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Post by jermoll on Nov 2, 2014 12:10:50 GMT -8
I am screening the clay I found on my farm to cast a greenhouse heater similar to the j tube Matt Walker's video demonstrates. I have done 8 gallons through a window screen and the particles are very similar in size to that of Portland cement. Do I really need to screen it this fine? It is a lot of work and I am worried about the presence of so many fines in the firebox chamber. I need about 32 gallons of clay total, 13 for the fire box, 19 for the heat riser. (I am also putting in about a gallon and a half of castable refractory into the fire box.
I could use a screen size of about 1/8"-3/16" diameter if this makes sense. Any ideas on clay particle size for a cast firebox and riser?
Thanks for any help I can get-Jerry
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Post by matthewwalker on Nov 2, 2014 12:26:07 GMT -8
Jerry, I doubt you need to screen that fine. I think just get the sticks and stones out, and you are most likely good to go. It does depend on the material. If the clay you found is sorta dry and clumpy the screening process is more like a grating process than anything, it is used to break up the material rather than sift things out. If it's wet, then the process serves more of the latter function, to screen out debris. I tend to err on the side of lower inputs, personally.
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hpmer
Full Member
Posts: 240
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Post by hpmer on Nov 2, 2014 13:08:06 GMT -8
Yeah, I used to do the same thing, drying the clay then screening it through a 1/4" or 3/8" hardware cloth. Now I prefer to go the other way, soaking it in a bucket of water to just cover the clay and let it sit for a while, then screen it through the same size screen while it's water logged. Seems to make the process a whole lot easier. The dry materials you're going to add to it will soak up the excess anyway, but you don't need to screen it as finely as you're doing.
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