Glenn's WFO

[bturton]

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.

[christo]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Engineers!!!! Oh no!!!

Sounds like erriely similar to the week my brother in law (both engineers) and I spent going from dirt to dome! As we had a very short schedule - we spent very little time debating and most of our time laboring.

It's looking really good so far!!!

Christo

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Hi Glenn,
Looks like you've got it all under control and you've been real busy ! Love your wheelbarrow ramp...great idea.
Thanks for posting the pics..I enjoy watching peoples progress. I,ve been put on hold for a bit due to back op.
Good luck for the rest of your WFO

Thanks mate.
Quick calcs show that i've moved about 4 tonne of concrete and blocks, and as you can see, there were no cement trucks used, so it was all by hand and carrying them up from the front of the house. My brother helped out though, so i can't complain too much.

Definetly not something you want to try with a bad back though.

I as able to get an electric mixer up the next door block (it's empty) to do the foundation slab, but when it came to the hearth slab it was wheelbarrow work. My brother and I are both Engineers, so of course we can up with the most efficient method we could think of to Mix+Pour.

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Materials have been relatively easy to source so far (in Melbourne, AUS) and i've bought 220 bricks (~40%Al) at $3.50 ea. I've gone with a bag of dry mortar rather than premix due to the largeish gaps on the outside of the dome. However if i can be bothered doing the extra cutting to make it a tighter fit, i might need to get a bucket of premix (smaller particle size, but not so good for large infill sections).

Planning to wrap a couple of layers of ceramic blanket over it, then a good couple of inches of vermiculite and cement, and then finish with a water proof render for a rustic look.

The only thing i haven't found yet is the chimney materials.
Anyone know where i can get the clay flue liners in Melbourne?

I really like the look of how dmun and others have split the flue liner and rejoined it to make a cone shape for the chimney base.

[nodoubt68]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Hi Glenn,
Looks like you've got it all under control and you've been real busy ! Love your wheelbarrow ramp...great idea.
Thanks for posting the pics..I enjoy watching peoples progress. I,ve been put on hold for a bit due to back op.
Good luck for the rest of your WFO

[glennb]

Re: Glenn's WFO

Once i had the hearth slab finished, i've laid out the bricks and marked them up for cutting. This was a few weeks ago now, and i'm waiting on the brick saw that i can borrow from my work, but someone else has it at home for another project, so i'm having to wait till next week.

I've installed a thermocouple in the floor and will put another one in the dome poking out into the top of the oven. I know a lot of people don't use them after awhile, but i'm curious to check what temps are achieved.

Also, i've gone with brick on edge for the floor slab, for no particular reason other than i like the look of it
It also gives me the same floor thickness to the walls (half brick) so seems sensible to me.

Hearth is on 50mm thick Cal-Sil board directly on the concrete slab.

Aim is to be able to cook fantastic pizzas, bake bread, and experiment with other baking. I enjoy my cooking and trying new recipes, so really looking forward to firing this beast up later in summer.

[glennb]

So after a mad rush of blood, construction is back on a go-slow, which gives me a chance to post some photos.

Aiming for a ~40" diameter WFO, and will render the outside, rather than build an enclosure.

Foundation layout and formwork, and hearth slab.