February 5, 200818 yr I am restoring a forge. I will need some firebricks to line the hearth, and a friend recommended the bricks from the inside of a storage heater. Would bricks of this type be suitable?
February 5, 200818 yr What temperature range are the bricks made for, I to do not know what a storage heater is.
February 6, 200818 yr Storage heater - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediastorage heater - Google Image Search as to how suitable the brick would be, most refractory brick is either highly insulative or chemically tough (various oxides), the brick in the storage heater would be optimized for a high thermal mass but it also is likely pretty tough bei9ng designed to last through many thermal cycles thermal shock without knowing exactly what the brick is made out of it would be hard to be more specific
February 6, 200818 yr I am sure they would hold up just fine, assuming you have them or are getting them for free, if you have to buy them then I would find the bricks by spec that will do exactly what you want. welder19
February 6, 200818 yr Author Thanks guys. I will try them, I think. I looked for places to buy new fire bricks but nowhere local to me has them. I even asked a few builders I know, and they couldnt source me any either.
February 6, 200818 yr i believe most hard ware stores carry firebricks.igot mine from the brick supply yard. ask a bricklayer where he gets his supplies.
February 6, 200818 yr Author I better meet some new bricklayers. None of the guys I know have been able to help so far!
February 7, 200818 yr dont they build chimneys in Britain anymore Matt?there used to be lots when i lived in Lancaster.
February 7, 200818 yr If you are just putting them in the tray anything will do. If this is a coal or coke forge that is. I have even used rocks and gravel when I wasn't near a place to get bricks. If you are using them for the firepot then a refractory would work the best because you could make it into whatever shape you need.
February 7, 200818 yr Mate, if you've got a welder (and even if you don't you can rivet), I suggest you build and English style back-blast forge. You don't need bricks, and the tuyere can just be a piece of stainless pipe; you don't need the water cooling. It's basically a square box (ideally 1meter/3 foot on a side), 5" or so deep. The tuyere enters from the back about 3" from the top and much of the box is filled with ashes or whatever you have to hand. Sand would probably work. This type of forge is quite flexible as you can change the size and shape of the fire and firepot at will. They're designed for coal/coke (I think you are not allowed to forge over coal in this country any more). I've been working on a modified version for charcoal (deeper box) and built from wood (it's easier for me to work, and cheaper). A good link: Scans - Side Blast Forge Also if you're interested, contact John B; I know he's built at least 2 of these from scratch and I'm sure he's got some suggestions for simplifications/improvements.
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