Insulating Firebrick

Adding a fireplace to any home will increase its value and create a warmer environment for the entire family. However, there are a few things to consider before undertaking such a project. The most important, perhaps, is the type of brick that is needed for the fireplace. There are three main areas to focusing on when shopping for this brick.

What Temperature Can It Handle?

Perhaps the first question that should be asked is: how hot can the fireplace burn? Most companies, like Ceram Source, provide different grades of their insulated ceramic firebrick (IFB). Each grade is designed to handle various ranges of temperatures. Considering that wood fireplaces generally heat up to less than one thousand degrees Fahrenheit, and that is really pushing the limits, a firebrick with the grade to handle those temperatures should be selected. There is, of course, the need to balance the necessity of the firebrick’s capability to handle certain temperatures and the inevitable increase in price as the grade goes up.

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Does It Keep the Heat Inside the Fireplace?

Considering how hot a fireplace can get, it is extremely important to find a brick that will insulate the heat inside of the fireplace. Bricks that are not insulated will allow the heat to sink through them and into the surrounding area, which could include wooden walls and furniture. The good news, however, is that Insulating Firebrick is designed with this in mind. It will stop the heat from leaking out and damaging anything around the fireplace.

How Will It Look?

One of the best features of the firebrick is that it can be used as an inner lining to the fireplace, or entirely redesigned by using high-temperature paints, to give the widest array of possibilities. Other, more desirable and pleasing, bricks can be selected since the firebrick can be used as lining. This will be achieved by surrounding the fireplace with the firebrick first, and then creating an external layer with the better-looking brick. The external brick would not be able to handle such extreme temperatures itself, so the firebrick is necessary to isolate the extremely heat from the fireplace.

All in all, choosing the brick for a fireplace depends on three simple factors: can it handle the heat, will it keep the heat in, and will it look good. Purchasing the correct insulated firebrick will be a simple matter when these questions are answered.