Patent Application
20150027435
Not Applicable.
The invention relates to a method for making a modular outdoor fireplace from cast concrete components which simulate a natural stone exterior and a fireplace insert.
Outdoor fireplaces have become increasingly popular either as a landscape feature or as part of an outdoor kitchen. However, construction of an outdoor fireplace has been labor intensive and consequently expensive. Typical outdoor fireplaces are constructed from brick, block or stone components which are custom built for each installation. In some cases, some of the fireplace components have been constructed at a manufacturing facility, while brick or stone veneer is manually applied at the jobsite.
According to the invention, an outdoor fireplace may be quickly assembled from cast concrete components and a fireplace insert. Exterior surfaces of the cast concrete components may be shaped, textured and colored to simulate natural stones or bricks, thus eliminating the labor required to apply a stone or brick veneer to achieve a desired appearance. The cast concrete components used to construct the fireplace are a hearth, a fire-box unit, a mantle, a chimney unit and a chimney cap. A commercially purchased fireplace insert, chimney pipes and an optional spark arrester also are used in assembling the outdoor fireplace.
The fireplace can be quickly assembled at a jobsite by placing and leveling the hearth, placing the fire-box unit on the hearth, inserting the fireplace insert into the fire-box unit, positioning and securing the fireplace insert, placing the mantle on the fire-box unit, placing the chimney unit on the mantle, inserting the chimney pipes into the chimney unit and attaching the pipes to the fireplace insert, placing the chimney cap on the chimney unit, and securing the optional spark arrester to the chimney pipes, if used. Preferably, prior to stacking the concrete components, mortar is applied to the supporting concrete component. Any excess mortar after a component is installed may be removed.
In the simplest form, the outdoor fireplace may be constructed from only three components: a cast concrete fire-box unit, a purchased fireplace insert, and a cast concrete chimney unit. Visible exterior surfaces of the fire-box unit and the chimney unit are shaped and colored to simulate natural stones.
When a cast concrete hearth is used, one or more optional reference lines may be cast into the hearth. The reference lines outline the desired fire-box unit footprint area to aid in applying mortar between the fire-box unit and the hearth and to aid in aligning the fire-box unit on the hearth. One or more optional reference lines also may be cast in an upper surface of the mantle to aid in applying mortar to the chimney unit footprint area and to aid in alignment of the chimney unit on the mantle.
By casting the visible components of the outdoor fireplace from concrete, the molds impart a desired exterior appearance of stones or bricks. This eliminates the time and expense of applying stone or brick veneer to the cast concrete. It allows the outdoor fireplace to be assembled at the jobsite very quickly with minimal labor expense.
Various objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
The cast concrete components 16, 17, 19, 20 and 21 are cast in molds which texture the sides of the components to simulate natural stone. The hearth 16, the mantle 19 and the chimney cap 21 have flat top and bottom surfaces which facilitate stacking the components when assembling the outdoor fireplace 15, and have exposed side edges which simulate rough cut stone edges. The illustrated exposed sides of the fire-box 17 and the chimney unit 20 simulate cut and stacked rows of stone blocks. However, it will be appreciated that these side surfaces may have other visually pleasing appearances, such as simulating brick and mortar components. The tops and bottoms of the fire-box 17 and the chimney unit 20 are flat to facilitate stacking when assembling the outdoor fireplace 15. It should be appreciated that the concrete used to construct these components may be colored or the surfaces may be stained to simulate natural stone blocks, or bricks, etc.
The fireplace insert 18 is a commercially available product designed for indoor or outdoor fireplaces. Typically, it will be made from metal and lined with a suitable refractory material which will withstand heat from the fire and will reflect heat out of a side opening. Preferably, the fireplace insert 18 is constructed from stainless steel to reduce corrosion when exposed to rain, snow and high outside humidity. The fireplace insert 18 will typically come with a grate 24 for holding firewood.
After the hearth 16 is set in place, mortar 30 is manually applied to a footprint area where the fire-box 17 will sit on the hearth 16. Optionally, lines (not shown) may be drawn or embedded in the hearth top surface marking the fire-box footprint area to facilitate application of the mortar. One or more alignment lines 31 also may be provided to facilitate placement of the fire-box unit 17 on the hearth 16. The alignment line 31 and the lifting hook recesses 27 are located where they will not be visible when the outdoor fireplace 15 is assembled.
Details of the cast concrete fire-box unit 17 are shown in
After the fire-box unit 17 is set on the hearth 16, the fireplace insert 18 is lifted using straps 40 and lowered into the fire-box unit through the top opening 34, as shown in
The workers will then apply a thin layer of mortar 41 to the upper edge 38 of the fire-box unit 17, as shown in
Prior to setting the chimney unit 20 on the mantle 19, mortar 43 is applied to the mantle in a footprint area where the chimney unit 20 will rest, as shown in
After the chimney unit 20 is placed on the mantle 19, the workers will install the chimney insert 22. The chimney insert 22 may be, for example, two concentric metal pipes. The workers may use ladders (not shown) or may stand on the mantle and lower the metal pipes through the top of the chimney unit 22 until they engage flanges or other fittings (not shown) on the fireplace insert 18. The chimney insert 22 serves to protect the concrete in the mantle 19 and the chimney unit 20 from excessive heat. Mortar may then be applied to the top of the chimney unit 20 and the chimney cap 21 (
Finally, an optional rain deflector or a spark arrester 23 may be placed on the top of the chimney insert 20. Once the assembly is completed, the outdoor fireplace 15 is ready for use.
Since the outdoor fireplace components are all manufactured prior to delivery to the jobsite and simply assembled at the jobsite, the outdoor fireplace can be constructed and used the same day. The method for making an outdoor fireplace eliminates the long time and expense required in the past for assembling the fireplace components and then applying bricks or stones to the surface to finish the fireplace.
The illustrated outdoor fireplace 15 is a preferred embodiment of the invention. It will be appreciated that for a lower cost outdoor fireplace, the hearth 16 and the mantle 19 may be omitted. Here, the fire-box unit could be set on packed gravel or on a poured concrete base or on paving blocks. It also should be appreciated that the mantle 19 could be cast as an integral part of either the fire-box unit 17 or the chimney unit 20. This would eliminate the separate step of installing the mantle 19. Further, the chimney cap 21 could be cast as an integral part of the chimney unit 20, or could be replaced with metal flashing
As used herein, the term “mortar” includes a cement based material or other adhesives suitable for use for bonding together concrete components.
It will be appreciated that various modifications and changes may be made to the above described preferred embodiments of a method for making an outdoor fireplace without departing from the scope of the following claims.
