fan of war fans

Hi everyone, I purchased a forge at a yard sale to replace my original one, which was destroyed in an accident. This new forge is in far better condition than my old one was, but I noticed something about its construction. The floor of the fire pot has an insulating layer on top of it which is covered by a metal plate. This plate is both bent upwards exposing the insulation, and smaller than the insulation. Given the age of the forge and the appearance of the insulation, I am very worried about it being asbestos. Everyone I've asked agrees that it is most likely asbestos, but not on what I should do about it. My mother says to remove the asbestos and replace it with something like Kaowool. My father says to use it as-is, and my grandfather says to bend the metal back into place and then use it. I agree that it should be replaced, especially since the blower is situated under the forge, and that the air travels right by it and it will cause the asbestos to be subjected to heavy vibration, which would likely release asbestos fibers according to the EPA website. My worry about replacing it with Kaowool is that in these conditions, it will be no better than asbestos. Any advice?