Oven door question?

[Balthazar]

I have an oven door made from 3mm plate steel (no pics yet sorry), and was thinking of using this product to adhere to the inside of the door:

Gold Reflective Film

Summary: Size: 1Ft x 2Ft The Gold Reflective Film is an aerospace material capable of reflecting 78% of all radiant heat with continuous operating temperatures of 450 degrees centigrade.

They are also very close to where I live I think the product looks like it would be effective, but would appreciate a second opinion.

Thanks

[Frances]

Sounds good to me... but you'll only know if it works if you try it out Could be you'll be the first person to put it on an oven door.

Let us know how it turns out!

[david s]

I can't see the advantage of using a reflective foil when your door is highly conductive (steel) Surely an insulating material like wood would be better and the foil should prevent it from charring. That foil is not cheap, you'd want it to work.

[Frances]

Ok, so what exactly is radiant heat anyway?? If the foil stops wood from charring, wouldn't it also prevent metal from conducting?

[staestc]

Seems to me like it would greatly reduce how hot the steel got, for a short time at least. The portions of the foil not in contact with anything on the oven side should be subjected only to radiant heating, of which most would be reflected. The pieces of foil that are in contact with the oven bricks around the edges and bottom would be subject to conduction through the foil and into the steel, so after a period of time I suspect that the steel would still heat up substantially.

I would suggest an isulator of some kind between the steel, and the foil, and between wood and the foil if wood was to be used, but there are lot of folks here that know a lot more about it than I

Travis

[alfred febbroriello]

Hi,I 'am new member, but I would try and use the ceramic fire board insulator or fiber wool insulator on inside of steel door to block heat into steel door.Bond the fiber wool or fiber board using liquid nails. Hope this helps.

[david s]

The denser the material is the more it will attract the heat. On my first oven I set in a very dense black stone on the front above the arch. You could place your hand on the outside of any part of the oven except this dense rock. It became our temperature indicator. When you couldn't touch it the oven was ready for pizza. It was because the material was far denser than anything around it. I've always felt that a thick steel door is a poor material to use because it will suck heat out of your oven and then radiate it out to the outside. It also becomes dangerous to handle and is really heavy. Traditional Italian ovens used wooden doors which presumably got replaced periodically.

[Balthazar]

Originally Posted by alfred febbroriello

Hi,I 'am new member, but I would try and use the ceramic fire board insulator or fiber wool insulator on inside of steel door to block heat into steel door.Bond the fiber wool or fiber board using liquid nails. Hope this helps.

Wouldn't the Liquid Nails be affected by the heat?

[Balthazar]

Originally Posted by david s

I've always felt that a thick steel door is a poor material to use because it will suck heat out of your oven and then radiate it out to the outside.

That's why I'm intending to reflect as much heat back into the oven as possible.

I enquired about the gold reflective film today and the guy told me they haven't had it for two years (obviously they keep their website up to date....ahem!), but they do have a product called Reflect-A-Cool and Cool-Tape:

Cool Tape and Relfect A Cool

Detailed Information:

Reflect-A-Cool™is a sheet of reflective material with an adhesive back which offers outstanding protection against extreme heat. A combination of fiberglass and an aluminized layer of reflective foil, Reflect-A-Cool™ is ideal for firewalls, marine engine bays or in the tub of a racecar where typical mechanical fasteners cannot be used. Reflect-A-Cool™ will reflect up to 1000 degrees F. and will protect against a direct continuous temperature of 400 degrees F.

Cool-Tape consists of a 1 mil aluminized material bonded to a light weight, woven fiberglass with super strong adhesive backing and release liner. Cool-Tape can reflect up to 1500 degrees of radiant heat. The uses are limited only by your imagination but common uses include wrapping wires or fuel lines and sealing openings in floor boards or firewalls. This is the finest heat shielding tape on the market

* Up to 1500 degree protection
* More flexible
* Strong adhesive
* Thin for a tight wrap

The size of Reflect-A-Cool I would need is $47AUD...not bad

[Frances]

I'm thinking if you wrapped that stuff round a door made of aerated concrete and just put a decorative front on (metal, wood, whatever), you might have a really well insulated door. Hmmm, I wonder if I can find anything similar around here...