What to insulate with???

[YoungGun]

Ok I have hit a snag with building my 45g drum evaporator, I cant find any fire bricks within a 3 hour drive! Is it absolutely necessary to insulate? Is there a alternative to fir bricks? I am going to be doing a lot of taps(60-120) and this is my first season but I am planning on boiling 14+ hrs day. I am not doing this alone but as it stands I might not be doing this at all...
Thanks in advance
Aiden

[maple flats]

Have you tried a concrete/brick yard, masonry supply. Around here all masonry supply houses carry fire brick. Also stores that sell wood stoves, but they charge more as a rule.

[OldManMaple]

Back in the days before firebrick, regular brick was used. As a rule soft brick took heat better than hard brick. The brick may not last as long, but I know a arch around here that still has regular brick after more than 50 years. The insulation behind the brick will do more for you but on a barrel you could skip it, but don"t skip the bricks.

[ericjeeper]

I have used regular bricks for several years in my home made arch. They work fine.. Do not try to take them out, as they will crumble.. But they work well enough for the price.

[red maples]

If you can't find a masonary brick place, call a mason, fireplace builder/repair company they may even be able to get you some for a decient price as they buy it by the pallet (not a wood stove store they will charge you over $4 a brick) , or even a landscaper and see where they get their stuff from. by the way I was in TSC the other day and they had split bricks for $2.99 a piece thats quite alot!!!

[Mark]

Back in the days before firebrick, regular brick was used. As a rule soft brick took heat better than hard brick. The brick may not last as long, but I know a arch around here that still has regular brick after more than 50 years. The insulation behind the brick will do more for you but on a barrel you could skip it, but don"t skip the bricks.

When I was a kid we used cinder block for the arch. Looked close to cement block but did not crack.

[Pibster]

Try your local Home Hardware. If they don't have them on the shelf, they can get them. Product #5540-391

[YoungGun]

Thanks a lot everyone, I will be doing some more calling around today!

[YoungGun]

Ok found some at home hardware, pibster what do you pay for yours? 4.99 seems a little high don't it?

[YoungGun]

Oh one other thing, how many bricks should I get??? I think I'll need around 30, what do ya'll think?

[maple flats]

That's high. At a block/masonry yard for contractors I paid $1.50 in 2006. Prices have climbed but not that much. You need to buy where the order direct from the manufacturer, not a place that buys in small quantities thru other distributors, each step in the supply chain adds a % to the price.

[mustanger]

Half bricks are selling for 1.77 here in Southern Indiana/Northern Kentucky area. I just got a quote from a company in Louisville, Ky for 1.77 each. Hope you find some decent priced ones. Best place to try is a masonry supplier that handles a lot of flue blocks etc. They usually have flue liners and fire bricks which are made out of the same clay.

[Ed R]

Check with local demo contractors or industrial boiler contractors for used brick. Asbestos abatement contractors may have salvaged brick fom boiler projects as well.

[YoungGun]

Could I use old flue liners??? They have a pallet full at the local restore. I would just take a masonry blade and cut each one into 4 slabs then mortar them together. That would save me a ton of $$$

[OldManMaple]

Flue tile barely work for their intended use, they really don't take thermal shock our high heat well. Newer tiles are only 5/8" thick. Older ones, and larger sizes may be up to 1-1/4" thick. If you had some made of pumice they may work but I don't think they would be very durable.

[noreast maple]

If you cant find any bricks --even used ones then you could use the tile in a pinch, just use a layer of sand about 1 1/2 or 2 inches deep over them . you are just going to be able to cover the bottom portion up on the sides of bottom this way, but it will work to keep the wood and hot coals from burning through the bottom. I built one like this years ago when you couldnt find anthing like new or used and i just used sand and it worked for two or three years . hope this helps you get the start you are wanting. what ever you use make sure you use tin on floor and part way up around it , GETS HOT BESIDE IT.

[Agent914]

I built my barrel evaporator but instead of using fire brick on the inside I decided to put some high temperature insulation (http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-ceramic-insulation/=kw14z3) on the “outside” of the barrel. I attached the insulation by covering it with a roll of metal flashing and self-tapping screw and recut the pan holes.

Since I was losing a lot of heat outside of the barrel I figured this technique that this would trap more the heat inside and give me a longer burn time without having to add smaller pieces of wood if I had used fire bricks on the inside.

FYI, for my barrel evaporator I cut 2 perpendicular slots which support 2 SS restaurant warming and added a reinforcing bars to prevent any wrapping.