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Post by oblertone on May 7, 2015 16:26:12 GMT
There are some truly monolithic hearth/bases built, along with hugely insulated domes that keep 'cooking hot' for days; but that's not the only route and you should seek to balance the performance of your floor with that of your dome. If you don't then one component just becomes a heat sink and will detract from the overall performance.
Your dome is described as light, do you intend to insulate over it or use it as it is ? If you're just going to use it 'as is' then a heavy floor will never heat up as all your therms will be exiting via the dome. If however you intend to insulate over your dome (highly recommended) then a suitably insulated floor should be planned
nb: It is VERY difficult to go back and add insulation under the floor in most cases.
Underfloor insulation is placed under the cooking floor and comes in many varieties. Some use vermicrete (vermiculite & cement mixture) others (myself included) went for vermiculite board which is what domestic firebricks for hearths and stoves are cut from. Some builds feature thermalite blocks but I have no personal knowledge of them so can't comment, paving slabs also feature but again ...
Mine is a 'light' build (see thread below) so 25mm of vermiculite board under a layer of heater blocks worked for me, if doing a heavier job under a fully insulated dome I would have still used the board (flat dry surface) on top of concrete slabs and topped with firebrick for the floor.
Please note, these are just my ramblings but hopefully they are enough to set you off on the right path for YOUR build.
Paul
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Post by oblertone on May 7, 2015 12:43:04 GMT
Last bump before the tip !
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Post by oblertone on May 5, 2015 9:11:10 GMT
It may be just me, but I spent several minutes thinking "why has he bricked up the entrance to his oven?" Lots of effort for a smoke hood but it all ties in nicely and looks very professional. Any idea what you are using for counter tops ?
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Post by oblertone on May 3, 2015 14:53:40 GMT
That's one thing I like about WFO's, particularly those detailed on this forum; no-one approaches them from the same start point. I know there is usually a stand, then a dome, arch etc but there seems to be more creative flair, particularly when it comes to the materials used.
Will follow with interest, just make sure there a way of removing the template at an appropriate point.
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Post by oblertone on May 3, 2015 13:30:50 GMT
I used storage heater blocks for my hearth and common reds for the dome (see link below), and it is working just fine. Cutting SHB's would be a pain as they seem to have friable edges, not a problem on a floor as the gaps fill up with ash anyway; might be more of an issue as the inner surface of the dome.
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Post by oblertone on Apr 30, 2015 14:35:12 GMT
I suppose my render layer was 1-2cm over a 25mm layer of ceramic fibre blanket; my 'render' was actually waterproof tile adhesive as I then tiled over the render layer. External temp gets to about 40c which I think is acceptable given the limitations of my build.
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Post by oblertone on Apr 30, 2015 7:54:30 GMT
I did as you suggest and just rendered over the chicken wire holding the blanket; however I did 'cure' the dome and used it extensively before I put on the blanket layer, no point in trapping the moisture.
My main reason for not using a vermicrete layer was lack of space and while my oven works as well as I need it to it could probably have benefited from more insulation.
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Post by oblertone on Apr 21, 2015 0:17:47 GMT
A baffle in the chimney would only force the flue gases out of the front arch so would be fairly pointless. As to using a blower, you might get up to temp a bit quicker but at the cost of more fuel. As your average Pompeii will reach 500c normally aspirated I wonder what you could cook at 600 ?
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Post by oblertone on Apr 21, 2015 0:13:41 GMT
As you're going down the re-purpose route, look on eBay & gumtree for storage heater blocks which make excellent oven floor material !
Edit: On second thoughts, why not select your best free bricks and lay them 'long side down' to form your floor ?
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Post by oblertone on Apr 20, 2015 23:38:21 GMT
There's a much simpler build method using three plant pots and plain vermiculite illustrated on this youtube vid. Basically, large pot with extra holes drilled in base, smaller pot right way up placed on a ring encompassing the extra holes. Third pot with base cut off inverted over second leaving an internal lip to rest the skewers on. Fill the gap with vermiculite and fire it up with charcoal and the jobs a carrot.
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Post by oblertone on Apr 20, 2015 23:18:06 GMT
I laid heater blocks direct onto vermiculite board without any sand or other filler; works a treat !
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Post by oblertone on Apr 18, 2015 23:10:48 GMT
Welcome back; as a Pizzaiarist where do you stand on the 'less is more' debate, it seems to come up every time I fire the WFO for pizza ?
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Post by oblertone on Apr 16, 2015 3:48:47 GMT
Hi Simon, I'm currently exiled in Earlsfield, but not for long as I retire to my home in Devon in May ! Extended baking in a WFO means just one thing, insulation ! There are many fine examples both on here and other forums, any idea what style of oven you favour ?
Paul
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Post by oblertone on Apr 16, 2015 3:43:34 GMT
If you view my build thread you'll see I used a lot of scavenged material but there are some corners you shouldn't cut, and one of them is insulation. Good luck and do document how you get on, I'd love to see another 'budget' build.
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Post by oblertone on Apr 14, 2015 13:15:44 GMT
Welcome, quite a difficult task as insulation is the one thing you shouldn't scrimp on; however many WFO builders have excess material after their build and regularly offer it for free (see relevant section on here). A very cheap alternative is to use storage heater blocks for the under the oven and floor; they are plentiful on eBay and gumtree. I paid £4:12 for 50+ as a basis for my build; I've got 12 left if you want to collect them from Devon !
Paul
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