44 Gallon Drum Oven

[Badkama]

I cant think of any other way to describe it as it is built around an 44 Gallon drum...

The Oven sits on a base of Besser blocks and a concrete hearth covered in fire clay....The drum was then coated in 5 inches of Fire clay and then a final coat of Clay and concrete mix...

It is unusual..but thats me...unusual
My wife would tell you..VERY unusual))))

But fun))

here are some pics)))

[Badkama]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

The Finished oven


works great, we had hot bread rolls last night and they were perfect

Pizza night tonight

[Dutchoven]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Incredible, absolutely! Must be scary to fire it though! Post some more pictures of heating up and cooking and such!
Best
Dutch

[Badkama]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

No not at all, it fires up and burns beautifully

We found it holds the heat really well and cooks just perfectly, must admit I was surprised at how well it works cause I just made the thing as I went a long

These pics were as we fired it up to cure the Fire clay...before it got coated in permalite to give it its colour.


Will take some more pics tonight as we indulge in pizza)

[nissanneill]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Badkama
One big advantage of using the 44 gallon (205 litre) drum is you can get two ovens out of the one drum.
I can't see how you could get it to retain heat for baking without a huge semicircular door and a plug for the chimney!
Just goes to show the ingenuity of the Aussie. Reminds me of the Donkey (the name for a half buried 44 gallon drum where you put a fire underneath and covered with earth as an outback hot water service.

Neill

[dmun]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

You could improve this design greatly by copying Wiley's steel dome entrance, made from a truck tire rim, which would close down the opening, and venting from there, rather than in the back:

And of course, insulate, insulate, insulate.

But very clever, all the same.

[wlively]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Very creative! Great ingenuity!

[Archena]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

That's really cool! Very ingenious!

At the risk of sounding like I'm making a pun - I'm not - you could also make a barrel oven that way. I really wanted to experiment with them for bread. Ultimately, assuming that everything goes well, it's a bread oven that I'm most interested in. That would be an interesting way to try it out without going to the expense of building one out brick. (Translation: get someone else to build one out of brick.)

Anyway, Bad, good job!

[Onefella]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Badkama, I like it.

[Badkama]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

after 12 months or so of using the oven we are really happy with it..we cook just about everything in it these days from pizza.. and bread to roasts ..we have learned the art of smoking the roasts with hickory etc and we are just loving it

goes to show what a few hundred bucks will do huh

[heliman]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Great build - I like the flue "pipe" and its decorative rain blocker!!!

Are you considering adding a door arch as suggested to get the 62% ratio to chamber height??

Rossco

[Badkama]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Thanks...we have a door as such...in fact to be totally honest it is 20 inch saw blade ....high tenslie steel......it sits right in frnt of the oven once I start cooking...it seems to work like a treat cause this thing gets bloody HOT and stays hot... My wife says this oven is pretty much the same as me... bent ....but in a fun way

Tell you what though mate..my family are at me all the time to

FIRE UP the oven and cook for them

Guess as things go then I got this fairly right ...it is one the best social things we have ever done.....it is just brilliant to sit around a sink a few cold ones while dinner cooks

[Badkama]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

and to be again honest I have no bloody idea what 62% ratio to chamber height means
NO IDEA mate..but..reckon we are doing ok for an old man and his wife ........the love of my life

[heliman]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Sounds good bad!!

Keep the pics coming (food shots too). I reckon you have started a new craze in cheap DIY, recycled WFOs. Do I sense a winning entry in the Great Australian Backyard Barbie Award 2010 here?

Rossco

[Archena]

Re: 44 Gallon Drum Oven

Do I sense a winning entry in the Great Australian Backyard Barbie Award 2010 here?

Anyone else envisioning an Oscar-like statuette of Barbie in a chef's apron waving a big set of tongs?