Claire's 31" oven/ 42" Rumford fireplace build

[stasa]

Re: Claire's 31" oven/ 42" Rumford fireplace build

Hi from aus.great fireplace been looking at the rumford does it work well outdoors? im in the early stages of my wood oven. tell me is there a formula you used for you rumford been on my mind the curve of the throat would appreciate the help.

[czaunb2]

Re: Claire's 31" oven/ 42" Rumford fireplace build

Hi from the US. I was worried about the wind outside diminishing the fire, but it hasn't been a problem and the fireplace works wonderfully. I use it frequently and have cooked several pigs on the rotisserie above it which has been really a lot of fun.

The throat was also my most worrisome part of the fireplace. There was no real formula that I used, but I knew that for my 42" fireplace it would need a 4" deep throat at the top. I bent the metal lath to match that and traced around it with a template that I transferred to plywood and cut it to fit. Here is a pic: http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/memb...irebricks.html
The form gave something for the lath to sit on when weight was added. I put refractory mortar on top of the lath, then added split firebricks and more mortar for good measure. Rebar was added across the width of the fireplace and extended farther with one of them. I added regular cement, that had rocks, broken bricks and stone, etc. to help to set the rotisserie base in place and help to keep it sturdy--the rotisserie base was placed just in front of the throat.

Also, for the bricks along the sides of the throat, I initally cut them at an angle, but that wasn't giving me the curve that I wanted. So, to give the lath (and my throat) something to sit on top of, I basically sanded down the bricks as best as I could with my circular saw to create a curve (since they were already in place.) It turned out looking really hacked on and crappy, so to smooth the bricks out to what I wanted it to look like, I used refractory mortar applying it with my gloved hand.

Here is another idea: Casting Rumford Throat - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

Also, I did get a ton of help/ideas from the Buckley Rumford website and from a book called The Forgotten Art of Building a Fireplace by Vrest Orton that I borrowed from the library.

I do still have the form here if you happen to be building a 42" fireplace. I would be happy to send it to you, but shipping might be too expensive. Maybe I could draw a template from it on newspaper or whatever and send it to you. Let me know.

Hope this helps.

[Santino]

Re: Claire's 31" oven/ 42" Rumford fireplace build

Claire, I have the opportunity to get a couple bags of free FireRock mortar because my neighbor across the street is having a FireRock fireplace installed in his backyard. How did it work out for you? I should be starting my dome in the next couple of weeks hopefully.

[czaunb2]

Re: Claire's 31" oven/ 42" Rumford fireplace build

The FireRock mortar worked out really well. I would definately use it again--and given that it is free, heck yes! The bags are really small and depending on how big your oven is, you will likely need more. But two bags will keep you busy for a while.

Good luck on the build! Take lots of pics.