Replacing Fire Brick

[Weimaraner]

Hi all, first of all I want to say thanks for all the information on this forum. It's helped me out a great deal. Just to give you an idea, I thought that "burn time" was the maximum time the stove should be used for each burn. This was when I was clueless and had an Avalon 796 which came with the house I purchased in 2008. I do know what burn time means now and so much more!! I currently get about 10 hours with my new stove and burning 24/7 for the first time this year and saving a ton of money not filling my oil tank.


I purchased a US Stove 2000 2 years ago. Although this stove does great, If I had found this forum before the purchase, I'd probably have a Jotul or Woodstock, or at least something made in the USA. So my questions....

I'm replacing the fire brick in this stove because some where cracked. I noticed on all the brick I've taken out that they put some high temp cement in the center back of each brick. Is this needed or did they do this to keep the brick from moving on the stoves journey from China? They put it on so thick that it created an air pocket between the brick and the stove, which in turn has turned the back of the brick black. I was planning on just putting the new brick in with no cement, unless of course it's needed.

My next question, I don't use the ash pan anymore and find it pretty useless now. Can I cover the hole with fire brick or is it better to have the plug in. If I need the plug, then I'd have to cut a brick which isn't a problem, just obviously easier to lay a brick in.

Thanks for any info anyone can offer!!

 

[firefighterjake]

Random thoughts . . .

Guessing that the cement on the fire bricks was for the reason mentioned . . . to keep them from shifting around on the trip over. I wouldn't think you would need the dab of cement. On the otherhand, it certainly wouldn't hurt things.

Ash pan . . . a lot of folks who find that their stove has an ash pan that isn't user friendly end up covering the hole with a fire brick or even just let the ashes build up and pack in the ash pan to make an effective seal.

Welcome to hearth.com.

 

[Jags]

As FFJ stated - yes you can simply brick over the hole. As to the cement on the brick...is there any method holding the bricks in place beyond the cement? If not, you may want to re-use the cement simply to keep the bricks in their proper place (not falling, etc.).

As to the bricks themselves...there are generally two kinds of bricks, one being very dense and solid (the type I suspect is in your stove), and a lighter pumice style (generally more difficult to find). Just replace with the same style that you are removing.

Note: Cracked bricks really are not an issue as long as the brick maintains its integrity. Its still doing its job.

 

[Weimaraner]

Thanks guys!! And yes there is a lip on the top that the brick slide up into to hold the top, then the bottom bricks go in last to hold the bottom which is why I couldn't find a logical reason why there was cement.

I'm going to cover the hole with a full brick and see how that goes. I didn't know if not having the plug would give it more air, but I guess once the ash fill in between the brick everything will be fine.

Thanks again!!