[TheForge] Re: Kaowool

[Grover Richardson]

Pottery supply houses.  They sell kiln materials.

I have found that the thicker heavier weight material is very much worth the
extra $$$.

I have heard pros and cons vs. the refractory and wool.  The wool heats up
quickly, great for a hobbyist like me.  But someone who wants to keep costs
down and work long hours (professional smith), I have heard that they like
the refractory.

We use several grades of fire brick here.  The lighter ones that we have are
rated for less heat, so yes check the temperature ratings of the brick. 



>*>-----Original Message-----
>*>From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net 
>*>[mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of 
>*>Jeffrey Polaski
>*>Sent: Thursday, April 13, 2006 2:09 PM
>*>To: Sponsored by ABANA
>*>Subject: RE: [TheForge] Re: Kaowool
>*>
>*>
>*>You should be able to buy it by the foot somewhere near 
>*>you... Look for a ceramics supply house, or maybe a 
>*>refractory supplier. I've used Laguna Clay and Resco around 
>*>here, and I'm sure they'd ship to you. 
>*>
>*>Just to add some "tricks" I've noticed from building my own 
>*>propane forge -- In general you're better off using 
>*>insulation with the *least* thermal mass. 
>*>
>*>For example, you're better off using a ceramic blanket for 
>*>the majority of your insulation. The blanket takes less time 
>*>than castable refractory to get up to heat. It cools down a 
>*>*little* more when you put in a heavy piece of metal, but it 
>*>really doesn't matter much. A thick layer of cast refractory 
>*>takes a lot of time (and propane) to get really hot. 
>*>
>*>Also, if you're using a propane forge and you put in 
>*>firebricks (for the floor), use the lighter "insulating" 
>*>ones, rather than the heavy-duty ones. I switched from 
>*>insulating bricks to heavy-duty bricks, and it added about 
>*>30 minutes to the time my forge takes to get really hot. 
>*>Just make sure the heat rating is high enough. 
>*>
>*>One other note, if you're using blanket, be sure to seal it 
>*>in so you don't inhale fibers. You can use colloidal silica, 
>*>or a thick layer of ITC-100, Plistix, Satanite, or skim a 
>*>layer of castable refractory over the inside. I tried a few 
>*>different things and ended up with about a 1/8" thick layer 
>*>of satanite with some ITC-100 over it. That's worked pretty 
>*>well, but I've knocked one or two holes in it over time... 
>*>I'd suggest skimming a 1/4" to 1/2" thick layer of 
>*>refractory to seal all the fiber-ey goodness.
>*>
>*>Any way, I just wanted to share some of my experience with 
>*>propane forges. I'm certainly not an expert or anything, and 
>*>I'm sure others on this list can add a lot more. 
>*>
>*>
>*>
>*>
>*>Jeff Polaski
>*>Research and Graduate Studies Webmaster
>*>University of California, Irvine
>*>http://www.rgs.uci.edu/
>*>949.824.6363
>*>-----Original Message-----
>*>From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net 
>*>[mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On >*>Behalf Of 
>*>LrdThorolf at aol.com
>*>Sent: Thursday, April 13, 2006 4:44 AM
>*>To: theforge at mailman.qth.net
>*>Subject: [TheForge] Re: Kaowool
>*>
>*>Does anyone know of a good place to  get kaowool  or 
>*>durablanket  on the web 
>*>or anyplace else that is not real high  priced located  
>*>close to Michigan? I  need to  reline my  forge but don't 
>*>know if I want  blanket or cement. I  
>*>only  need about 8 square feet. Don't need  a full  roll. 
>*>Thanks Ike Pan's Forge 
>*>_______________________________________________
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