|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jun 20, 2018 11:08:40 GMT
Very neat finish, well done; now for the good bit ... Indeed. Still haven’t ordered any wood yet! With regard to curing I’ve almost finished the oven without having lit it at all. Some conflicting advice but I’m going to finish it entirely then start very slow fires so that I’m curing the inner dome as well as the render/brick cladding at the same time. Will take it really slow. |
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jun 23, 2018 10:00:56 GMT
No pictures I’m afraid but started my pointing yesterday. Used a mortar gun for the first time. Went really well and really quickly, with the minimum of mess. Definitely recommend one.
You need to use a very wet mortar mix and plenty of plasticiser otherwise it seems to squeeze the water out of the mix and form a plug in the gun which is too stiff to push out.
Started on the base as I thought it would be less obvious if finish wasn’t great, but actually went really well and pleased with end result.
Dome next, but working all weekend and busy on my next days off so don’t think I’ll get much opportunity.
Also tried the removable flue in place just in case the fixed piece had change shape at all while the mortar around it cured. Fortunately all still good.
Once dome and stone base slabs are in place I’ll get it fired up at long last!
|
|
|
|
Post by simonh on Jun 23, 2018 11:01:54 GMT
I don’t know how you are being so patient, I could barely wait until mine was finished ‘before I had a fire going in it
|
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jun 23, 2018 11:25:29 GMT
I don’t know how you are being so patient, I could barely wait until mine was finished ‘before I had a fire going in it Aside from practical reasons like not having bought any wood yet, it’s just psychological. I want it ‘finished’ before I light it. I’m also following the Forno Bravo advice to complete all rendering before firing. Right or wrong it makes sense in my mind to have the whole thing complete rather than curing the base build and then adding more to it after. In other news my old pizza oven has gone off to a new home. Sold on eBay for not much less than I paid for it. Given that it was only used a couple of times and came with a good quality cover, it was still a good price for the buyer. Funnily enough his intentions were to give it a try before committing to a full-on WFO build. |
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jun 29, 2018 11:12:00 GMT
It’s only bloody finished! Aside from brief detour to get Land Rover MOT’d in the morning (or not as it happened), I determined not to stop until I’d finished yesterday. That left dome to be pointed, and base slabs (limestone) to be cut and laid. Finally stopped at about 8pm. Pleased to say it’s now done. At long long last. Have enjoyed every minute of it, but a huge amount of work, not helped by the weather. Have finally also ordered some logs and kindling so by the time last of mortar has cured I’ll be ready to light it up. A few observations if you’re reading this before contemplating building your own. It’s not a kit. Don’t expect it to all just slot together. It doesn’t, and it’s not meant to. You need to be reasonably practical and happy to take on a range of building tasks and problem solve along the way, adapting as you go. Buy an angle grinder. Don’t even think about doing the cuts with a brick bolster. I’m sure a pro could do so, but for most of us a grinder and diamond cutting disc will be way faster and more accurate. It will also do far more intricate cuts, more easily, and with less breakage than you can by hand. A grinder a disc is about £35. Compared to what else you’ll spend it’s an irrelevance. Other tools you’ll need, which I already owned, but if you don’t will add to the cost and you may not have considered, include at least two sizes of bricklaying trowel. Buckets, and at least one of the big builders mixing buckets or a large garden trug. Multiple spirit levels in different sizes. A spot board for mixing mortar. Plasticizer, pointing tools. Various boards for making your slab and levelling it off. A shovel. Tarpaulins to cover it over during bad weather. Tape measure. Saws to cut boards. Jigsaw to cut arch. Probably more. You’ll use WAY more sand than you think. I think I used about 15 bags of ballast for the base, and didn’t count sand for the bricklaying as I bought it as I went along. Wouldn’t be at all surprised if it was 30-40 bags. A 1 tonne