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I guess it is about time to share my pain.
Anyone who has lived in FL can attest to the lousy summers (90+ degrees, off the charts humidity, and the infamous DAILY rain/thunderstorms). Winter is another story, it just doesn't get any better, pretty much anywhere.
Anyway, some of you may remember back 2+ yrs ago when I completed my igloo build. I was asked by a forum member if I was concerned about the heavy summer rains. YES, I said; I plan to make a cover/modified tarp, much like a BBQ cover that will at least keep the horizontal rains from getting into the oven entry. I believe I volunteered my wife (hey, she is good with upholstery, curtains, and such) but failed to ever "officially" ask for her help.
By now, I'm sure you know where I'm going.....I never got around to my making my cover, too many other projects seemed more important, and besides - I was making pizzas and roasting without a hitch.....maybe the rain won't be an issue. WRONG
After two summers without water infiltration issues the rain finally bit me in the A#% - TWICE in three weeks. 4 weeks ago I decided I better check the oven after 3-4 days of torrential rain. Removed the doors to find soaked ash from my last fire and every brick looked wet (not just damp). Pissed, I decided that I wasn't going to waste my time going through a curring process and simply proceeded to build a huge fire and drive out the moisture. It worked, with no ill effects that I could see. It took over an hr. to get a fire going that would stay lit, but 8 hrs later (and a LOT of wood) all was dry. I had steam rolling out of the oven for at least an hr, with water actually dripping from the underside of my cantilever support slab on all 4 sides.
Then, being the idiot that I am, I still did not cover it before the REAL rains started a few days later. Over 11" fell in 7 days (as recorded by the fire station down the street). The worst was one afternoon when it rained over
4" in 40 minutes - overflowing my pool, back and side yards were 6" deep and I was about 2-3" away from becoming an official flood victim. Back to the oven; as you have guessed, saturated again. So far this week we have lucked out in my neighborhood, no rain since last weekend. I've let the oven air dry all week and will fire the piss out of it again this weekend. YES I finally have a cover, fitted it yesterday, complete with a weather seal around the Duravent pipe.
My only conclusion to this whole problem is that the entry area acts as a wick durring these heavy continuous rains, and after several hrs of rain each day over several days, the entire oven sucks up water. Other than the reoccuring arch crack the dome and surrounding tile grout is all in tact, so I don't think the water has come from anywhere else. The confusing part is that I made it 2 yrs without the slightest moiture problems (other than damp wood), I know we have had strange weather patterns for the past 2 months with rain coming from different directions than what they say is a "typical summer pattern"......guess that may be it.
In any case, the space shuttle may be able to see the fires I plan for this weekend.....then the cover goes on. Again, curring fires be damned, I'm going inferno.
LIVE AND LEARN
RT
Anyone who has lived in FL can attest to the lousy summers (90+ degrees, off the charts humidity, and the infamous DAILY rain/thunderstorms). Winter is another story, it just doesn't get any better, pretty much anywhere.
Anyway, some of you may remember back 2+ yrs ago when I completed my igloo build. I was asked by a forum member if I was concerned about the heavy summer rains. YES, I said; I plan to make a cover/modified tarp, much like a BBQ cover that will at least keep the horizontal rains from getting into the oven entry. I believe I volunteered my wife (hey, she is good with upholstery, curtains, and such) but failed to ever "officially" ask for her help.
By now, I'm sure you know where I'm going.....I never got around to my making my cover, too many other projects seemed more important, and besides - I was making pizzas and roasting without a hitch.....maybe the rain won't be an issue. WRONG
After two summers without water infiltration issues the rain finally bit me in the A#% - TWICE in three weeks. 4 weeks ago I decided I better check the oven after 3-4 days of torrential rain. Removed the doors to find soaked ash from my last fire and every brick looked wet (not just damp). Pissed, I decided that I wasn't going to waste my time going through a curring process and simply proceeded to build a huge fire and drive out the moisture. It worked, with no ill effects that I could see. It took over an hr. to get a fire going that would stay lit, but 8 hrs later (and a LOT of wood) all was dry. I had steam rolling out of the oven for at least an hr, with water actually dripping from the underside of my cantilever support slab on all 4 sides.
Then, being the idiot that I am, I still did not cover it before the REAL rains started a few days later. Over 11" fell in 7 days (as recorded by the fire station down the street). The worst was one afternoon when it rained over
4" in 40 minutes - overflowing my pool, back and side yards were 6" deep and I was about 2-3" away from becoming an official flood victim. Back to the oven; as you have guessed, saturated again. So far this week we have lucked out in my neighborhood, no rain since last weekend. I've let the oven air dry all week and will fire the piss out of it again this weekend. YES I finally have a cover, fitted it yesterday, complete with a weather seal around the Duravent pipe.
My only conclusion to this whole problem is that the entry area acts as a wick durring these heavy continuous rains, and after several hrs of rain each day over several days, the entire oven sucks up water. Other than the reoccuring arch crack the dome and surrounding tile grout is all in tact, so I don't think the water has come from anywhere else. The confusing part is that I made it 2 yrs without the slightest moiture problems (other than damp wood), I know we have had strange weather patterns for the past 2 months with rain coming from different directions than what they say is a "typical summer pattern"......guess that may be it.
In any case, the space shuttle may be able to see the fires I plan for this weekend.....then the cover goes on. Again, curring fires be damned, I'm going inferno.
LIVE AND LEARN
RT
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