Thanks for the suggestion of pottery clay. The bag does not comment on the type of cement but does say the function is a brick layer’s mortar. Hi Rado: Finally spring is here and hope everything is A ok with you. Even cover the exposed drying clay with a plastic cover to slow down the drying time further!

I think their experiment proves that inexpensive materials – 50% organic matter and 50% clay – seeds, sugar, potash, water, clay, (“no sand necessary as high silica causes cracks, high lithium (spodumene) clays are more durable” (Crispin Pemberton) – cob mixture is sufficient to build durable kiln. Sit on some low comfortable soft seat on the driveway and use a hammer to brake it into almost powder.

Fire clay sand mortar mix dries very slowly, but if you support the side walls by pouring concrete cladding behind them, leave it cure and then form arched ceiling using the 50:50 fireclay : sand mortar is the best option. You answered my questions about using fireclay, the proportions, etc. If you have a drawings, images of what you are making, email them to me and I will comment on what I see. Awesome site. a pizza paddle it drops off some clay because mud bricks and adobe are unstabilized, they would have to be clay bisque fired in kiln in a slow temperature speed-increase to at least 950 degrees Celsius to harden. Large, roughly molded, sun-dried clay units of varying sizes. whoa! what temperature must the oven reach for this? In it, for example the 4″ thick insulation under the hearth slab is performing really well, it’s very effective design in all aspects. Thank you very much for the time you spent telling us all what we need to know.

I haven’t seen any brand for fireclay as such, it’s always called simply “fireclay” or “fire clay“. Instead of using fire bricks. You can use standard firebricks for raku and you don’t necessary need a large volume space inside. Pat, what you can use to set your firebricks into the pavers enclosure is to use simple 50:50 ratio mix of fireclay:sand which is great refractory. And that also I don’t have any means to bake this clay cooking pot other than to use my conventional oven and perhaps later season the pot to give it strength. Water circulation based heating system or only a hot air usage?

There is not a great difference between most clay types. many thx. You can mix it in a mix, also paint it on with brush or dip your fired items in it. What type of cement it contains? Mike, Check out Laguna Clay’s web site, laguna clay. Also water heating exchanger in it or more? I’ve been looking around lately for an inexpensive alternative that I think I could handle. Fire clay shrinks about 10 to 15% after water dries out so take home an extra bucket more. You don’t need to go for expensive clay, just pick one type for higher temperature and light in color. Can I cover the exterior with a Cob style mud, or should there be no organics in the exterior as well? Whitish to yellowish, pinkish, light brownish. By this clay would need to be tested first to find out its suitability. Close your eyes and think about this…, give it a go a several times. Thanks for posting all this, using what I learned I’ve developed a thermal concrete recipe using clays mixed up like plaster to bond Perlite granules, making a pourable mix to cast with. added by Rado: Sepha, if you want to create the kiln out of clay and use your kiln for many years, it is a wise idea to build the inner walls of this kiln, the hot face lining, out of firebricks. With this online fire_clay volume vs. weight tool, measuring units can be easily converted/calculated. I’m in Suriname and i want to build a brick oven to make charcoal. Like heat resistant mortars, insulation, pottery, ceramics, ceramic blankets or ceramic tiles on space shuttle, origins of these start from the fire clay, its melting starts at 1600 Celsius °C or 2912 Fahrenheit °F point. How will you coat a clay mould and what will you use. In the other replace 1/2 of the lime portion with casting plaster (can buy in large bags like cement, painters use it.) You can make several per hour this way. But I do not know what materials I should use for the internal body of the furnace, which is stable against heat 1200 ° C.
Usually the shop has dry samples. Now I’m thinking we could do a pizza oven, maybe combine it with a smoker…. Adobe structures account for some of the oldest extant buildings on the planet. I have a clay looking container with lid that sits in a metal frame. Fantastic!

