Basic intro to oven building

[ianmm]

Hi
I'm doing my research before starting work on building a clay pizza oven.
I can see lots of threads on this site about specific issues but I'm struggling to find a basic guide to planning and building an oven.  Can anyone point me to 'Clay oven 101?

I'm in Hampshire, England and planning to use reclaimed materials where possible.
Thanks
Ian 

[oblertone]

I don't think anyone has put together such a guide on this forum, however the basics remain true whatever dome material you use.

1 - The cooking floor should be at the main users elbow height.
2 - The ratio between the inner height of the dome and the door lintel should be 63% (or thereabouts).
3 - The width of the opening should be about half the internal diameter.
4 - The larger the oven the more fuel/time is required to go 'soot free'.
5 - Underfloor insulation is neglected at your peril.
6 - There's no such thing as too much insulation.
7 - You should be able to isolate the oven from the flue.

I'm sure others will be along with contributions but a good place to start would be the archive on here as all builds have similarities, regardless of materials.

Try this link ukwoodfiredovenforum.proboards.com/board/11/clay-earth-adobe-ovens

[downunderdave]

Jul 9, 2019 20:23:48 GMT oblertone said:

I don't think anyone has put together such a guide on this forum, however the basics remain true whatever dome material you use.

1 - The cooking floor should be at the main users elbow height.
2 - The ratio between the inner height of the dome and the door lintel should be 63% (or thereabouts).
3 - The width of the opening should be about half the internal diameter.
4 - The larger the oven the more fuel/time is required to go 'soot free'.
5 - Underfloor insulation is neglected at your peril.
6 - There's no such thing as too much insulation.
7 - You should be able to isolate the oven from the flue.

I'm sure others will be along with contributions but a good place to start would be the archive on here as all builds have similarities, regardless of materials.

Try this link ukwoodfiredovenforum.proboards.com/board/11/clay-earth-adobe-ovens

Excellent post.
Would add for point 3 that this is true for most ovens. For very small ovens like mine (21") half that would be ridiculous. Like wise for a very large oven, say 2m in diameter, a 1 m opening is unnecessary.

[webbm00]

Jul 9, 2019 20:23:48 GMT oblertone said:

I don't think anyone has put together such a guide on this forum, however the basics remain true whatever dome material you use.

1 - The cooking floor should be at the main users elbow height.
2 - The ratio between the inner height of the dome and the door lintel should be 63% (or thereabouts).
3 - The width of the opening should be about half the internal diameter.
4 - The larger the oven the more fuel/time is required to go 'soot free'.
5 - Underfloor insulation is neglected at your peril.
6 - There's no such thing as too much insulation.
7 - You should be able to isolate the oven from the flue.

I'm sure others will be along with contributions but a good place to start would be the archive on here as all builds have similarities, regardless of materials.

Try this link ukwoodfiredovenforum.proboards.com/board/11/clay-earth-adobe-ovens

Number 5 should be in bold and underlined as you can't fix it once you've started your build

[ianmm]

Thanks for the tips. I'm getting the message about insulation.
I plan to build a 3-sided plinth (see photo for example, borrowed from mm289), and the floor of my oven will be storage heater blocks.
Suggestions required please:
1. What to use as the lintel and/or base that will sit across my 3-sided plinth and support the oven?
2. What insulation to use between the lintel/base and the storage heater blocks.

Thanks
Ian

[oblertone]

Most builders merchants will sell lintels in a variety of lengths to suit; as to insulation I used vermiculite board under storage heater blocks because I wanted a flat surface to work from, but there are alternatives such as vermicrete, con-blocks or even glass bottles !