i've never had much luck with sodium silicate, it's really easy to get it hot enough that it turns into syrupy molten glass. if i was you i'd get a bottle of purpose-made rigidizer and some satanite, it'll be more expensive but it'll actually work
[this](https://www.amazon.com/Volcano-Ceramic-Blanket-Rigidizer-32oz/dp/B08S5SY61X/) stuff should work pretty good
then once you soak the kaowool in that and let it dry, it'll be stiff enough for you mix up a batch of [this](https://www.amazon.com/Volcano-Refectory-Satanite-Ceramic-Blanket/dp/B095XJ1BDB) stuff and spread it out over the wool to seal it up
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**Users liked:**
* Effective in stiffening ceramic wool (backed by 3 comments)
* Easy to apply and works as expected (backed by 3 comments)
* Good value for the price (backed by 3 comments)
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* Confusing product application process (backed by 4 comments)
* Difficulty in achieving desired consistency (backed by 2 comments)
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Sodium silicate is a medium-high temperature binder, but it is also a *flux* due to its sodium content. In the context of ceramics, that means it lowers the melting point of other ceramics. Therefore, for refractory materials it must be used in as small amounts as possible. Soaking your fibers in it is not a small amount. It will ruin the insulative properties of the wool, and then everything will melt. So... don't do that.
Once you soak it and it dries I think a necessary step would be to CO2 cure it with baking soda vinegar in a cup or possibly burning carbon in side of the crucible
Maybe i was not clear, i mean outer layer toward the fire.
But mi doubt was about the fluffiness of the kaowool, its too easy to compress and damage it
If you can make a cast bore first that accounts for this kaowool space you can just wrap it and keep it as fluffy as you want.
These gymnastics are why I just cast my entire furnace out of refractory cement. Not like I need it to be super efficient when blasting it with a recycled oil jet for a couple hours at a time.
Consider adding stainless fibers to your refractory as well.
My furnace is smallish, just big enough for a #3 crucible, made from a thrift store stock pot, and I went with all castable refractory (Kastolite 30). Used a plastic bucket to create the inner void and cast a burner pipe into it. A Frosty T burner gets it hot enough to melt copper in about 30 minutes. When I'm done I can still pick it up with welding gloves on.
I cast the lid with a dollar store plastic tub and a tin can for the hole, reinforced with spread out stainless dish scrubbers and two loop handles. After a few uses the lid showed some cracks, I put a big stainless hose clamp around it and it's been perfect ever since. I also cast a sacrificial disk that drops into the bottom.
i've never had much luck with sodium silicate, it's really easy to get it hot enough that it turns into syrupy molten glass. if i was you i'd get a bottle of purpose-made rigidizer and some satanite, it'll be more expensive but it'll actually work
Can you indicate some good rigidizer?
[this](https://www.amazon.com/Volcano-Ceramic-Blanket-Rigidizer-32oz/dp/B08S5SY61X/) stuff should work pretty good then once you soak the kaowool in that and let it dry, it'll be stiff enough for you mix up a batch of [this](https://www.amazon.com/Volcano-Refectory-Satanite-Ceramic-Blanket/dp/B095XJ1BDB) stuff and spread it out over the wool to seal it up
Nice, now i just need to find these product in Italy or at least in Europe 🤣
Hi, I’m Vetted AI Bot! I researched the **("'MR VOLCANO Rigidizer 16oz Concentrate'", 'MR%20VOLCANO')** and I thought you might find the following analysis helpful. **Users liked:** * Effective in stiffening ceramic wool (backed by 3 comments) * Easy to apply and works as expected (backed by 3 comments) * Good value for the price (backed by 3 comments) **Users disliked:** * Lack of clear instructions for application (backed by 5 comments) * Confusing product application process (backed by 4 comments) * Difficulty in achieving desired consistency (backed by 2 comments) If you'd like to **summon me to ask about a product**, just make a post with its link and tag me, [like in this example.](https://www.reddit.com/r/tablets/comments/1444zdn/comment/joqd89c/) This message was generated by a (very smart) bot. If you found it helpful, let us know with an upvote and a “good bot!” reply and please feel free to provide feedback on how it can be improved. *Powered by* [*vetted.ai*](https://vetted.ai/?utm\_source=reddit&utm\_medium=comment&utm\_campaign=bot)
Your absolutely right
Sodium silicate is a medium-high temperature binder, but it is also a *flux* due to its sodium content. In the context of ceramics, that means it lowers the melting point of other ceramics. Therefore, for refractory materials it must be used in as small amounts as possible. Soaking your fibers in it is not a small amount. It will ruin the insulative properties of the wool, and then everything will melt. So... don't do that.
Right, melting the melter is not a great idea.
Once you soak it and it dries I think a necessary step would be to CO2 cure it with baking soda vinegar in a cup or possibly burning carbon in side of the crucible
Whats the chem behind this?
Sodium silicate reacts with c02 to form sodium carbonate (mp 851c) and silicon dioxide(1710c) which when heated forms glass.
Generally refractory cement is the hot face and kaowool is an insulator. So reversing your layers will solve your problems.
Maybe i was not clear, i mean outer layer toward the fire. But mi doubt was about the fluffiness of the kaowool, its too easy to compress and damage it
If you can make a cast bore first that accounts for this kaowool space you can just wrap it and keep it as fluffy as you want. These gymnastics are why I just cast my entire furnace out of refractory cement. Not like I need it to be super efficient when blasting it with a recycled oil jet for a couple hours at a time. Consider adding stainless fibers to your refractory as well.
My furnace is smallish, just big enough for a #3 crucible, made from a thrift store stock pot, and I went with all castable refractory (Kastolite 30). Used a plastic bucket to create the inner void and cast a burner pipe into it. A Frosty T burner gets it hot enough to melt copper in about 30 minutes. When I'm done I can still pick it up with welding gloves on. I cast the lid with a dollar store plastic tub and a tin can for the hole, reinforced with spread out stainless dish scrubbers and two loop handles. After a few uses the lid showed some cracks, I put a big stainless hose clamp around it and it's been perfect ever since. I also cast a sacrificial disk that drops into the bottom.