Obrown101

I really appreciate this information Frosty. All I’ve got to do now is get to the scrap yard to get some more materials.

You all make some very good points. I think I will make a new one with the insulation and burner I have. What size would you recommend for a beginner who wants to make some knives, axes, and such projects? Also, how did you figure how many burners for a certain length/width forge? What’s that formula look like? I appreciate everyone’s help getting me set on the right path.

Thanks for the information on the castable refractory. I think I'll probably invest in some of it, just so I can feel a little bit safer about the fiberglass particles. I realize my forge is way too big. I didn't know what I was doing as a beginner and scaled it a bit too large. Problem is I've already spent the money on putting it all together so now I'm kinda stuck with it. I might build a small "insert" of sorts out of some scrap metal and the extra wool I have left. A smaller insert I can just slide into this one when I want to conserve fuel and do small work. I attached a photo of my setup (this pic was before I cut the hole in the front door). I still have things I'm going to change about it as I go along. Slow beginnings...

It's an old air-tank with rounded ends (obviously) but is 25" from end to end and 16" in diameter. That's before I put the insulation in.

So...I just finished building a large (too large, I’ve got my father’s habit of over-engineering) propane forge. I put 2in layer of ceramic fiber wool from CeraMaterials. I have firebrick on the bottom (on top of the wool). I have put a decent amount of a rigidizer coating on the wool. I’m not a safety freak, but I‘m also young and don’t want to die from lung cancer later on in life. Is rigidizer enough? Should I put another layer of some sort of refractory cement or something? I’m new to the community and blacksmithing and don’t know how to layer coatings inside a gas forge nor what is durable or not. Any suggestions?