Fireplace decoration with decorative stone

Fireplace in a country house looks elegant and chic. If it is made professionally, it will provide not only a decorative function, but also securely warm the room. When designing it is important to create a beautiful decor that will successfully fit into the interior of the room and will last for many years. Fireplace decoration for several centuries was performed from clay refractory bricks. Now use other materials, which in their coefficient of thermal expansion and resistance to high temperatures are close to masonry.

The fireplace is tiled with baked clay tiles, ceramic granite, natural or artificial stone. These materials withstand high temperatures, protected from the harmful effects of moisture and soot. Decorating a fireplace with a decorative stone is good for the following benefits:

• it is a durable material that, if properly laid, will last for many years;
• artificial and natural stones have a very solid look, combined with any style;
• raw materials are environmentally friendly;
• natural stone does not crumble under the influence of moisture and temperature changes.

Compared to decorative tiles, gypsum or granite, natural stones can cost much more. If they have uneven edges, then the installation of the fireplace wall will be more laborious than laying flat rectangular fragments, the weight of the buta is also considerable. But as a result of the work done, you can create a magnificent fireplace in a noble classical style.

By their design and location in the interior, fireplaces are divided into 4 types:

• Wall - located at the wall of the room, mainly in its center. Such models are usually the largest, designed for heating large rooms. Wall fireplace is dominant in the interior and immediately strikes the eye. Around him you can arrange a few chairs and relax with the whole family.

• The corner fireplace is built into the corner of the room and is usually inferior in size to the near-wall one, therefore less finishing material will be needed for its decoration.But this design creates a quite cozy atmosphere and will allow you to sit around a small company.

• The built-in fireplace has a fire chamber and a chimney in the masonry of the wall, therefore it requires a minimum of materials for facing. Usually it protrudes outwards for a thickness of no more than half a brick, and the dimensions do not exceed 70 x 80 cm. As its decoration, you can use material with which the wall is faced.

• The island fireplace does not adjoin to the walls of the room, it is open on all sides, has the form of a pool with small sides, inside of which there is a fire chamber. To remove the smoke above it, install a suspended hood. Finishing such a fireplace is required only for the side edges, so you need a very small amount of decorative stones.

Wall or corner fireplace has the following elements:

• firebox where firewood is burned;
• smoke box designed for smooth transition of smoke into the chimney;
• the portal, most often U-shaped - is the facade of the fireplace, decorated with decor;
• chimney that brings smoke out and provides traction, which is also lined with decorative stones.

Thus, finishing is needed only for two parts of the fireplace - the portal and the chimney.But many variants of such household stoves may contain additional elements: compartments for firewood or decorative shelves for small items.

As a natural stone for decorating the fireplace, booth, limestone, granite, marble, and shell rock are used. Fragments of rocks of sandstone weighing no more than 50 kg are called booths, but in the case of a chimney facade, it is optimal to take pieces of 15–45 cm each, which weigh no more than 10 kg. In construction work, this material has been used since ancient times, and its main advantages are excellent strength and accessibility. Booth, like a footstone, is found almost everywhere, so it does not have a high cost, and the architectural elements that it revets look very presentable.

Because of its uneven shapes and dimensions, it is difficult to build a flat wall of the bout - it is necessary to select non-protruding, elements that are combined with each other. Irregularities between the stones compensate for their binding solution. This is a familiar mix of cement with sand.

In recent years, for the decoration of fireplaces more and more often they use artificial rather than natural butyear. Its advantages are that it is lighter than natural, it is not necessary to look for pasture or to buy raw materials in a store; you can make more even fragments for your needs.It can be made at home in figured forms of dry mixes based on silicone and pigments. The basis for the solution can be made by yourself, but the gypsum powder as a binder material will not work, since it may deteriorate when the temperature drops. It is best to use traditional cement as an adhesive component.

White limestone for facing the fireplace is good because it has high refractory properties and strength, does not expand and does not deform when heated. It is lighter than natural buta, easier to process and install on a horizontal surface. A pleasant white shade of stone will create a bright and cozy atmosphere in the room. Limestone has another remarkable property - over the years it is becoming stronger.

Marble has beautiful textures with streaks and various colors. Many people prefer to use this material when arranging a country fireplace, as it gives the interior a luxurious look. Marble slabs have high strength and heat capacity, thanks to processing you can get parts of any shape. But the cutting, grinding and installation of this mineral is very laborious, raw materials are expensive, so a fireplace with a marble portal will cost a lot of money for a family.

Natural granite, in contrast to marble, has a heterogeneous structure of a variety of inclusions with different physical properties. Therefore, at high temperature differences, cracks and deformations may appear in its structure. But expensive and high-quality varieties of this stone, mined at great depths can withstand temperatures up to 600 ° C, which is enough for a home fireplace.

The shell for the fireplace should be used because of its ease of processing and installation, strength and good hygroscopicity. It absorbs the surrounding moisture and then gradually brings it out. Its structure has many small air pores, the more of them, the stronger the stone. When facing the fireplace, the shell rock is preferable, as it always has warm colors and original patterns created by nature.

Among the artificial stones to decorate the facade of the fireplace, the most popular is acrylic. It is made on the basis of chemical components with the addition of marble, granite or silicate chips, crushed stone and other components. Dyes allow you to make different colors for acrylic plates. Thanks to keeping it in special forms, the fragments have a flat surface and are easily attached to the cement glue.Acrylic does not absorb dust and dirt, is easily cleaned with rags, does not emit harmful substances at high temperatures.

The second popular artificial material is quartz. It has all the advantages of an acrylic stone, but it has a lower cost. Quartz plates can be various light and dark colors, opaque or translucent. For a variety of textures, marble, granite or quartzite chips can be added to them.

It is worth considering a good example of a corner fireplace, built from several types of natural stone. The lower part with a recess for firewood is made of a large stack of various dark colors on cement mortar. The portal with the firebox and chimney is faced with flat limestone of a nice beige color. In general, such decoration gives the fireplace a very nice country look, which can be perfectly combined with the interior of a country house.

A more refined and aristocratic look has a fireplace made of dark granite. Maroon-brown shades are perfectly combined with wood and decorative elements.

An island fireplace made of artificial rubble is important to use for large rooms.The suspended chimney is hidden under the stone cladding, and the whole structure fits very well into the look of the room.

Truly elite looks wall fireplace, lined with delicate white marble. This element of the decor should be used for the classical style of the interior in spacious and richly furnished rooms.

A very original solution for the house, especially for a city apartment is a false fireplace. It does not require installation of complex systems of chimneys and smoke collectors, floors, fire-resistant and heat-resistant walls. Instead of burning wood, it uses a heating electric element, and with the help of decor you can create the illusion of open fire. False fireplace is not able to completely replace the heat from the natural flame and the pleasant smell of burning wood, but creates a very cozy atmosphere and at the same time its installation will be much cheaper than the real one.

The illusion of a burning hearth in such devices can be created by a biofireplace burner, a beautifully painted imitating pattern or artificial flickering lighting from electricity. False fireplaces are sometimes arranged around an external battery.In this case, there is no need to bring the heat source at all, only the cost of the decor is needed.

Since the artificial fireplace does not require special strength, resistance to open flame and high temperatures, you can use light and cheap materials. For example, a framework from a metalprofile and gypsum cardboard on which acrylic plates or porcelain tile are glued.