Old red clay solids as firebrick alternative
Red Clay Bricks
Substitute for firebricks can be old red clay solid bricks. In ovens these alternative red clay bricks will heat up, cool down, cook, re fire, absorb conduct store and hold the heat from wood fire and perform the same way as proper refractory firebricks do. If you can not locate fire bricks where you are or for any reason obtain them, Red Clay Bricks will perform much the same way in wood fire temperature levels and can be used instead.
How do I see it’s the right alternative for firebricks?
The replacement bricks must be of this type, old solids. Clay body is the same on the brick’s inside as it is on the outside. Break or cut one of the bricks you find in half to see what’s in the middle. New products are made out of cheap clay bodies whilst only on the outside a decorative clay slip is applied and then the bricks are fired in kiln - you couldn’t use bricks like that. The right alternate also shouldn’t be burnt, if you saw too much black-carbon color in the center don’t use such brick - it would be either over fired and brittle or made out of lesser quality clay. But a few little burnt spots will be fine. 
Working with red clay solid bricks is equivalent to work with refractory firebricks, all matters remain the same only bricks are different.
Where to find these old red solid bricks?
Look around in demolition yards for instance they often stock these red clay bricks. Read advertisements in papers, people very often sell for fraction of price or giveaway exactly this type of old bricks, and other great building material left over from other projects or from cleaning up. There are always few firebrick replacements to be seen here you just have to watch it. You can buy 200 of red clay bricks even for 20 or 30 bucks in total and have lucky day. By the way these old bricks are easy to clean with hammer and brush because in the past brickies didn’t add much cement into mortar if any. Tables with firebricks physical properties.
July 9th
Firebricks are costlier too.
October 1st
There is nothing better than a pizza made in a wood oven, nice tips. Thanks for sharing.
November 2nd
This is a great idea. Not only are you using quality bricks, but you are able to used recycled materials.
pays to live green’s last blog post: Maryland Environmental News: October 2008
November 6th
I absolutely love pizza, but only the best pizza’s come from a wood oven, there is just something about it that gives the pizza its great taste.
November 20th
I got these same old red clay solid bricks from our neighbor for nothing but there were that many I can build the whole oven structure out of them. The outer color of the walls and chimney will have real character. These house bricks certainly are very easy to clean from the old mortar just as you describe, it just simply pops off from the brick when touched. Still for the firing and cooking part on the oven I am ordering new firebricks from a supplier.
January 19th
Here in Denmark most old houses are built from those bricks, so obtaining these bricks should be no problem at all. There are even some producers still of ‘old’ style bricks that produce handmade bricks to use when in need for old houses. They could be a nice alternative if you dont want to look at the weathered old bricks, but still want an old style looking oven.
For info only, I guess shippting them to AU, would be insane.
Lars’s last blog post: Hindbærsorbet
February 10th
Are you planning to blog more on this topic. I would like to learn more.
April 1st
I would buy used firebricks and red-clay bricks. Maybe for some purposes it’s ok but not to build anything solid.
April 1st
I remember that my auntie made a grill from red clay bricks. She put a few red bricks one on another along two sides of the camp-fire and put a sheet metal on them. It was the simpliest grill I’ve ever seen. And the best, also.
April 2nd
I am trying to locate some bricks originally made by you it is the Brindle {Brindel} not sure of the spelling. Could you please tell me where could locate some. I am in Taunton in Somerset.
Many thanks,
Roger Rossiter RR BUILDING MAINTENANCE LTD.
June 24th
Red Clay Bricks are awesome. I got a whole bunch of those for free from a friend recently and they really perform extraordinarily. Highly recommended.
July 15th
There are a lot of Red Clay Bricks in my neighbourhood. I like buildings made of red brick, but some of them need to be just washed up, cause red bricks easily catch dirt from the air.
July 31st
I have a whole lot of IFB’s ( Insulating Fire Brick of the rating K23 and K26. They are of the softer type than the solid hard type which have a maximum range of 3000 Deg F.. I do want the bricks to hold the heat for cooking the pizza and breads. Should I just use my red…solid bricks instead and just use the IFB bricks for insulation. I just don’t want to chance having my bricks spalling or something terrible like that! Please…What would be the best thing to di?