Component Cost
5/5/10
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The Superior Clay throats and smoke chambers should pay for themselves in the time they save. Of course, many Doityourslfers don't count their time or have other skills and materials or just want to do it themselves. Some use steel, which expands when heated and must be isolated from the masonry enclosure, some use homemade concoctions of mortar, plaster or cement that my or may not stand up to the heat. Some are willing to sacrifice quality, but a few think they are making better components. Below are some examples of customers who have made their own throats and smoke chambers.
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... Sometimes I fill it with sand for extra support especially if I'm using a $1500 superior clay throat... The last several fireplaces I have built I have made the throat transition using ferrocement: expanded metal lath and plaster. This achieves an identical shape and smoothness as the clay pieces.
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In response to "Why did you make your own throat and smoke chamber? Was it a good idea? And why are you using a round flue? Send me a picture when you are finished."
from: joe blaylock
Mr. Buckley
Don’t have a lot of money and had the ¼ plate steel laying around (DYI everything). The smoke chamber is in the design room on my “neck” at this time. Need to keep things as light as I can going up, so I am thinking of sheet metal and backfilling with type s/fire clay about 1 inch thick, then filling the void behind with cinder. Used a lot of wood burners in my wall tents over the years and from the life I get out of them, I figure the ¼” will outlast me and the kids……..yes you guessed it, I cannot afford Superior Clay stuff. Using Old brick that fell off my house in that big earth quake several years back. Gonna build lighted caves in fire place to exhibit fossils and petrified stuff I’ve found over the years.
Ahhh well dropping the front? I guess I will just weld a shelf down off the front of the throat and use as the lintel support for bricks. Yeah that will work…thanks for the tip!
That's the trouble with keeping all or any "drawings" in the file on my neck.
Sincere Thanks,
Joe Blaylock
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