Tell me it isn't so!

[postalpotter]

The must be a wrong in my life that I have yet to make amends for?

 The foundation for my slab is ready and the materials arrived today. 52, 60# bags of cement, and 64 cinder blocks and 3 pieces of steel mesh.

I was going to do the slab tomorrow. Took a 1/2 day off today and a whole day tomorrow to do the pour.

I am pulling into my driveway when the owner of my firebricks calls and he is pissed. He just comes home after a weekend away and someone has stolen the bricks.

Either he found a better deal and just shafted me or he is telling me the truth.  When I told him Alligator Clay in Baton Rouge sells firebrick  for $5.45 each he really had no idea how much his bricks were worth.

 I can still get k23's as many as I want but the cost of new firebrick is just to much. 

What am I going to do? I need a kiln I have to be able to fire  my stuff here at home?

Any suggestions as to how I can bisque fire my stuff and glaze fire at least to ^6 here at home

I do not have 208v to my garage, so I am back to square 1 and am just not sure of my options.

 

 

[Mark C.]

Gather your materials stock pile them up-then build kiln. Things like re-bar and cement can be gathered anytime-used bricks on the other hand need to gotten as soon as you source them.The  soft bricks you may find disappear any day as well.

[postalpotter]

Was in a panic before thinking all was lost but ?

I was going to spend $350 for the now pilfered brick and I was still going to have to buy my insulating bricks at a dollar a pop. Well I can still get the k23's  and $350 dollars + tax will buy me 62.22 firebricks.

So I am looking for a design that will work with that.

Home Depot will take back the material after a $79 dollar pickup fee. I have no use for the slab except to sit a kiln on.

Questions?

 Do I need firebrick throughout the base of the chimney or can they just shield the insulating brick? 

If I forgo the downdraft and just build a simple Neil's updraft with a single bag wall how may courses of fire brick do I need to place before I could use just the k23's.

Do I do the up draft or forgo the forced air and just buy one or two MR100's

 

[postalpotter]

5 minutes ago, Mark C. said:

Gather your materials stock pile them up-then build kiln. Things like re-bar and cement can be gathered anytime-used bricks on the other hand need to gotten as soon as you source them.The  soft bricks you may find disappear any day as well.

Some lessons are learned the hard  and sometimes expensive way.

I want to be vested in this endeavor. I think the pour is back on 

[neilestrick]

@postalpotter Refresh my memory here. Are you building a straight gas kiln, or are you planning on doing salt/soda?

[Mark C.]

Pour the slab gather the materials build the kiln-the mail never stops coming .

[neilestrick]

Buy the K23 for a buck a piece and build the whole kiln out of them. If you can afford a few K26 for along the burner ports, then great. But if not, don't worry about it. There's no need for any hard brick at all unless you plan to do salt/soda. You can easily make my little box kiln into a downdraft by building an exit flue in the middle of the wall opposite the firebox.

What do you need 64 cinder blocks for? I thought this was going to be a little top loader?