Safety: Are Gas Forges Safe?
Gas forges are a great tool to have in your forge arsenal. They allow the blacksmith to work without worrying about creating too much smoke or having an open flame. But, with safety comes responsibility. When working with gas, there are some precautions you need to take so that you can keep yourself and those around you safe!
What is a gas forge and what are the benefits of using one?
Gas forges are becoming more and more popular. It's understandable why, they're inexpensive to run, easy to start up, and the temperature is easier to maintain than a coal forge. However, with all that convenience comes some safety risks. Gas forges can be unsafe if not operated correctly or in the right environment.Â
Common mistake newbies make when it comes to setting up their first gas forge is having too small an opening at the throat where air enters into the fire chamber below . results in poor airflow which causes forge welding.
Are Gas Forges Really Safe?Â
Before we can discuss these safety concerns it makes sense to first make sure everyone is on the same page regarding some basic knowledge about forge design and construction. You can check the gas forge reviews to make sure that the gas forges are really safe or not.
As well as an understanding about possible hazards when heating metal in general which should make you aware. There are potentially pitfalls with the use of any forge type be it charcoal, coal, coke or gas. The way I look at it you should learn some basic theory before ever putting your hands into an oven or forging heat.
Ancient methods of forge construction
So, what is the safest? Most old forges were built with traditional materials like mud, stone and brick (mud forges) or clay bricks (clay forges). Which meant they were built to last forever through use of low tech materials not requiring complex engineering. These kinds of impromptu constructions using field stones and muds are still used today everywhere in Europe on a daily basis.Â
Although most often these days as cooking stoves rather than working smithies (for good hot food on the go). There are numerous designs that have been developed over hundreds of years varying from region to region where there was a rich smith tradition. That's why you see old forges even in towns and cities that were never very industrial or used to be industrial until well into the 20th century as can be seen from this example from Belgium, where the local fire brigade still uses the traditional smithy to make ornamental iron work as part of their public relations activity:
And nearly everywhere on this planet you find large granite stones used as protective walls around permanent forges. In Africa these are called "fever stones" because they supposedly protect against malaria that was endemic there at one time (their magic is supposed to come from either that they absorb heat during sunlight hours and release it slowly during colder times, hence protecting against feverish night sweats, or they are supposed to protect you from evil spirits which carry the disease).
Do not be misled by the concept of brick or clay forges. These early permanent forges were never intended to be used with coal but instead using charcoal because wood was free and plentiful, while coal had only become readily available when industry took off in Europe during the early middle ages at about 1000 AD or slightly later because wood was needed for construction of ships to explore the world further.
Until then there wasn't really any industry yet that could make use of coal, hence no call for it. But when large amounts of metal ores started being mined because ore trading routes extended far enough along rivers all over Europe people began wondering what else they can do with these strange black rocks...
Since the smelting of iron ore requires extremely high temperatures, wood fires were simply not hot enough, so you need a hotter burning fuel than charcoal made from wood. The only readily available hotter substance was coal (and sometimes oil shale which burns even hotter but is also very poisonous). Hence coal became widely used for fuel in medieval times and has been ever since.
Ancient forges with clay or brick walls are typically square with four holes into which you insert your air supply coming through pipes or hoses with adjustable nozzles to regulate the draft which affects the temperature of the fire inside. They look like this:
These kinds of forges are typically fuelled with charcoal - keeping costs down - because they cannot burn any other kind of solid fuel like coal because the bricks would melt. There is another problem with using coal for these kind of forges, which is that it typically has too many impurities (like sulphur) that produce poisonous gases (bad breath) and toxic fumes (sulphuric acid droplets).
ConclusionÂ
Gas forges are safe, but it's important to do your research and follow safety guidelines. They can be used as a heat source with the use of some type of protective gear. However you will need to keep in mind that gas forges produce carbon monoxide so it is very important not only to use them safely but also make sure they are ventilated properly. There are plenty of resources available on the internet about how to set up and operate a gas forge including videos and tutorials- we highly recommend checking out these before purchasing one! If you're looking into getting a new furnace or fireplace insert, don't forget that there may already be models made specifically for this purpose; always look at what type of unit best suits your.