Evaporator Insulation

[Shelburne Farms]

I am wondering what insulation material is best to use between the baffles of the evaporator arch (30" x 8, raised flue). I bricked the front firebox area and the back baffle but was hoping to use a different material for the middle baffle. Can I use 1/2 inch insulation blanket? Other suggestions?
Thanks,
Dana

[Bucket Head]

Do you have insulation behind the bricks in the firebox? If not, you should. I used 1" blanket insulation there and archboard insulation under the flue pan. I think that was 1" also. I'm not sure if 1/2" blanket is available- I've never seen it that thin.

Steve

[village idiot]

Vermiculite. You can find it at nursery/plant/landscape type places. You will need several cubic feet for a raised 30x8. The stuff is very light and I think there is a worry about it blowing away with the monster draft you have running through there. Some people mix a little cement in with the top 1/2 inch just to make sure the stuff stays put. I had some left over 1" arch board that I mashed in on top to keep the vermiculite kernels in place.

[nymapleguy607]

Is you evaporator wood or oil fired? If it was oil fired you don't need to clean the flues very often, I would put blanket at the top right under the flue pan and then if you had to put a couple bricks and arch board to get the blanket to the right height. Advantages to the blanket is the help to reflect heat back into the flues and it cools quickly. If your going with wood fired I would fill with vermiculite but then set bricks in the top of the vermiculite. Advantages of brick are they will withstand cleaning the flues and keep the vermiculite from blowing up the stack, they're slow to warm up but once warm they are not a real problem.

[Daves Maple Farm]

New Smokey Lake evaporator. Lined entire unit with 1 inch blanket and half inch fire brick over top blanket in fire box area.
Protects blanket in fire box from those mis-guided timber while fireing..