# Bricks fire vs clay



## EDDIE 786 (May 1, 2020)

Hi guys( all the way from South Africa) I’m in the design phase of a brick offset smoker. Wanted to know if we could use a clay brick instead of a fire brick. Also we see some designs have fire bricks in the firebox but not in the smoker box. Does the smoker not require more heat retention than the firebox. 
Also does Felton’s calculator work with brick smokers. Thanks


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## smokerjim (May 1, 2020)

welcome to smf. I think fire brick is used to protect the block work of your firebox from the intense heat rather then retaining heat. since the smoke chamber comes no where near those temps in the firebox they're not needed there. as for clay i'm really not sure so I can't comment on those. maybe some of the pro's will chime in though.


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## EDDIE 786 (May 1, 2020)

smokerjim said:


> welcome to smf. I think fire brick is used to protect the block work of your firebox from the intense heat rather then retaining heat. since the smoke chamber comes no where near those temps in the firebox they're not needed there. as for clay i'm really not sure so I can't comment on those. maybe some of the pro's will chime in though.


Thanks for the welcome. Any idea what temperatures we could reach in in the firebox.


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## fivetricks (May 1, 2020)

Yes you definitely can use clay brick in place. They've been making fireplaces out of them for many many years :-)


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## EDDIE 786 (May 1, 2020)

fivetricks said:


> Yes you definitely can use clay brick in place. They've been making fireplaces out of them for many many years :-)


Awesome. Thanks. That’s gonna save me a few bucks.


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## smokerjim (May 2, 2020)

EDDIE 786 said:


> Thanks for the welcome. Any idea what temperatures we could reach in in the firebox.


I'm not sure of temps in firebox, probably depends on how big your smoke chamber is. And how big of a fire you need. My guess though when your getting your fire started 700-900 maybe more, I really don't  know.  maybe someone with more knowledge will chime in


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## rjob (May 2, 2020)

Do a search  for fire brick vs clay brick.  Several sites turn up with comparisons. Several differences in each. Temperature of cooker/firebox and expected brick life are factors in selection process.


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## chopsaw (May 2, 2020)

rjob said:


> Several differences in each. Temperature of cooker/firebox and expected brick life are factors in selection process.


I agree . Plus fire brick fit together with no mortar , and have smooth sides and square edges . 
Be aware of moisture content as well .


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## EDDIE 786 (May 2, 2020)

Hi guys. Thanks for the input. So we’ve educated ourselves a bit on clay vs fire bricks. So clay bricks can be used and can handle the high temperatures but doesn’t handle cooling down to well and durability over time becomes an issue. Fire bricks are far superior in these qualities.


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## EDDIE 786 (May 11, 2020)

The build is happening.


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