Odd fire cement behaviour?

[dan_ce]

Came to light my wood burning stove this morning and noticed there was a ring of broken fire cement in segments which appears to have sort of 'popped out' of the flue where it enters the stove.

Is this normal behaviour for fire cement to lift itself up and out of a joint??

And the real question: is resealing this something I can do myself or do I have to get a HETAS £££ guy in?

thanks!

[Bowland Stoves]

Hi
Yes Fire cement does dry out in time

Scrap the old fire cement out, rub it round lightly with some wire wool and then just replace with new fire cement

[Nos]

I tend to wipe it with a damp cloth just before putting the new stuff on, the cloth picks up any dust and the slightly damp surface helps the new cement to stick, also build up the heat slowly so the cement dries out over an hour or so with gentle heat IMHO. Nos