Right out of the blue just a few weeks back a very experienced heat treater approached us about an issue he had just run across, namely contaminated refractory brick. At the time our initial thought was that this was some sort of hoax dreamed up by a scrap dealer as a negotiating tactic.  Well from comments we have received we are starting to think there is something to this story. Read through these comments, check out the link and see what conclusion you come to.  

“I have recently learned that large steel mills have had major issues with radiation in refractory brick.  I am aware of one that had to shut down for 45 days in order for radiation contamination in brick to be removed.  In this case, some of the workers were actually being affected. So my initial research that indicated the radiation is harmless is not correct — it can be harmless but it can also be problematic.  The scrap dealers and landfills do indeed have reason to be concerned. The secret that the refractory industry has managed to keep for decades is now becoming known. You can buy a cheap, semi-accurate Geiger Counter on Amazon for $39 and a really good one for under $400.”  

http://www.iem-inc.com/information/radiation-sources/useful-radioactivity/refractory-brick