Fireplace Mantels
Fireplace mantels serve many purposes. They can be extremely ornate and decorative in design, highlighting the fireplace as the focal point of a room. Mantels can also be functional in design, providing a shelf to display photos or other knick knacks. Of course, as the retail market has deemed appropriate during the holiday season, fireplace mantels are designed to display Christmas cards, be decked with garland, and be hung with stockings. While all of these uses are still rather visual in nature as opposed to functional, the original fireplace mantels were strictly a functional component of the fireplace.
Custom Fireplace Tools
As the consumer demand for unique and one of a kind items continues to grow, the market for custom accessories will remain strong as well. While they used to be somewhat standard in design, over time, more and more homeowners are opting to have custom fireplaces built in their homes. Because the custom fireplaces can vary greatly in size and shape from traditional models, custom fireplace tools are often needed as well.
Why Do I Need Custom Tools?
Most fireplace tools come in three general sizes, specifically designed for small, standard, and oversized fireplaces. The various sizes and lengths of the tools are determined by suing the measurements of the fireplace to create a tool that is long enough to be safe and functional, but does not have any unnecessary length which may make it cumbersome to use. Custom tools are typically needed for custom fireplaces that may not work well with standard tool sizes, especially if the custom fireplace is much larger than the typical oversized designs. Fireplace grates are the one tool that is usually always required in a custom size for non-standard fireplaces. This is due primarily to the fact that the measurements for a safe and efficient grate are determined by a recommended amount of space between the grate itself and the walls of the fireplace.
Wrought Iron Fireplace Tools
Aside from brass, the most common metal used in creating fireplace tools is wrought iron. Known for its heavy weight and sturdiness, wrought iron can be very decorative as well as functional. Its traditional black color will match any décor and the variety of styles it can be bent, twisted, and shaped into can be appropriate for any design theme. This gives wrought iron fireplace tools the flexibility to complement the existing style in any home.
Brass Fireplace Tools
A functional set of fireplace tools is essential to keep your fireplace in proper working order. When it come to selecting fireplace tools, the two most common metal choices are wrought iron and brass. Brass, however, is quickly growing in popularity with modern consumers looking for a slightly less vintage look than is provided by wrought iron. Brass fireplace tools offer the consumer a nice balance between traditional elegance and modern style.
Modern Fireplace Tools
Fireplace tools have stayed fairly consistent over the years, with a few minor changes to suit the changing times. Pot holders over the fire itself are less common than they were in older times since fewer people use their fireplaces as a primary cooking mechanism. Some consumers choose to swap their fire pokers and tongs for a pair of heat resistant fireproof gloves that allow them to simply handle burning logs with no burns risk. Shovels and brushes are sometimes replaced with specialty fireplace vacuums for a more efficient cleaning process. For the most part, however, stores are always stocked with the traditional four or five piece classic fireplace tool set. The primary characteristics that separates these traditional sets from modern fireplace tools, however, is often the materials they are constructed from.
The Fireplace Tool Set
Fireplace tools are essential components needed to use and clean an indoor fireplace. In order to make the buying process as easy as possible for consumers, most tool manufacturers will sell fireplace tool sets which include the four most common fireplace tools packaged with a matching tool stand. When shopping for a fireplace tool set, there are several factors to take into account.
Fireplace Tools
Fireplaces are things of beauty as well as a source of warmth on a cold winter night. They can be simple in design with clean lines and plain mantels. They can also be extremely ornate with detailed trim work and elaborate mantel designs. Regardless of how simple or ornate your fireplace may be, one of the keys to keeping it functional, as well as beautiful, is with a proper set of fireplace tools. They not only make maintaining your fireplace much easier, they can also serve as beautiful accessories by the side of your fireplace.
Cast Iron Fireplace Grates
Fireplaces can be simple and functional, artistic and functional, or somewhere in between. Even with simple fireplace designs, one of the easiest ways to accentuate the overall appearance is by adding accessories. One of the main accessories required for a proper functioning fireplace is a fireplace grate. One of the most efficient and durable pieces available is a cast iron fireplace grate.
The Fireplace Grate Heater
In the Winter months, nothing is more pleasant than sitting in front of a warm, crackling fireplace. The heat that emits from the burning logs sitting atop the fireplace grate warms the entire room, or at least most of the room, actually it really just warms the area directly in front of the fireplace itself. Most of the time, its your air conditioner that is actually warming the entire room, using up an unnecessary amount of electricity and wasting money that will have to be spent on the increased electric bill at the end of the month. There is an alternative, however, in the form of a fireplace grate heater.
Fireplace Grates
One of the most vital accessories needed to use a fireplace is the fireplace grate. Designed to sit within the fireplace housing, the grate is used to keep the burning logs off of the floor of the fireplace. By raising the logs up off the ground, the grate allows a larger volume of oxygen to pass through from underside, creating a hotter burning and more efficient fire. Because fireplace grates are such an essential accessory to have in your fireplace, they are available in a large variety of metals, designs, shapes, and sizes.