bag would be cheaper but don’t overlook the convenience of buying and storing the smaller 25kg bags. Wickes do a decent discount for 6 which is a good compromise. Everything is heavy. Really heavy. I built this on my own except for lifting the rear dome. It’s how I prefer to work, but it’s hard going. If you can borrow a cement mixer then do so. Mixing mortar is hard and boring, and you’ll be doing a lot of it. A second hand mixer will be able to be sold for the same price when you’re done with it if you can find one. I couldn’t. Bricks need to be really wet before they don’t just suck all the water out the mortar. Give them a good soaking with a hose before you start. Cutting bricks is REALLY dusty. You’ll be glad that you had the foresight to buy from a company who cut them all for you! Make your chimney removable. How on earth are you going to cover that up with a chimney sticking miles up above it! Finally. Would I buy and build another one? Yes, but I’ll leave it for long enough to forget how hard it was before I do! Next time round I’d be tempted however to go for the full brick version rather than the block and brick slip version. Not sure the additional expense of the full brick version isn’t offset by the additional block laying (time and expense), and how fiddly it is to lay half depth bricks. Or I might just do the traditional Napoli brick dome think. I do like the brick cladding on mine rather than render though.    By for now. Will report back when it’s lit and the first pizzas go in. In the meantime I have a land rover exhaust system to replace...... |
|
|
|
Post by Thomobigands on Jun 29, 2018 12:37:39 GMT
Well done, looks really good. You should give yourself a well earned back pat.
Don't rush the curing. Use the heat for some gentle roasting and grilling maybe but hold off the screaming heat required for pizza until you have really bedded the thing in. You want it to last now you have built it! Enjoy.
|
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jun 29, 2018 13:05:03 GMT
Will certainly be taking my time. Upside of the slow build is that everything will have had a good change to cure, but I appreciate that there will still be a lot more water in there to get rid of yet. Will be building the fires up very slowly.
Many tbanks
|
|
|
|
Post by Thomobigands on Jun 29, 2018 13:10:53 GMT
What surprised me was the time and sheer heat it took to clear the dome of soot, which is what they say to drive towards. For that, you need a well cured oven, a big pile of wood and a twitchy wife looking out the window at the fiery inferno you are creating....  |
|
|
|
Post by starseeker on Jul 2, 2018 20:57:40 GMT
Well done,
It is a great looking oven and a great build blog, which i shall miss !
|
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jul 2, 2018 23:00:36 GMT
Well done, It is a great looking oven and a great build blog, which i shall miss ! Cheers mate. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for your support with the build. Traffic on this site seems pretty slow so I really appreciated your kind words. |
|
|
|
Post by simonh on Jul 3, 2018 9:05:11 GMT
I am looking forward to pictures of the first fire and the first pizza  |
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jul 3, 2018 9:25:07 GMT
I am looking forward to pictures of the first fire and the first pizza Many thanks. 400kg of kiln dried ash being delivered Thursday. Should be enough to keep me going! |
|
|
|
Post by oblertone on Jul 3, 2018 11:10:34 GMT
It should indeed, just don't get carried away ...
|
|
|
|
Post by truckcab79 on Jul 3, 2018 12:48:26 GMT
It should indeed, just don't get carried away ... Certainly wouldn’t risk it after all this work. Have also got 6 sacks of kindling sticks arriving. Will be starting with those. Have already turned down request from my wife to invite everyone round on Sunday as it won’t be ready. Weekend after should be ideal though. A question while it’s on my mind. I’ll cover the oven over winter. Happy to dry it out again each Spring / Summer, but is there any need to do so the rest of the time. Obviously when it rains the outer bricks will get damp but does that put it back somewhat as you need to drive the moisture out again? In my case I have vapour layer and foil so in theory it wouldn’t reach the inner cast dome anyway? |
|
|
|
Post by oblertone on Jul 3, 2018 14:52:50 GMT
I've left my oven uncovered since February when the puppy ate the cover; seems fine but takes a little longer to get to full temp.
|
|
