Asbestos Insulation Sheet Replacement: Any Suggestions?

PGB1

Hi All!
My Bryant boiler from the 40's has 1-1/2" thick asbestos sheets as insulation over the flue collector box on the top of the boiler sections. The cabinet also has some sheets sticking above the boiler battery. They are 1" and chunks ar emissing.

I remove that top for annual section cleaning. The insulation sheets are beginning to fray & some pieces are missing.

Do any of you know of a good substitute for this sheeting? I asked a few commercial insulation suppliers, but came up empty. The extreme heat is the reason that none could supply a product.

Also, if I may ask another question: The manual calls for Boiler Putty in the groove that is around the heat exchanger battery. It's where the flue collector (dome) sits into. (The flue colllector is a 26 gauge, rectangular sheet metal box, resembling a shoe box lid. The perimeter legs of the "lid" fit into the groove.)

I've always used furnace cement, but by the next cleaning time, it's dried and crumbled. What is Boiler Putty? Is furnace cement the proper substitute?

Thanks For Your Advice!

Paul

PS: I'm abatement certified, so there are no worries about safe & proper handling and disposing of the asbestos when a substitute is found.

Jamie Hall

Either high temperature fiberglass sheets or ceramic fiber sheets or other high temperature insulation board can be used. Grainger offers at least 4 different high temperature insulation board materials which would appear to be suitable.

PGB1

Thank You Jamie for the ideas.

For some reason, I forgot about Grainger. (They do have everything.)

Thanks Again,

Paul

mattmia2

look at the various products from Lynn manufacturing

Mad Dog_2

Grainger has "everything," but it's never "in the back." Despite their huge warehouses, every time I need something it's, "OK, we gotta bring it in from our Jersey hub...blah blah. 3 days out." That doesn't help me today. Mad Dog

psb75

Hey Mad Dog_2, it could be sitting in a container in the port of Baltimore.

Mad Dog_2

The other HUGE problem Grainger has is their odd names for plumbing & heating items. They don't translate to what we call them. In NYC, Long Island and the Greater Metropolitan area you could walk in to ANY Supply house and say : "I need a 2"x 1 1/2" Brass L.A Trap." Go on the Grainger website or fat book and try to find that...good luck..15 minute search, and maybe you'll find it. I have spoken to sales reps, sent emails to management.....Still the same. Very simple solution: Hire a one time veteran supply house guy to name all your items. Done...Nah.."Corporate" doesn't think it's an issue..Ivory Tower Complex...Mad Dog

PGB1

Off Topic:

What Mad Dog_2 said about Grainger never having the item in stock, it's always seemed to me that they stock kind of "regionally".

In the Detroit area, the branches near factories are many and they have good stock of 3-phase motors, pulleys, gears, Lovejoy couplings, motor starters and manufacturing related items. But, they tend to be shy of home heating, plumbing, air conditioning parts. The branches in the more comercial (non-factory) areas have more HVAC parts, but never hydronic or steam.

When I traveled for work, the Graingers there were stocked according to industry. For example, the Graingers in West Virginia stock lots of Type W cable for mining. In Detroit, it's not stocked.

The Grainger vending machines are very well stocked for the location they are placed- even in the same factory complex, stock can vary between machines. Assembly floros will have machine related items. Research areas will have small relays, extension cords, light bulbs…

One thing they are consistent about is price. We pay for the convenience. (They own Zoro Com & the prices there are often lower. You can search by Grainger item number. Drill Spot Com is their higher priced outlet.)

I chuckled at LA Trap. I should work at Grainger because I've never heard the term either.

Regional terms are prevalent in the electrical industry, too. I went into a supply house in the south and asked for a "3/4" Jake". The counter guy slammed his hand on the surface and said "Electricians only!". I showed my card & repeated my request. After failing to explain wel enough and going to my truck and getting one to show all of them, I learned that they are called "Pull Door 90s". LB's are called "Back Doors". Side Doors are LLs & LRs. Different areas that I;ve worked have different slang. (Sealtite & Greenfield best be called by the proper names in some houses!)

And in southern Missippi, no one knows what a steam trap is. Wonder why?

PGB1

Thanks Mattmia2 for suggesting Lynn. I looked around the site and found many products suitable for my boiler and for work related items as well.

Thanks Again Everyone for helping!

Paul