That is a fireback and it does more than just decorate.
Do fireplace firebacks work.
There is more radiation if the fireplace fireback is larger or thicker and a thicker fireback retains heat longer.
Placing a stainless steel radiant fireback in the firebox will protect it from certain damages.
Do firebacks really work.
Find out how to choose a fireback that suits your needs and style.
This is so it safely dissipates and does not catch other materials in the construction of the chimney on fire.
With this aside firebacks absorb a lot of the heat.
After burning a fire for a day you can still feel the warm cast iron back plate the next morning.
Cast iron firebacks usually about 5 8 thick store heat while the fireplace is burning and radiate it back into the room even after the fire goes out.
Firebacks are heavy iron or steel plates sized in proportion to fireplaces and are placed against the wall at the back of the fireplace.
The bricks in your fireplace are able to withstand extreme temperatures.
The back wall of a fireplace absorbs and retains a great deal of heat.
A fireback instead radiates that heat outward to warm the home.
Benefits of a fireback.
In addition by protecting the back wall of the fireplace from the intense heat of the fire a fireback prevents decay of the fireplace masonry.
Positioned against the back wall of a fireplace a fireback protects the masonry of the back wall and radiates the heat of the fire forward.
The protection was especially important where the wall was constructed of insubstantial material such as daub a mud and straw mixture coating interwoven wooden wattles brick or soft stone.
They are usually embossed with vibrant imaging that includes victorian floral motifs roman gladiators coats of arms or even historical scenes.
The primary functions of a fireback are to protect the wall at the back of the fireplace and radiate heat from the fire into the room.
A fire without a fireback hardly radiates any warmth while a fire with a fireback very much does so.