Some questions about indirect cooking and searing

Hey guys,
I ve been thinking about some things that I can build for my newly acquired Mini.
I cook mostly for 1-2 people and love the Mini, but would like to cook indirect on it as well.
My friend does CNC work and has some good stainless steel, so I wanted to cut a platesetter from ss for my Mini. I figured it would be worth a shot. I ll have to see how thick the ss is, but he said he has some fairly thick stuff.
Any thoughts on this? I need to direct the heat around potatoes and similar things because the egg is too hot on direct.
The other choice is a firebrick, which I can get here for abou $1. They are 9x4 1/2 so they will fit in the mini. I figured that two potatoes right above the brick would get enough protection. Putting a small pan right on top of the brick should give me the result as well.
Let me know if anybody tried this.

Does elevation have an effect on the temperature of the egg? My mini doesn't go above 650 with the top and bottom fully open. How long does it take you to get to 700 and above?
I'm thinking about making a small fan, from computer parts, to push some air. I wonder how that would work? I know that I need to keep an eye on the temp with that.

Anybody try searing steaks right on the firebox? Removing the firering, placing the grate on the box and doing it like that. Would that result in a better sear or would it bee too much?