My Wood fired Redux

[Tscarborough]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Nice. What time should I show up?

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Great test firing, very neat suds opener. Been side tracked with my cladding on the dome but did scab some old duct work to practice and get used to metal work and forming.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Overall, I'm very happy with how the oven is working. The draw is excellent in spite of facing the prevailing wind....had no choice on that.


The gable on the back of the oven is open on top, I checked the interior temp when we were coming inside for the night....nothing more than ambient.

Granite arch didn't get very hot at all, and I think we're in business!

Check out this essential oven tool. Custom made by a blacksmith in MA for a small local brewery. The owner/brew-master is also a stonemason..this is the name of his business. It's no surprise I wanted one.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Party tomorrow, but I feel so rusty I had to fire it up and make a couple. My boy had a friend over and I wanted to keep it simple so it was just cheese for them, and Margheritas for us.

[the_dr_masuess]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I've got a bit of construction/Remodeling experience (finished a couple houses and Basements) and I was thinking with the way the oven is built and proper insulation, using the steel frame seems kinda like over kill and just a pain and added expense but I thought I would get a second opinion. Thanks!

[brickie in oz]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Ive got a timber ply roof with asphalt shingles on it, there is no way any heat from the oven will get anywhere near it, like Stonecutter said better to ere on the side of caution if you are not really sure whats going on.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I also framed mine with wood and didn't think twice about it. If the fire is leaking out of the oven, it is a tear down anyway you look at it.

Yep....my exact view point too..

My personal feeling is that if I build in such a way that the oven damages the framing, then the job as a whole is garbage and a failure....it should be re-built. Burn baby burn.

[Tscarborough]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I also framed mine with wood and didn't think twice about it. If the fire is leaking out of the oven, it is a tear down anyway you look at it. That said, I did brick the entire face and made lap joints at the expansion joints of the oven.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

.......I noticed in your previous pictures you framed up your structure with wood instead of steel... Was that just temporary? All the threads i've read said that enclosed structures should have steel and not wood. What are your thoughts?

No, the frame is not a temporary structure. I have used wood framing on all the ovens I have built except one, but that one still had a timber frame roof.

My thoughts are this.
It is obvious that FB has put a great deal of effort into the WFO movement with their Pompeii plans, and homogenized the building process in a way that ANYONE can build an oven. Considering that (it seems) almost all the people that follow these plans are not professional masons or even in the construction field, that is no small accomplishment....and one that is very cool.

That said, it makes sense to recommend only steel or masonry for the enclosure, because of the many variables that are involved in the build as a whole...one of which is inexperienced builders. It is not realistic or practical to think a novice builder can explain problems and then be walked through every tiny bit of minutia of a project. And if they don't have the experience to know what to do, then the way to go would be the way that is most forgiving to critical error....in this case, a non-combustible frame. And even if the builder is an expert, maybe they don't like the idea of a burnable frame.

The oldest freestanding, outdoor oven I have built is 9 years old. But I have worked on many historic beehive ovens (indoor..next to the fireplace) and fireplaces that are built around timber framing. The oldest one was 1692...321 years next to hot masonry is pretty respectable.

I know what good clearances are, how to plan the build to include them, and understand the dynamics of how these two materials interplay. There is zero reservation on my part when it comes to framing with wood.

However, I have never recommended doing so on this forum, and I never will. This is simply because you can't make the same mistakes with metal studs, CMU or stucco cladding. And, why even go that route if all the other ways produce the same results? It is a simple case of best practice.

Why do I do it then? Because it's strong, fast, easier to frame with, and I can. My personal feeling is that if I build in such a way that the oven damages the framing, then the job as a whole is garbage and a failure....it should be re-built. Burn baby burn.

That said, I appreciate the feedback.

[the_dr_masuess]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Can't wait to see the final product. Your guests are definitely in for a treat! I noticed in your previous pictures you framed up your structure with wood instead of steel... Was that just temporary? All the threads i've read said that enclosed structures should have steel and not wood. What are your thoughts?

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

We like to serve small pizzas, mainly because we make many different kinds. I would say 15-20 would be the max. When the eating slows down, I make a few more, then what ever dough and ingredients are left get turned into Stromboli. It works out good because by that point I have been letting the oven cool down.

I'm pretty rusty though, I haven't used a wfo for a few years...pizza has been made in the home oven.

[deejayoh]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

20 pizzas for 15 peeps! Hungry crowd. I find that I always seem to serve 2 pizzas per 3 people. But there are never leftovers. I need to get some take home boxes.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Hmmm..a post of mine about my future patio seems to have vanished.


Anyway, progress is being made.

The oven is insulated with 4"-6" of mineral wool....now that the enclosure is dried in I don't have to worry about rain water.

I finished the roof framing, got the plywood and paper on. Now I need to run the flue through the roof so I can install and flash the chimney. Probably going to be a brick veneer because of weight. After that, cedar shakes go on. I think the brick and the cedar will compliment each other, plus I wanted to get more brick in the design to work with the vault.

Got all the durock sheathing installed except an upper potion of the back gable, and all the wood trim is stained/sealed. I'll start picking away at the stone veneer as time allows. I'm doing more granite work above the arch so that will take a little more time too.

This weekend is the official oven kickoff with no rain in site....15 people, so probably about 20 10" pizzas and some Stromboli. I always send some home with everyone.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I've got some Goathorn peppers going mad. I'm quite looking forward to pickling them for pizza.

If you haven't tried these on pizza yet, you're missing out. Everybody raves about homemade italian sausage and hot pepper pizza

I don't think I've tried that variety before...but I'm a sucker for the briny goodness of pickled anything. I make an Italian sausage and pepperoncini pie that is a crowd (and one of my) favorites.

We have Jalapeno,Habanero, and Cayenne pepper growing now, I think I'll get some of those Goat Horns to add to the garden...my wife cans and pickles so maybe I can get her to do some like the ones in your link.

I have a Scoville chart that shows these @ 2000 units..about double of a Pepperoncini.

[deejayoh]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

The upside is that the garden is producing like crazy...especially the Jalapenos.

I've got some Goathorn peppers going mad. I'm quite looking forward to pickling them for pizza.

If you haven't tried these on pizza yet, you're missing out. Everybody raves about homemade italian sausage and hot pepper pizza