The Heated Bench Fireplace: A Smart Heating System That Warms Your Home for Hours Most fireplaces look beautiful, but they waste heat. A normal fireplace sends most of its warmth straight up the chimney. You enjoy the flames, but the room cools down quickly once the fire fades. The system shown in this image is completely different. This is a heated bench masonry fireplace — a design that captures hot smoke, forces it through a long channel, and uses that heat to warm a thick stone or brick benc