Masonry heaters : designing, building, and living with a piece of the sun

A guide to designing and living with one of the oldest and most efficient heating devices. A masonry heater's design and luxurious, radiant heat redefine the hearth for the modern era. The author demonstrates how the heat from a masonry heater is similar to that of the sun because it is genuine heat rather than insulation against the loss of heat. The masonry heater is durable, simple to service, dependable, and healthy. It is also an investment in self-sufficiency and freedom from fossil fuels. The book discusses different masonry heater designs, including European variations, and offers a new understanding of massive heat storage and gentle-but-persistent radiant heat. Those who are looking to build, add onto, or renovate a house will find comprehensive and practical advice for designing and installing a masonry heater, including detailed discussion of materials, code considerations, and many photos and illustrations. This book provides every homeowner, builder, or contractor with the tools they need to transform a home into a warm sanctuary. Read more...
Masonry Heaters is a complete guide to designing and living with one of the oldest, and yet one of the newest, heating devices. A masonry heater's design, placement in the home, and luxurious radiant heat redefine the hearth for the modern era, turning it into a piece of the sun right inside the home. Like the feeling one gets from the sun on a spring day, the environment around a masonry heater feels fresh. The radiant heat feels better on the skin. It warms the home both gently and efficiently. In fact, the value of a masonry heater lies in its durability, quality, serviceability, dependability, and health-supporting features. And it is an investment in self-sufficiency and freedom from fossil fuels.

The book discusses different masonry heater designs, including variations extant in Europe, and explains the growth of their popularity in the United States beginning in the late 1970s. For the reader who may be familiar only with open fireplaces and metal woodstoves, Masonry Heaters will bring a new understanding and appreciation of massive heat storage and gentle-but-persistent radiant heat. Masonry heaters offer a unique comfort that is superior to that from convection heat from forced-air systems, and more personal than that offered by "radiant" floors. As Matesz demonstrates, the heat from the sun or from a masonry heater is genuine heat instead of just insulation against the loss of heat.

Those who are looking to build, add onto, or remodel a house will find comprehensive and practical advice for designing and installing a masonry heater, including detailed discussion of materials, code considerations, and many photos and illustrations. While this is not a do-it-yourself guide for building a masonry heater, it provides facts every heater builder should know. Professional contractors will find this a useful tool to consult, and homeowners considering a new method of home heating will find all they need to know about masonry heaters within these pages.

Foreword / Albie Barden -- Introduction : What is a masonry heater? -- Pt. 1. REDEFINING THE HEARTH. The hearth is the resaon for the house -- A brief history of fire and hot rocks in North America -- Thermal comfort : The vertical radiant advantage -- Benefits of masonry heaters -- Pt. 2. DESIGNING A PIECE OF THE SUN. Location -- Design options -- Heating requirements of the house -- Pt. 3. BUILDING A PIECE OF THE SUN. The inner life : Cores and flues -- Codes, clearances, footers, and foundations -- Pt. 4. LIVING WITH A PIECE OF THE SUN. Fuel to burn -- Using a masonry heater, bakeoven, and cookstove -- Masonry heater maintenance -- APPENDICES. A. Resources -- B. R-values of common building materials -- C. Elevation and outside design temperatures for various cities -- D. Heating degree days of various cities.