Glenn's WFO

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

So progress has been good and the easy bit is now done.

The premix mortar i was using was sticky enough to not need any sticks or anything to hold up the bricks, which made it relatively easy to get the upper courses completed.

I've got a few minor problems now that I need to figure out. The first being that i've only got about 12 fire bricks left which isn't enough to do the entry, vent and outer arch. However I do have a heap of pressed red & cream bricks left over from our house and would like to use these, but i'm not sure if mixing the 2 types of bricks will be an issue? anyone?

Also, with the design of the entry and vent, i'm not sure how the whole lot should be tied together. If i just butt the ends of the bricks up to the face of my dome arch, the flue support plate will end up sitting across this joint. Is this ok?

I might need to look through some other builds to get some ideas.

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

I completed the "crossing of the Arch" the other night which caused me much head scratching.
Like a lot of others, the back of the arch is a bit ugly, but no-one but me will ever know that. The dome itself has a few flat spots in it as it goes up, but not much i can do about that without creating a ledge or overhang internally.

I'm mainly concentrating on getting the inside as neat as possible with minimal gaps between the bricks. Obviously i'm not too fussed on what the outside looks like.

I tried to get a good photo of my floor to give an indication of how flat it is too.

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Photos didn't work in the first post

If the mods want to move this to the construction forum, go ahead, or let me know and i'll start again in there.

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Time for an update in case you all think i've been sitting around doing nothing on my holidays!

First photo is of floor and soldier course (half brick) all laid out. I forgot to pull the camera out for the completed soldier course, but i ended up cutting every second brick on both sides to get my curve.

Second photo jumps ahead as i've done the second course and got my very first arch in place! I was pretty excited to get that completed and actually staying up. I used a form to get the bricks in place, but as soon as i put the top brick in, i took the form out as i wanted it to be completely self supporting.

Third photo shows where the mortar cracked and moved a fraction when i was knocking the keystone brick in, but at that point, all the load is downwards so it didn't move any more. Also, as soon as i completed the next course of bricks, it would tie everything together, so i wasn't too worried.

Progress was slowish after that as it was taking me longer than a day to get a single course cut and set.

I was also mixing up my construction methods by swapping between cutting all 3 sides of the bricks, or using shims to tilt the bricks up.

[Tim M]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Hi Glenn,

I am in Adelaide and still am very much in the planning and material aqusition stage of building my WFO. Could you tell me where in Melbourne you sourced your firebricks from. The cheapest I can find them in Adelaide is $6 each. (Your bricks look great and at $3.50 each are a lot more cost effective!!) I have a truckie mate who does the Melbourne to Adelaide run all the time and I am sure that he would be able to bring them back for me.

Cheers,

Tim

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

It does look good. The down side (other than the heat time) is that there are more edges to catch with the peel.

Les...

aahh, yes, but that's the pizza makers problem, not the bricks problem
Will have to finesse my peel skills.

[Les]

Re: Glenn's WFO

I know herringbone can be done with bricks flat, but I just think it looks better with bricks on edge IMHO.

It does look good. The down side (other than the heat time) is that there are more edges to catch with the peel.

Les...

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

The problem with cutting them is you might not end up with nice straight edges which will result in slightly larger gaps between bricks.

I know herringbone can be done with bricks flat, but I just think it looks better with bricks on edge IMHO.

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: Glenn's WFO

You can still do a herringbone pattern with the bricks flat...
See my build...

http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/f8/drakes-38-oven-633.html

[Frances]

Re: Glenn's WFO

I am wondering if anybody has split brick lengthwise to get the same look with just slightly less mass than bricks laying flat?

Hey, or you could cut them into different shapes and do a kind of mosaic pattern on the floor....!

[staestc]

Re: Glenn's WFO

I do really like the look of the floor with the bricks on their sides I am not sure I could stand the additional time and fuel needed to heat the extra mass though. I am wondering if anybody has split brick lengthwise to get the same look with just slightly less mass than bricks laying flat?

It's looking good Glenn!

Travis

[Frances]

Re: Glenn's WFO

The floor does look very nice with the bricks on their sides... thought it would .

Make sure you do tell us how it works out - I'll be watching with great interest!

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Hey Glen,

Looking good.

You really can put the firebricks on the flat side. It will hold high heat better, cost less, weigh less, and it will definitely hold all the heat you will ever want for baking and roasting. If you go with the thick floor (bricks on their sides), your oven will have a heavier and thicker floor than a commercial pizzeria oven in Italy.

James

I know James. I did plenty of reading and went through all the threads debating the pros and cons of each.
To be honest though, I just prefer the nice herringbone pattern that results from using them on their sides.

And yes i'll pay for it with more wood and a longer heat time, but sacrifices must be made for aesthetics.

I actually started off looking at the Rado Hand design, but it is just too thick in a lot of areas and you seem to end up heating up concrete that is unnecessary. My brick on edge is a bit of a compromise between the Rado and FB designs if you like (although i'm hardly original).

I'll make sure that I report back with my firing times and amounts of wood useage for others to think about.

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Good looking job! Your firebricks look pretty nice and even. Did they come that way or did you have to touch them up? I feel like ours are bowed and rough.

I haven't touched the bricks as yet, and yes they do sit pretty flat. The bricks are good quality (as far as my amateur eye can tell), but I also credit the Cal-Sil board, as it's nice and flat and makes it easy to get everything level.

[james]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Hey Glen,

Looking good.

You really can put the firebricks on the flat side. It will hold high heat better, cost less, weigh less, and it will definitely hold all the heat you will ever want for baking and roasting. If you go with the thick floor (bricks on their sides), your oven will have a heavier and thicker floor than a commercial pizzeria oven in Italy.

James