Operating a Gas-Forge/Furnace... Can it Melt/Burn Up?

[DC712001]

Building my first small Propane Forge Furnace. Has me wondering.... Can a furnace Melt/Burn Up?

Aside from proper insulation, how do you keep that from happening? Once fired up, does it need to be watched carefully and adjusted, or does it basically take care of itself?

[Francis Trez Cole]

the only problem I have had so far was whasp making a nest in the burner tube and when I lit it. was a wake up call it was burnning out of the top of the burner

[hill.josh]

Unless your using an acetylene/oxy burner on steroids.. no it won't melt, especially if its insulated, now if your forge is glowing orange then eventually over a really long period of time it would but its not very likely to do that being insulated. If you build something that strong tell me.

[ThomasPowers]

Over time and use the insulation slowly degrades and will require replacing. As a hobbiest who is not welding in my propane forge I have just recently begun thinking about re-lining as teaching new students is *hard* on the insulation too. My forge is on it's first lining and is over 7+? years so far.

[DC712001]

Thanks for the replies. Good to know.

[Frosty]

It depends on the rating of the refractory you use and how well you tuned your burner(s).

Air and propane in the proper ratio and properly mixed will burn around 3,200f according to Mike Porter. Most hard fire brick ranges from 2,300 to 3,000f. Most insulated soft brick is rated at 2,300f. Most ceramic blanket is rated from 2,300f to 2,700f.

ITC-100 will go a long way towards shielding your refractory as it increases the efficiency of your forge.

How you run it has a lot to do with refractory life. Most guys do not need welding heat all the time, mild steel melts around 2,700f. Most general forging takes place in the high orange to low yellow say around 2,000 to 2,300f.

Flux will erode most refractories quickly at heat, silica dissolves in caustics such as really HOT borax. Alumina is less susceptible and if you can get it phosphate bonded or phosphate based refractories are immune to welding fluxes.

So, the short answer is yes, you CAN melt the liner out of your forge but it's pretty unlikely. Far more likely is you'll dissolve portions of it learning to weld.

Frosty

[DC712001]

Thanks Frosty.