[TheForge] Fire pot depth - opinions wanted

[Daniel Crowther]

         I believe Dick means they do not put water on the fire to 
extinguish it at the end of the day.  What happens when you do this is the 
water combines with the sulphur in the coal to form a weak Sulfuric 
Acid.  Since the fire isn't burning any longer the sulphur/water sits on 
the firepot for an extended period of time.
         I too have stopped using water to put the fire out (I still use it 
to control the fire).  Instead I rake the coals out onto the forge top and 
dowse them there.

Dan


At 09:55 AM 2/9/02 -0700, you wrote:
>How does one manage a coal fire without wetting the coal?
>
>Thanks, Adam
>
>At 01:36 PM 2/8/2002 -0600, you wrote:
>>Phil, you have one of the old ones and they must be better.  Old is always
>>better, you know!  My experience comes from the one I burned out which took
>>about 3 years and from a friends who's also took about 3 years.  I still
>>like the firepot well enough that I keep a spare on hand.  We do not put
>>water on our coal, so that is not the cause of the burn out.  I've heard
>>smiths at the Ozark Conference say that they quit using water on their coal
>>due to the frequency of burnouts or cracking with the Centaur pot.  Now that
>>is not a lot of experience on my part with them, but it is my experience of
>>2 burnouts for 2 pots.  I could publish a picture of the last one that
>>burned out if you want.  It burned a silver $ sized hole in the center of
>>one of the big flat sides.
>>
>>Dick