Fireclay from HF saw

[ThermoJax]

Can I use the stuff leftover from cutting bricks in my harbor freight wet saw as fireclay for the homebrew mix? On my way to ace hardware to buy the hydrated lime,portland and fine sand. It would be great to know if I am wasting my time by planning on using the homemade fireclay. Any thoughts?


Tom

[gdest]

Yes you can use it.

[RTflorida]

I'm guessing that you will need more than just the cutting slurry. Fireclay is dirt cheat (pun intended), around $12-$15 for a 40 lb or 50 lb bag in Tampa.

RT

[dmun]

There's also a difference between the two. The cutting residue from fired bricks is what potters would call "grog", a clay additive to make the clay body stronger, but not a substitute for clay. I think it's fine as a leveling additive, but I'd think twice before using it an a mixture that's supposed to be sticky.

[GianniFocaccia]

When I cut my firebrick there was a fair amount of small firebrick 'shards' that were oblong and pointy, yet obviously a bit larger than a grain of 'brickie' sand. My thought was to use this clay in my mortar not so much as the fireclay component in the homebrew recipe as much as being able to substitute a portion of the aggregate having the distinct qualities of being shaped like a stainless steel needle as well as being refractory. Is this thinking not correct?