UK Supplier of Firebricks and other items

[PeterW]

OK

Treat me gently, newbie on the loose....

I've found a supplier of what I think are suitable firebricks and castables, and I've got a couple of (UK biased...?) questions.

The supplier is Dudley Designs, here and the prices look reasonable.

So, Q's....

Q1. Given the weight of the firebricks, can I assume they are the 'right' sort..?

Q2. Would the Fondue Tiles work as an acceptable alternative to firebricks for the floor...?

Q3. Whats 'Castable Concrete'....!!

Cheers

Peter

[Wlodek]

Peter,

I wonder whether there could be a separate branch of the Forum dealing with UK specifics, mainly suppliers.

To add to the list, here is another one I found:

<hmm, I cannot post a link because I have not posted enough ... you'll have to try and Google for a company called Purimachos in Bristol instead ... grrr >

They even sell little refractory clay ovens.

Best wishes,
Wlodek

[dmun]

Hey, good find. We keep hearing about four pound UK firebricks. These:

3 Inch dimensions are each brick
Width 230 mm 9 inches
Depth 114 mm 4.5 inches
Height 50 mm 2 inches
Weight 3 kg 6.6 lbs

are exactly the right bricks, and at at 1.20 pounds, (sorry can't make the funny wiggle) they are expensive by US standards, but not UK.

Wlodek: don't be insulted by the need to make a couple of postings before posting links or photos, we had a rash of spammers posting links to phony cellphone vendors, and such crap. We value legitimate newcomers.

[Wlodek]

Dmun, no problem, managed somehow and certainly wasn't insulted. I can see why this is set up this way.

I find this place excellent. Lots of expertise and sound advice floating around.

I'll keep lurking, post what I can at the planning stage, later (I did download the plans) I'll post the results and the photo-log. This will hopefully be by next summer.

Found another supplier, by the way. Sounds quite specialist, too much choice for my feeble knowledge of the topic. It is called Sheffield Refractories (go Google ... this is only my second post ).

Best wishes from sunny Cumbria,

W.

[PeterW]

Wlodek

Thanks for the link - there are also a couple of others you can try - the first is Handsworth Refractories, and the second is Jays Refractories, both in Sheffield.

There doesn't seem to be much around the Cumbria area though.

Cheers

Peter

[Wlodek]

Thanks. Makes sense too. Sheffield and Cumbria have quite different industrial history. Oh, well. I guess I'll pay the delivery charges.

Have you worked out what the different cements and concretes do? I think I am getting a vague idea now.

Best wishes from (still) sunny Lancaster,

W.

[jengineer]

Once you get past the initial counter for false posters you can go back and edit your post. This way you can add in the links for others that may read this later..

Hey some of us are lazy.

[Wlodek]

Just to let you know I wrote to one of the suppliers here asking for help in specifying the materials (bricks, cements, castables, insulation) out of their very broad and specialist sounding offer for this specific project. I am hoping for a useful reply, which I'll make available here for the UK members.
Best wishes,
W.

[Wlodek]

Research continues ...

Interesting. Unless Insulfrax is a generic name (which I doubt), your favourite insulating blanket (as specified in the Pompeii Oven instructions and elsewhere on this Forum) comes from Yorkshire Refractory Products, which is in Halifax (West Yorkshire), about an hour drive from where I am sitting at the moment.

Regarding my project: Still collecting bricks and slate - I decided to go "greener" and use recycled bricks (through Freecycle) and this takes time. I'll also need help with building the big slate covered gazebo over the oven and the "play area" (advanced carpentry!), so I am getting quotes on this locally.

Best wishes,

W.

[georgec7]

Hi,

I tried out the two suppliers mentioned earlier for the UK. The quote from Purimachos was:
Thank you for your enquiry.
These bricks will cost £1.60 each plus carriage of £35 (one pallet) plus
VAT on the total.
This makes a grand total of £417.12 for 200 bricks.

The supplier in Dudley comes in at £376 including VAT and delivery!

THere are a couple of refractories in Essex, which I'm going to try. The problem is they build industrial kilns, so 200 bricks isn't really worth their while.

Can anyone beat £376? I've even considered the US but not sure if it's a viable option- whatever the cost is, even if it was a bulk order for redistribution here in the UK, VAT, Customs duty and shipping costa all have to be considered.

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks

George