So far so good

[FionaH]

Lets look at this simply,

Wood + Fire = BAD

Wood + Fire + Custard = Creme Brullee!

Don't do it

[binley100]

wouldn't mind some creme brulee tho

[gojiberry]

Get a bag of sharp sand and a soil warming cable, much more safer and works really well.

Ian

[Brengirl]

OK OK I get the drift but I am not going to give up - just yet. I experimented today by lighting the candles and the flames just produced loads of soot and burnt the asbestolux. Nothing lost nothing gained so I have another idea...

I plan to put some outdoor decor lighting in the ghouse reserving a few for the under heating of the prop.

to be continued.....

[Brengirl]

No candles..No custard...Just a warm feeling.......

[organic]

Just a quick point on the candles... firstly, I actually don't think it's a terrible idea. You'd need to approach it in the right way though.

I think the fact no heat got through says everything that needs saying about using the fireproof board. To put it into context... my girlfriend has a pretty heavy (porcelain) fondue pot and one night we had no fuel for the burner so we replaced it with tea lights. In the end just THREE of them was enough to keep the cheese melted, bubbling away, and the pot so hot you'd burn yourself if you touched it.

So in short, that many candles strikes me as complete overkill for just warming something. You could cook a meal above that many.

So, ditch the fireproof board and try something else. I can't suggest what to use, but something fire resistant but a good heat transmitter would be good.