Is Diatomaceous earth safe for catalytic combutors?

[Poindexter]

I have been using the food grade stuff, about 2ozs per cord, to make my stacks less attractive to bugs.

Wikipedia says it's mostly silica...

naturally occurring, soft, siliceoussedimentary rock that is easily crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder. It has a particle size ranging from less than 3 micrometres to more than 1 millimetre, but typically 10 to 200 micrometres. Depending on the granularity, this powder can have an abrasive feel, similar to pumice powder, and has a low density as a result of its high porosity. The typical chemical composition of oven-dried diatomaceous earth is 80 to 90% silica, with 2 to 4% alumina (attributed mostly to clay minerals) and 0.5 to 2%iron oxide.[1]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomaceous_earth

Thanks

 

[Squisher]

I'm curious if you're burning it in your stove, doesn't the silica burn up and then would be ineffective for bug control?

I'm guessing you're adding it to your stove in hopes of coating the inside of your chimney with it? Or why or how else is it coming into contact with your cat?

I'm no expert in cats but my gut instinct is that it would not be good for your cat. It would seem if it can 'slice up' little bugs that it would be abrasive enough to strip the precious metals from your cat when passing through it. And conversely if the d earth is just burning up as I suspect it would, than what sort of emissions is burnt d earth releasing and are they or are they not harmful to a cat? I wouldn't risk it myself unless I had the manufacturers approval, and they aren't/shouldn't be giving you that ok unless they do testing. And I don't see a lab/manufacturer testing for that.

But I'll be interested to hear others takes on it.

 

[Squisher]

Ha. Now I see how you're using it. When you said stacks, I thought you meant chimney stacks not wood stacks. Early here still. Lol.

On the stacks of wood, got it. I thought 'wow, they must have some crazy bug infestations in Alaska to be coming down the chimney stack'. Lol.

 

[Poindexter]

I am making the first cup of coffee now too. DE on the wood pile.

I run enough volume I can pretty much expect to have some kind of wood boring or wood eating insect delivered every year. Just trying to keep the fresher greener more attractive wood from getting gobbled up by grubs.

 

[fire_man]

I think the best approach to keeping the bug population low is keep your wood dry- ie top cover.

 

[tarzan]

Inhaling large amounts of silica will cause silicosis in humans but my "guess" is, in that amount, it's not going to shorten the life of your cat noticeably if at all.

 

[Highbeam]

I think the best approach to keeping the bug population low is keep your wood dry- ie top cover.

I wish. Wood dryness only effects the attractiveness of the stack for some creatures. Many are just as happy to live in dry wood.

I use pesticides, you know, the ones made for killing bugs.

The cat manufacturer, or someone intimately familiar with the manufacturer, will be the only way to know. I have never seen a post about DE poisoning of a cat, or silica poisoning of a cat. I have certainly read all of the common warnings published that pretty much can be summarized as "only burn clean wood".

 

[tarzan]

Wonder what would be worse for the cat, rock dust or cremating bugs?

 

[fire_man]

How bad are these bugs? Are we talking a major infestation? Bugs are just part of the deal when you burn wood for heat.

 

[iamlucky13]

doesn't the silica burn up

Nope. In fact, silica fibers were used for most of the thermal protection tiles on the space shuttle. It will end up as a portion of the ash in the stove.

I'm pretty certain diatomaceous earth shouldn't be a problem for the catalyst. It has the same basic composition as many types of sand, which unless you remove your bark, probably also ends up in your stove to some degree. Its insecticidal properties are non-chemical - wicking oils off their bodies that normally help keep them from losing water by evaporation, or death by a thousand cuts due to the myriad sharp edges of the grains.

 

[Squisher]

It's the tiny sharp edges that would be my only concern, the possibility that if it passed through the cat say on the smoke that the tiny sharp edges could strip the precious metal from the cat. Possibly? In the concentration the OP mentioned probably not I would think. In the concentration that I mistakingly thought the OP meant(throwing it in the stove) possibly a problem?