Bart Meijer

Hi Jay,

It more or less sounds like; Stay within the borders of that what has already been used and proven safe to use, and durable.
Don't look any further, for most will be worthless to look at anyway.

Portland/lime combination has been used for ages, sometimes only with lime. This also is mentioned on the traditional oven site.
So, why would this not be good enough for rocketstove cores?

In this combination, gravel normally is used, crushed firebrick or perlite.
Why not sawdust? It would create a honeycomb structure.

Fireclay, the same.
I have seen bread ovens in Limburg, 150 years old, made with a clay straw mixture.
So again, why not with with sawdust.
The HEDON site states that the durability and insulative characters of the clay/sawdust mixture is rather good.Or is this faulty information?

Cheers Bart

Hi Big Al, J

I have been looking at that site indeed, and was looking at the fireclay and mortar mix
where to find fireclay

At the other hand I have been looking at the insulative proportions of several mixies amongst others the one with sawdust and clay.
insulative ceramics

Why am I looking into this and not simple and available fireproof concrete, well as Peter v. d. Berg states and did research aht if a rocket burner is light and highly insulative, it works a lot better.
The better the insulation rate, the higher the temp in the burn tunnel,

Cheers Bart

Dear all,

I have been looking to make fire bricks a few times.
I am now in the Netherlands, materials are easy to get, however I would like to see if I can make a mix myself, also to use in different countries.

I have been looking at a good few recipies s here and elsewhere.
Sawdust and clay mix is one of the best insulative materials if baked of at 1050 C

Mortars with portland and lime would be an idea too. Where the Portland starts to disintegrate the lime takes over,
but I don't see ti being used with sawdust.

Now as I don't have a pottery oven, I can't bake off clay.

So I was thinking, could one make a mix with clay, portland, lime and sawdust?
Where the portland starts to disintegrate, the lime takes over, and where the lime starts to disintegrate the silicates in the clay are already baked off.
Would this be an idea?

Cheers Bart

Bill Erickson wrote:Welcome to permies, Bart. It sounds like your farm project is a really good one, and I hope you achieve the support you need to make it real. My work will likely take me to the Netherlands late this summer or early fall. Let me know if you'd like some weekend help as long as things progress and I get the free time, of course.

Hi Bill, already been here in Holland or not yet?

Well I am back square one again.
In Holland our care farm is a no no, banks do not want to work with us.
Even though our project is well calculated, makes energy instead of costing it.
Anyway.

There are no problems, but merely challenges from which one can learn, isn't it?

So, it will be Croatia, planning to go there coming March.
Found a house we want to buy, will do that end of December,
then the hunt is open for a good farm nearby, possibly one that needs rebuilding.

Life is not a destination, it is a journey

Cheers Bart

Hi Miles,

The care farm idea is to have challenged people join us in the work on the farm.
This will give them day activities other that doing yet an other colour plate.
In the mean time during activities the will get coaching, personal talks and assistance.
Apart form having them see the joy of what they have grown themselves (and taste ) we try to work with their possibilities, not their impossibilities.
We would learn them how to seed, grow and multiply plants that they can sell themselves.

Thanks Elissa, working hard to make a dream come true and share the fream.

Cheers Bart

Dear Permies,

I am Bart from the Netherlands, we are working on setting up a care farm in the Netherlands,
if we don't succeed due to the banks not helping out, then we consider buying a farm in Croatia.

Cheers Bart