FUNDAMENTALS OF STOVE CONSTRUCTION In any hearth the hot gases coming out of the burner and moving inside it return their heat to the walls and after they are cooled they are discharged into the chimney. What is meant by the notion hearth? The hearth includes a firebox in which the process of combustion of fuel takes place, and convection system to use the fuel heat This may be the stove of any functional purpose (heating stove, heating and cooking stove, Russian stove, bath stove, etc.) stove with a fireplace, heating boiler. While heating or burning of wood part of its substance is fumed, the other part remains on the hearth bottom. The quantity of matter which vaporizes from the wood, e.g. birch, reaches up to 88 %, and the quantity of solid matter amounts to 12 % only. The majority of the substance that vaporizes are combustible fumes, therefore in order to use the energy content efficiently combustion of these gases is also foreseen. The most common error while designing a hearth lies in the fact that one forgets about the existence of the gaseous fuel part of wood. Energy or heat content of wood is a maximum amount of chemical energy incorporated in it that theoretically can be separated from the fuel during its combustion. Being guidied by this, we shall specify the following concept. In order to have a good hearth it is necessary to provide the following: ensure the best conditions for the complete carrying out of combustion reaction, i.e. obtain maximum useful quantity of heat inherent in the fuel; organize the natural movement of cold and hot gases, separate the gas flow coming through the hearth, direct the hot gases for heat accumulation and vent the cold ones; fulfil the structural part of the convective system of the hearth in accordance with the necessary functional requirements in order to reduce the heat losses from the smoke fumes, ensure optimum heating of all parts of the hearth , turn the greatest part of wood energy content into useful heat, that is to achieve the highest efficiency factor. The possibility to use electric energy as reserve fuel. http://www.stove.ru/index.php?lng=1&rs=15