Problem Bricking an Evaporator (Mason 2x4)

[bigschuss]

Hello everybody...have a little problem with the Heat Stop that I applied to my firebricks in my Mason 2x4. The bricking up of the box went fine. I used arch paper behind the bricks. But it looks like my refractory cement dried too fast? I didn't get good adhesion to the bricks. Lots of cracking and crazing.

I'm just seeking advice. I'm assuming this cement will all just mostly spawl and peel off the walls during this season boiling. Is it really that big of a deal if I lose most of it? Seems like the cement holds some of the bricks together and helps fill the gaps and seams. Besides that I'm just wondering if this that big of a deal.

Thanks in advance.

Blair


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[Loch Muller]

Looks like you fit your bricks with good tight joints when you did it so I wouldn't worry about it too much. When I bricked my arch I used the refactory cement on the joints mostly and didn't cover the whole brick like you did. The bricks plus the 1/4 inch paper on my arch are holding the heat in quite a bit. How many taps are you going to run on yours? I'm way over tapped.

[jmayerl]

I guess it depends what kind of cement you used. When I did mine last year my refractory cement is only designed for less than 1/4" gaps. It is not designed for coating over the brick face.

[bigschuss]

Looks like you fit your bricks with good tight joints when you did it so I wouldn't worry about it too much. When I bricked my arch I used the refactory cement on the joints mostly and didn't cover the whole brick like you did. The bricks plus the 1/4 inch paper on my arch are holding the heat in quite a bit. How many taps are you going to run on yours? I'm way over tapped.

I did fit the bricks together nice and tight.

This is my first year on an evaporator. I have 30 taps for this season. I can only boil on the weekends so I didn't want to get too crazy my first year.

[bigschuss]

Yeah, maybe that's my problem. I followed the directions on Bill Mason's site, and he guy who did it covered the bricks. Maybe my cement was designed for that.

Thanks for your thoughts.

[steve J]

I have the same rig with arch board behind my bricks although I used some cement on a couple of joints I am mostly dry bricked and it works fine and I move it after the season with the bricks in it.

[Maplesapper]

How did you adhere the firebricks to the sides of you evaporator?
I get that mortar is ideally used between the bricks.
But what prevents the bricks from pulling away from the vertical sides once the metal gets hot or they accidentally get bumped during loading between firings?

[steve J]

On the Mason 2x4 the sides go up on an outward angle so if brick tight gravity holds the bricks pretty well.

[Birddog]

I've got a Mason 2x3. Used arch board and then cemented the brcks in. It seams very solid


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[maple maniac65]

Did you soak your bricks before putting them in. Normally the brick is so dry that it sucks the moisture out of the cement so fast the brick does not adhere well.

[bcarpenter]

I think you will be fine. I have the smaller 2x3 and did not cement my bricks in and have had no issues. I agree with one of the other posters if cementing I think you want a larger gap between bricks and I think you needed to wet/soak the bricks prior to troweling on the cement

[Birddog]

I did wet the bricks first. I started with dry mix refractory cement and switched to the premix. The premix seemed to work much better for me.


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[bigschuss]

Thanks everybody. I did not wet the bricks first. Sounds like that may have caused the cement to dry too quickly.