Canada - Hard Time Getting Material? Newbie Forum Discuss Canada - Hard Time Getting Material? in the Good Background Information forums; Tony, Matrilite is not meant to hold weight. It's a castable insulator only. I'm using it over the insulating batts ...

[CanuckJim]

Tony,

Matrilite is not meant to hold weight. It's a castable insulator only. I'm using it over the insulating batts on the dome, instead of vermiculite/Portland.

Jim

[SuperT]

Yes; I assumed because it was a castable it was interchangeable with the vermiculite, which also is used on the hearth slab.

I ordered double the amount of Insulfrax and am going to double the normal amount on the outside of the dome, chicken wire it and outdoor stucco it as per the instructions.

Regardless, thanks for the tip...these guys are great to deal with and are sending me an e-mail with the safety info on the product.

Looks like my best deal on fire brick is going to be $2.78 for the full size. Going to get that finished up today.

Tony

[dmun]

Originally Posted by SuperT

a 2" Mineral Wool Board for the Hearth Slab insulating layer.

Rigid? Mineral wool? 1900 degrees? sounds like the insblock 19 that I used. It's available in Canada, here's a post on a ceramics site:

we built an annealing oven that we use for stress relieving iron castings. It is
simply a box (2'x2'x3') made from sheets of rigid 2" 1900 degree
insulating board. A.P. Green is a large refractory supplier with offices
in many locations - here in Ottawa they have a product called Insblock
19. A box of 5 2"x12"x36" sheets costs about 100.00 CDN.

It's widely used in craft ceramics, inside the firebrick. These guys take their kilns up to twice the temperatures we do. It's a little softer than cal - sil board, but more than rigid enough for what we do. Will it soak up food grease? Well maybe if it gets that far down. If you're roasting whole pigs or something, you may want to put a pan under it no matter what insulation you're using.

And by the way, Home Depot sucks everywhere. As the saying goes, when you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

[Versachi]

Heh Super, I paid $2.50 for a full brick here in Thunder Bay so I feel your pain. I believe the brick was shipped to TBay from out west. If it's the same manufacturer that may explain the extra cost. Good luck to ya on your build.

John

[CanuckJim]

Tony, Dmun, Versachi,

Here's the link to the parent company: ANH Refractories. I've contacted them for further info on Canadian locations.

Cheers,

Jim

[SuperT]

I am going to use the material suggested by Alphatherm for the insulated floor on the Hearth. Its called KFAC-19 (Aluminum Silicate Board). It looks like its made by Therma fibre.The website is

http://www.thermafiber.com/uFolder/uploads/TF554.pdf

Cost is $115(Can) for a carton which should do the 48 sq inches. The MSDS sheet looks good providing you are not breathing in cut particles on a long term basis, which is probably true of any insulation.

Tony

[sarah h]

Although this thread isn't that current, I have to add my 2-cents worth about Canadian availability and also prices.

Here in Ottawa:

Ready-mix concrete was readily-available, at $4 for a 30 kg (66 lb) bag from Home Depot but at $6 a bag at the local masonry supply store. When questioned, the local guy said that, being a small independent supplier, they just couldn't compete with a large chain like HD. OK.

For firebricks, the independent local supplier charges $1.50 per brick ... but is out of stock, likely till Monday. They didn't know what type (thermal mass or insulating) it was and seemed almost resentful when I wanted to know if they knew if it was low- or medium-duty. Didn't know.

I called a few other places that specialize in tile, brick, stone, etc. Most don't stock it, although I did find one place over in Quebec who has them for something like $2.50 apiece.

So I called HD. They have 28 of them in stock. For ... get this ... $5.19 each!!!

So, how is it that the independent supplier, who can't compete with HD on concrete, can sell firebrick for $1.50 (which I still think should be cheaper if you guys in the US are getting them for a dollar), while HD, who, with their huge economies of scale, should be able to sell them for less but charges more than triple???

As for fireclay, I asked at the independent specialty place, locally regarded as the best place in the area for masonry supplies, if they sell it. No. Do they know where I can get it? No.

SuperIsol: What??

I had a long drive to the agricultural supply place for vermiculite but at least they had it and it seemed like a bargain at $16.99 a bag (big - can't recall what volume).

I haven't yet begun on refractory cement but then, without any bricks ...

Stalled-out in Ottawa,
Sarah