I don't have any experience with the stuff myself,so I looked it up and this what I found;
Vermiculite - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermiculite
Wikipedia
Vermiculite is a hydrous phyllosilicate mineral. It undergoes significant expansion when heated. Exfoliation occurs when the mineral is heated sufficiently, and the effect is routinely produced in commercial furnaces.
The fact that it expands, I wouldn't put it in a sealed tube.
Current Smokers: Backyard RF Offset and Hybrid RF Offset trailer rig with Cowboy cooker and fish fryer, always room for more........
Thanks for the input guys.... looks like I'll have to give that one a miss. Maybe...
In the interests of science / experimentation... I have a welded up chute door surround that I made too small for the DP that I will drill a large hole in and fill the thing up with vermiculite, seal the hole with a welded patch. Then bung the thing on the burner and see what happens. Just curious as to what will happen. If it all goes awry then the welded patch should give way and I'll have a shower of smouldering vermiculite I guess. If it does not give way and the vermiculite is still intact and useable after heating it up to way past what a gv frame should have to bear then I might revisit this.
Learning generally boils down to "Repetition or the avoidance of pain", some people learn by doing, some by watching and some just have to pee on the electric fence.
Whether you think that you can, or that you can't, you are usually right. Henry Ford
Pete it is a mini... so not nearly as much weight as a DP. And vermiculite is pretty light in itself. I'd hazard a guess some around the same as loose fiber insulation if packed in.
I'll just experiment a little to see if it is feasible or not. I only paid around 10 bucks for 6 large bags of the stuff so not a problem really.
Learning generally boils down to "Repetition or the avoidance of pain", some people learn by doing, some by watching and some just have to pee on the electric fence.
Whether you think that you can, or that you can't, you are usually right. Henry Ford
And on the eighth day God created barbecue …. because he DOES love us and he wants us to be happy.
Current smokers: Egor (trailered RF) and Easybake (tabletop pellet drive)