Fans at the air inlets in the burning chamber are aimed to twist the air and flame into a vortex, efficiently burning the fuel and rendering a neat effect. The glass viewing tube leads to the roof where spark arrestors at the chimney would be keep the thing from burning down the neighborhood. I'll link some firestorm tornadoes for examples.

Hmm. Baked? People have done this a lot but I'm not seeing it as living room fireplace version.

I'll leave the MFD, "baked" decision to the voters.
-- doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012

The real thing http://www.youtube....ju0&feature=related
[doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012]

A real pretty one http://www.youtube....ture=endscreen&NR=1
I'd just scale this down and throw it in the living room. [doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012]

Baked? http://www.youtube....MxAM&feature=fvwrel
I'll leave it up to you. [doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012]

This only made of glass in the middle of the room. http://www.google.c...,i:105&tx=52&ty=101
Make it a centerpiece of your couches and a multi level floor to get kind of a campfire pit vibe. [doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012]

A tornado simulator is just a box with slits in it. http://www.tornadop...cellar/workshop.htm
No fans required. [baconbrain, Sep 19 2012]

Recent fire tornado in Australia http://www.ntnews.c.../313627_ntnews.html
[AusCan531, Sep 19 2012]

I for one would like to place an order for this beautiful but startlingly dangerous domestic accident waiting to happen. [+]
-- PainOCommonSense, Sep 19 2012


Just sign this lengthy release of liability and we'll get one out to you.
-- doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012


A fireplace tornado would look better if your fireplace was not against a wall but in the middle of your floor, with a chimney/hood coming down from the ceiling to take fumes away. The air pumps to maintain the vortex would be concealed in the floor and the hood.
-- hippo, Sep 19 2012


Yea, I'm thinking like sort of a glass version of those "ski chalet" style fireplaces from the 60s. (50s?) See link.

Put it in a sunken living room with couches around it.
-- doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012


That's the kind of thing, although that runs the risk of looking like the set of a certain kind of 70's porn film - or so I am told.
-- hippo, Sep 19 2012


Porn eh? I heard they have porn on the internet now.
-- doctorremulac3, Sep 19 2012


[+] I'll take several thanks, despite the extraneous crap in the post.
-- FlyingToaster, Sep 19 2012


There are simple "tornado simulators" made from a tall square box with openings at each corner, powered by a hot-plate and a pan of water---no fan is required. (Linque.)

If you made a similar box out of fire-proof glass, you'd have a nifty free-standing fireplace.
-- baconbrain, Sep 19 2012


If the fuel is gas, and the stoichometry iis correct, then no spark arresters will be needed, and the vortex can be self sustaining.

A cylinder would be cooler-looking than a box.

Flames … [+]
-- 8th of 7, Sep 19 2012


Bravo +
-- blissmiss, Sep 19 2012


There was a good fire tornado filmed in the Northern Territory a couple days ago. [link] I would buy one of these fireplaces [+]
-- AusCan531, Sep 19 2012


No Toto!
NOoooooo... (+)
-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Sep 20 2012


I want the enhanced version with several tubes.
-- Phrontistery, Sep 20 2012


Rather fancy one without spark arresters.
-- Lesser Spotted Kiwi, Sep 20 2012


[+] Can there be a place to bake a potato on the tornado?
-- xandram, Sep 20 2012


You could make so much money with this.
-- leinypoo13, Sep 20 2012


Inside the tube would be a good place to mount a display of some sort, on which [8th] could take a vid chat from his ex-spouse.
-- lurch, Sep 21 2012



random, halfbakery