42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

[ATK406]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Good to know. Thanks for sharing this. I will be grinding/polishing my cement countertops this summer (I hope) and will take measures to avoid this myself. Thanks again.

AT

[deejayoh]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Sorry to see that. Get a set of cheap raingear from HF. Plus some of their long rubber gloves. Well worth protecting yourself!

[dvm]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Rain gear purchased - check!

[dvm]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

More fabulous weather in So Cal allowing winter work on the project.

Several lessons learned this weekend:
1) Rain gear and rubber boots are a win.
2) Slurry coat should not be use to fill large defects:
The excess slurry coat of cement and pigment with bonding agent (no water) came off nicely with 100 grit wheel and polished up to a very glossy surface - I went to 1500 grit - except whet the hole filled was bigger than 1/4 inch (where rocks/glass flew out on the first pass leaving larger defects. I had three of these on 50 sq feet - not too bad). The slurry filling in these larger defects contracted and cracked - So I dug it out and will fill with cement / sand / pigment slurry.

3) The wet grinder is designed to work on a horizontal surface - not vertical:
I purchased the unit with the bull nose router bit and the polishing pads on line and I ran it all day horizontal last Saturday happily grinding down about 1/4 inch then polishing to 400 grit. This weekend - working on the vertical face of the hearth - the GFI Tripped and the then the unit was dead within 30 minutes. I thought if was a defect, and facing a full days work I went to my local pro building supply yard to purchase another unit (the only one in stock was the display so I got $25 off) and I planned to return the online purchase for warranty. This second unit also tripped the GFI and went dead within 30 minutes grinding - the first unit had dried out - and worked fine. So I worked hard to keep the motor dry and rotated between the two units all day long. One is 800 watts, the other is 900 watts - aside from the color of the plastic casing and the stickers they are identical units. I plan to make some kind of enhanced plastic shroud before next weekends final vertical grind. BTY the rain hood with a face shield was an important part of the plan at this point as cement slurry flys straight up then back down on the operator during this process.
4) The 3/4 inch bull nose diamond grinder worked great:

It was a very forgiving process. It was not necessary to try and remove all of the material in one pass - I could take of in various manors (push - pull - dive in) as long as the final pass with the tool was pushed down, and flush to the surface, the edge came out great and Stones are revealed in the ground edge!
So now a slurry on the fronts and more polishing next weekend.

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Bring back memories. I was wearing my rain gear when it was 90 degrees outside. Counters looking good.

[Gulf]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

It is looking great DVM,

Origonal post by DVM "Slurry coat should not be use to fill large defects"

I noticed that also, on my trial runs. I guess that I will have to spot fill the larger voids with some fine sand added to the slurry, before the slurry coat. I hope the day before or at least in the morning before the slurry coat.

[dvm]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

I finally can see the light at the end of the tunnel with this project. I got the the last bit of polishing done and lithium sealant applied on the poured in place landing, hearth and seating. Once it is good and dry, I will polish the sealant and get some photos in the sun. I am very pleased with the outcome.

I am anxious to see how it holds up. The key to polishing the vertical surfaces was keeping the motor dry.

Next are the decorative arches for the oven and fireplace. I am planning a keystone to match the counter / hearth for each. My wife and I finished casting 100 sq feet of faux limestone in colors complimentary to our existing pavers for the final step.

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Looks Great, being in Cali, you should not have the same issues I have had with extreme freezing.

[deejayoh]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Looking good dvm!

I recommend Howard's Butcher Block sealer for the counters. Gives them a really good luster and water resistance. They sell it at HD for $9 a bottle, so it's cheaper than sealer too!

[dvm]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Several Lessons learned since my last post
1) The Lithium sealer penetrated nicely and gave a satin finish as advertised. It was a bit bumpy and in few locations. Where I applied a "second coat" during initial application it did not penetrate at all and just sat on top - yuck. Soo I endeavored to Polish the lithium sealer with the recommended floor buffing pads

2) The red did not remove any material and the black scratched the surface. Boo
So I then "polished" the Lithium sealer product with a 1600 grit granite polishing disk - it took down the high spots and left the surface (particularly the glass) cloudy when dry. What was frustrating was how amazing the colors were when wet, and then it went all dull when dry. I took photos but they didn't show the problem well.
So I next re-polished the surfaces with the granite disks 800, 1200, and 1600 - this removed the micro scratches in the glass and the looked great until they dried then some color was again lost.
So I then applied this wax -
3) This wax worked great. This is the same product I used in my kitchen a few years ago when I installed granite counters (DIYGranite.com). I applied it like car wax then removed the excess and buffed with #0000 steel wool. I used the velcro backer disk from my polishing disks in the angle grinder on low speed.
I am satisfied with the result: from
To

[deejayoh]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Wax > sealer is my experience too. But it does cloud up with weather and UV exposure after a few weeks.

[dvm]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

I will interested to hear how butcher block sealer holds up - I like the price! I will report on the life of the wax.

[V-wiz]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Looks very nice good job

[ATK406]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

Your countertop and bench are absolutely beautiful. Congratulations!

I am going to go for a more "agricultural" look, but everytime I see what you have done (and others), I think "maybe a little exposed aggregate would be good". I'll probably add something to the mix but I don't think I will attempt the myriad of textures and colors that you have. Mmm! Mmm!

[dvm]

Re: 42" FB Pompeii Oven with 19" dome, and adjacent fireplace, in the O.C.

thanks for the kind words. I am finally satisfied with the outcome after a few fits and starts. So at this point it's a watch and see on durability.