The carcinogenic nature of arch insulation.

[not_for_sale]

I bought a large quantity of ceramic fiber blanket and I am concerned after I read a couple of comments on it and its definitely it highly irritates my nose.

I googled it, and it seems its no better than asbestos, even worse, since it breaks down when hot, and the dust is in the smoke exiting the stack

I decided to completely brick over it, but man, if I ever have to take that box apart. I also used it to shield my turkey fryer. 7492

What do you guys think, maybe someone has spent some time thinking about this already.

[mathprofdk]

Here's what I found: http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/ntp/roc/twelfth/profiles/CeramicFibers.pdf.

As others have mentioned elsewhere, I would think that if it were sealed by bricks, you should be fine. In my case, it lines my evaporator and I'm sure plenty of it is going up the stack.

It looks like the evidenced is still thin, but based on it's properties, the risk is high. I'll be looking at alternatives for next year, probably fire brick. Clumsy and heavy, but I only move the evaporator out of storage once a year, so I can handle lining and removing them twice a year.

[mathprofdk]

Here's another one: http://www.ceramaterials.com/images/MSDS_of_Blanket.pdf. More details about the risks and possible health effects.

[not_for_sale]

The biggest issue I see is that brick does not insulate. It only stores and evens out the heat the metal components are subjected to.

If you insulate under the brick, taking it apart is a huge health hazard as all the broken down fibers and dust are still there.

If you don't put brick over it, the fibers in the smoke are going to make that smoke ultra toxic. Like mixing your cigarette tobacco with asbestos dust.

I could see using refractory cement with vermiculite in it as is used by pizza ovens, but all those applications really depend on a fast firing and not on a continuous firing. I would bet that any insulation with a low r value is worthless after an hour or so of firing.

[Cake O' Maple]

There is insulating firebrick. It is much lighter and less dense, as it is full of air holes that do the insulating. The dense firebrick is indeed intended to hold the heat, for use in bread and pizza ovens.

[jake22si]

Please be aware that this stuff is extremely dangerous to mess with. You do not want to breath any of the dust in, or touch it with any part of your hands or arm that may come into contact with your face. You definitely don't want to drag any particles into your house so change your clothes and put them in a plastic bag after. Anybody that works with this stuff regularly would tell you not to even mess with it. I have done refractory work in large coal plants and boilers. Even though the affects are not immediate, I would just use extreme caution when handling this stuff especially when cutting. Just my opinion

[Cake O' Maple]

Last year I bought a piece to put under my 2 propane burners, inside my firebrick arch, to protect the cement floor in my garage from the heat. Wore disposable gloves and didn't breathe while I unrolled the piece I bought and placed it. I planned on re-using the ceramic blanket the next year. Between a couple boil-overs, and a small fire when a rubber propane hose melted, it was looking pretty bad by the end of the short season. While I debated what to do about it, some raccoons discovered it. I'd had problems with raccoons for a couple years, since I started setting out food for a stray cat (stopped that when the coons started pooping on my porch, and only set out food when the cat was there to eat it).

Well, the coons cleaned out my bucket of foam skimmings I hadn't dumped and literally tore up the ceramic blanket to get the sugar out of it. I guess they had quite a belly-ache, as I've not had raccoons around much in the past year! :lol:

[Mark]

Putting it in is not too bad but once it is heated up and the binder is burnt off, it does not take much to get it airborne.

I now only use Superwool that is body soluble and much safer.

[motowbrowne]

Interesting, the guys at Anderson's maple equipment just grabbed it with their bare hands and put it in a box for me. I wore gloves and a mask, because it seemed like a good idea, but based on how they were handling it, they sure give the impression that it's pretty benign. Glad to know.

[supersapper]

I decided to go without ceramic, just full brick in the firebox and half brick in the slope.i boil outside so the heat is not an issue.

[jake22si]

Those people may not have been educated on the dangers. Just because it doesn't hurt right away doesn't mean you wont feel it later. Just talk with some of the people that worked in the asbestos mines, if their still around.
Interesting, the guys at Anderson's maple equipment just grabbed it with their bare hands and put it in a box for me. I wore gloves and a mask, because it seemed like a good idea, but based on how they were handling it, they sure give the impression that it's pretty benign. Glad to know.

[saphead]

Read up on Superwool,read the MSDS,only stuff I would use. The way some manufacturers of maple equipment us "ceramic" insulation boggles my mind. I used to rebuild/rebrick commercial and industrial boilers and "ceramic insulation" was never left exposed,it is not designed to be. Outside into fire chamber;"ceramic insulation"blanket,fiber board of your choosing,(can also be very nasty),castable refractory,plastic refractory and or firebrick exposed to the fire. Expensive way to do it = yes ,if done properly will last forever...almost.