pebbles);
• sand (preferably fine).

Practical Tips

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1. How to choose a quality red and refractory brick for a fireplace:

Red brick for construction should be of the best quality, have a uniform structure and regular geometric shape.

When purchasing a brick, pay attention to quality. It is advisable to knock on it so that the sound is clear. The brick is of low quality, has a dull sound and its color is lighter.

It is recommended not to purchase bricks in dark shades and with white spots.

2. Preparation of clay for laying a fireplace

For masonry, it is recommended to use blue or red clay. It is desirable to soften it by pouring water one centimeter above the level. In this state, the clay is left for a day. The next day, it should be stirred and filtered through a medium sieve = 1 mm. The total mass of clay should look like «homemade sour cream».

3. Checking clay for quality masonry

A clay mortar with a thickness of not more than 5 centimeters is laid on the upper plane of the brick, pressed with another brick and left for 2 minutes. When lifting by the upper brick, if the lower one holds tightly, then the density of the solution is suitable. Remember that excess clay is less dangerous than its deficiency.

4. Sand for the solution is recommended for fine fraction, without the presence of clay impurities in its composition.

The solution is mixed in the following proportion:

1 part of cement (m 500);

3 parts sand;

2 parts clay.

All components are thoroughly mixed and the required amount of water is added.

You should first purchase the components for the fireplace:

• Smoke collector;
• ash collection box;
• ash pan;
• protection (lining) of the inner facing layer for the convection system;
• flame cutter;
• grate;
• a device that performs the functions of blocking the chimney;
• ventilation frame;
• protective doors;
• cleaning door;
• screen.

All these elements are necessary for the full functioning of the fireplace stove.

How to build a fireplace with your own hands

The construction process consists of several important stages:

Foundation masonry

• On top of the concrete foundation, a roofing material substrate must be laid in two layers.
• Next, we select a brick that suits us with equal angles, with an even horizontal and vertical plane.
• Before laying, it is advisable to lower the brick into the water so that all the air comes out. This action is carried out so that the brick does not draw out moisture, otherwise the mortar will dry and lose its properties.

Laying the base of the fireplace is important in the following sequence: the first and second rows of bricks lie on edge, and all subsequent rows are flat.

Masonry of the main part

How to make a brick fireplace with your own hands? According to a simple drawing, for beginners. When installing this hearth, you will need a little material. Small-sized fireplace can warm up to 35m² living area.

How to fold a fireplace with dimensions: 65×115 cm? For this you will need:

• There are 250 red bricks, and more than 100 fireclay bricks.
• It is necessary to prepare 16 buckets (ten liters) of dry sand, 8 buckets of oven clay and 4 buckets of cement.
• Pipe damper and steel corner for the roof of the firebox.

Learn the detailed step-by-step instructions for creating a fireplace with your own hands from the photo:

Do-it-yourself fireplace masonry is erected in compliance with the level of horizontal and vertical seams.

Check out a similar option for building a fireplace with your own hands in step-by-step instructions, watch the video:

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Manufacture of fireplaces is carried out as follows:

Before laying a brick on a mortar, it is desirable to initially lay it out on the surface and number each one. This action will help to maintain the exact sequence in the scheme.

When kneading the solution, it is advisable to monitor the absence of pebbles or any debris in the solution. Due to the purity of the solution and its elasticity, masonry fireplaces are built easily, quickly and efficiently.

The next step is to apply a solution 1.5 centimeters thick on the roofing material waterproofing between the foundation and the future fireplace.

Firebox masonry

• The outer wall is laid out of red brick. It serves as a decorative frame for the firebox.
• Laying out the inside of the firebox, refractory yellow bricks are used. It is forbidden to tie it with red ceramic bricks, since they have different maximum heating levels. At the red 750⁰and for refractory 1000⁰ C. Stone wool is laid in the space between them.
• The deepening of the fuel niche is 30% of the total height. If the dimensions are not accurately calculated, the efficiency decreases, and the room will smoke.

The bottom of the fireplace insert is laid 25-30 centimeters above the floor horizon.

• In order to improve the efficiency of the fireplace, the rear wall of the firebox is laid out obliquely forward, for better heat reflection and good traction.
• It is important to lay two steel rods on the third row; a fireplace grate will be put on them.
• The side walls of the portal are placed neatly, without mortar protrusions — in half a brick.

The fireplace openings of the portal are covered with brick lintels, they are of different types:

1. wedge-shaped;
2. vaulted;
3. arched.

To install portal lintels, you first need to make a special timber formwork. Pay attention to the figure below:

A smoke chamber is laid out above the firebox.

After it, between the smoke chamber and the firebox, a cornice is released to the sides.

It is advisable to check the evenness of the masonry in each row with a building level and a plumb line.

It is necessary to strictly follow the recommendations and check everything with the schemes of serial drawings.

How to lay a chimney

The chimney of the fireplace stove must provide sufficient draft. To do this, it is erected 5-6 meters high, or it must be 50 centimeters above the level of the roof ridge.

The fireplace chimney can be round or square in configuration. The first option is more expensive in terms of cost, because it is much more difficult to build a round pipe. Permissible diameter of the inner part: 140 millimeters, and for a square pipe, the side is 150 millimeters.

• The brick chimney is laid out carefully, without protruding mortar from the seams, and if the mixture is squeezed out, it must be removed.

Important! If the protruding mixture is not removed from the seams of the inner surface of the pipe, after a while the fireplace will cease to function, as it will become clogged with soot.

• The existing angles in the square pipe create turbulence in the air flow, which prevents the natural burning of the fire.

• Red brick is less resistant to moisture than yellow, refractory. That is why it is often used in the construction of a chimney.

Now, given the important recommendations, practical tips and knowing the basic steps in building a fireplace, you can safely create a home.

If desired, anyone can cope with the construction of such a structure, having minimal building skills and a sufficient amount of detailed information.