I just got a new boiling flask that is slightly smaller than my heating mantle. It was recommended I use sand in my mantle to keep it from wobbling around. He said it will give more even heating… Is this legit? What do you guys think?
he’s not wrong, sand is a right way to make a mess.
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Yes sand.
There are differences in opinion on that one…
I recommend exploration of Search results for 'sand mantle' - Future4200
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Thank you sir . I used the search bar but that thread didnt come up . What are your thoughts on it @cyclopath ?
Gave you the query I used for a reason 
And chose those two specifically…
@spdking is correct that without the foil, the mess @downtheterphole mentions could also be life threatening…depending on the conductivity (iron level?) in your sand.
Or maybe @spdking has other reasons for suggesting sand in the mantle is dangerous?!?
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Just to clarify, It’s a 5L mantle and 5000ml BF…it just has a little gap/wiggle room that i want to fill in
I’d leave it be. And use fireplace rope to cover the above mantle portions of your flask. Sand and foil are more relevant with larger gaps imo.
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I mean this is just an idea…
Why not a silicon sleeve?
The heat sink will fuck you.
Your mantle will die early,
Your flask and head will run away with high temps.
As you ramp up, you won’t be able to slow down the heat and you’ll go flying past your heads and it just turns into a huge bad idea.
This is a different story all together for some chemistry class stuff
Not for thousands of dollars worth of material doing spd work
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They all do, i just add a few wads of foil and then cover that flask
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A silicone sleeve for the BF?
Silicone disperses heat evenly
It is also safer than sand. Isn’t a decent % of sand silicone anyways !?
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Makes sense to me. Where would i find such a thing ?
Build it.
I was just thinking out loud 
That might make a decent fix for the homicidal mantle the boss dragged home from a “free” pile somewhere (can’t blame him for trying).
It seems to have been used with a corrosive conductor (H2SO4? Might just have been salt wAter…) which boiled over and took out the resistance wire at just the right spot so it arced to the case (can’t tell if the arc came early or late).
Co-worker got spin but no heat when they plugged it in. while fondling the mantle in search of warmth, it bit them…hard.
I’ve been meaning to toss it because I couldn’t figure out how to deal with these bare(d) conductors, and generally prefer not to keep homicidal equipment around.
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What if you lined it with silicone and filled with oil? Not sure how hot you could get though.
That’s a pretty sketchy mantle…LOL.
I was thinking about this a few weeks back as we were pissed that we loose at least 3-4% - guessing - trying to move oil from container to container.
@Dirteagle shall we work on a patent ?
Seems that silicone is stable non reactive at temps up too 300c.
I wonder if it could be refinished in ceramic