Room air recirculating heater with utility compartments and doors storable therewithin
OwnerAlexander J. Moncrieff-Yeatesinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A heater including a fire enclosure, such as a fireplace, has side walls each of which includes spaced walls which define a passageway for circulation of room air and is provided with recesses adjacent to the fire enclosure and extending into the room air passageways. In a preferred embodiment, the fire enclosure doors are mounted in the compartments and are provided with a unique mounting and handle by which a particular door may be selected and moved to a closed position in front of the fire enclosure opening.
Claims15
In a heating unit of the type including a front face, a fire enclosure accessed through said front face and defined in part by inner side walls and wherein outer side walls are spaced outwardly from said inner walls, the space between said side walls defining a passageway which constitutes a portion of a room air recirculating path, the improvement wherein said front face includes an opening therein communicating with said passageway, whereby items may be stored within said passageway and wherein the improvement further includes at least one door positionable in a closed disposition in front of the access opening to said fire enclosure, carrier means pivotally supporting said door for swinging motion between said closed position to an extended position coplanar with the passageway defined by said spaced side walls and aligned with said opening, and means mounting said carrier for rectilinear movement within said passageway between a forward position supporting said door in said closed or extended positions and a retracted position in which said door is stored within said passageway, said door includes a lip extending outwardly from the free unhinged end of said door in substantially aligned relationship with said door, said lip having at least a portion thereof formed in a serpentine pattern to provide at least one open loop and at least one closed loop, the closed loop being usable as a handle for said door.
Apparatus for heating room air by recirculating room air in heat exchange relationship with a fire, comprising
- (a) a hollow outer enclosure including
- (1) a front wall containing a central opening,
- (2) a pair of outer side walls connected with said front wall, and
- (3) an outer back wall;
- (b) a fire enclosure means mounted within said hollow outer enclosure for containing a fire accessible through said central opening and for forming, in part, a room air recirculating path designed to maintain recirculating air separate from the combustion products produced by a fire contained within the fire enclosure means, said fire enclosure means including:
- (1) a pair of inner side walls spaced inwardly of said outer side walls to form a pair of side passageways in which air passes generally upwardly within the room air recirculating path, each said side passageway, when unrestricted, having an extent in excess of that required for obtaining maximum heat exchange efficiency between the recirculating room air and the fire contained within said fire enclosure means,
- (2) an inner back wall spaced inwardly of said outer back wall to form a back flow path making up a portion of the room air recirculating path, said back flow path having an extent which is insufficient to obtain maximum heat exchange efficiency between the room air and the fire when said side passageways are unobstructed, and
- (3) a bed plate;
- and
- (c) storage compartment means formed within said room air recirculating path for storing items useful in operating a fire containing heating apparatus, said storage compartment means including
- (1) access means contained in said front wall for permitting the items to be inserted and removed from at least one of said side passageways, said access means including an access opening contained in said front wall and closure means for selectively closing said access opening, and
- (2) item support means within the side passageway accessible through said access means for supporting items which are inserted into the passageway in a manner to allow for direct contact with room air passing generally upwardly through said passageway and for partially obstructing the accessible side passageway to increase the heat exchange efficiency of said heating apparatus by diverting some of the recirculating air from the partially obstructed side passageway into the back flow path, said item support means including a floor disposed within said accessible side passageways at a level above said bed plate, said floor containing openings to allow the flow of room air therethrough.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.