We must help to ourselves, people in general ourselves, to keep energy bills small and equaly to save our environment is very important! I live in the South East where there is a lot of clay, however I cannot find anyone who sells a powder clay in bulk quantities. We are building a barbecue area and could not find anything on the fire clay based heat resistant mortar recipes and mix ratios. Anyone have gas furnace bulding instructions? Can I use clay that I can harvest from a stream bank in my back yard to create a refractory mortar to handle high temperatures? I think that I have found fire clay.

I’m building a cob dome oven and using fire clay and silica sand from a local fire brick distributor. One of the most ancient building materials, adobe was widely used in unforested areas; for example, it was … blankets and so on you name it all kinds of items. If that was the case, then leave a gap between the inner firebricks and the outer decorative skin. After about a week in an airy place the clay will be dry. I think the clay adobes would become unnecessarily brittle, less porous and don’t know about its properties under continuous refiring and cooling down where you can get the cracks. Can any one help me. You can slow down the plaster setting time by adding a little amount of vinegar into the water, before plaster goes in. When I go fast I use a little of Portland cement in the mortar so it’s setting in 2 hours.

Clay adobe and bricks must be dense and less porous, solid and heavy. an unfired brick made of clay mixed with cut straw or other fibrous materials, such as tow or chaff. Thermal conductivity. Sounds like interesting outing doesn’t it(? You can experiment with this, but plaster hold well even when red hot.

The clay has also lower shrinkage range with sand present in the clay body. I will think of you fondly when I build my brick kiln. I am not sure exactly what the Rocket Stove is like, but something is telling me that you plan to cast perhaps section-s from that heat resistant mix. I’m going with a cob style oven, but i was a little confused with the comment above about lime, (old ovens last for ever because they replaced cement with lime) added to the refractory mortar. In mass sense, even when in a dry powdered form with density of 1.303 gram/cm3 or correspondingly 0.753 ounce/cu-in, fire clay is still a heavy product; when compared with cement for instance. The firebricks I laid for the hearth have some gaps. Hope this helps anyone in the Phoenix Valley in Arizona :), I am building another oven but this time I want to build a cob style oven.

Appreciate your time. You can sieve it with a fine sieve too. I want to make this circle a solid pour 4″ thick & strong enough to take some abuse.

Email us a few pictures, large photos for detail. Natural Silica ( SiO2 ) 58.7% The Bentonite will stand the heat or a much higher heat but you don’t need to add that.



As these adobes dry, they shrink a bit and should be covered with plastic so the drying speed is slower (otherwise you create propeller instead), that prevents banding and cracking.

And I realized, that I can make main body shell of the furnace with 20 cm thickens from concrete. A heavy soil, composed largely of clay and silt in sufficient quantities to form a matrix in which sand particles are firmly imbedded; water is added, and straw, manure, and fragments of tile are sometimes combined with this mixture to provide increased mechanical strength and cohesion when it dries. Turning movements while pressing the clay down onto the surface so it sticks on well. Pottery shops will have it as well, or they can show you a cheapest version of clay, clay body with coarse sand in it usually used for low fired pots, modeling or sculpturing. For making a one piece mold: First create a model out of soft clay. added by Rado: I have purchased a steel fire ring to sit on top. My conundrum is as follows; I purchased 5 tubs of WASC (Wet Air Setting Cement) when getting the firebricks. Every time I lift the bag I notice that.

Do I put any cement in with the wet clay and sand thanks. If not, do you know of a way that I can do it as a man of very limited income? I found fireclay available at Marjon Ceramics in Phoenix, AZ – 35th Ave & Elliot (n. of Thomas). Great site. Some coarse clay types already contain sand in the clay body, you would notice the sand grains volume in the clay when it’s wet. Although inner face of the dome made of adobe or mud bricks is quite fragile it cooks very nicely; if you touch it harder with e.g.
inner area for the fire. Added by Rado: try to do a couple of tests with these 2 first to see how the clay type you have hardens. ;). Thank you for these loads of good information for builders owners! You only need one bag per dome if you buy the clay in dry powdered form. The best knowledge page for fireclay matters, details, working with fireclay, applications, all in one information.