The Morgan's WFO build

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

We worked all weekend to "catch-up" a little on our project. We decided to go ahead and put a center support column beneath the hearth structural slab. We simply stacked some 8x8 concrete blocks and tied the top end into the forms and inserted two peices of rebar. The inside of the blocks were filled with concrete during the pour of the structural slab.



The form for the structural slab was pretty straight-forward, but the form for the 15 foot bench took all day Saturday to build and re-inforce. Here's a photo of the forms just prior to the pour...



And here's a photo shortly after the pour...



It's nice to have all the "heavy" work behind us. Next, we are going to route some drain pipe and take care of parts of our patio. The next stage on the oven will be the insulation slab and the oven dome.

The Morgan's

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Really nice work, good job with the steel. Looks like a strong structure. The whole area looks like it'll be a lot of fun to cook and entertain around. It's always great to be done with the heavy work, foundation, walls...etc.and get on to oven. Congratulations on nice job, Dino

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

We've been busy working on our patio area... We put in a drain-field, brought in crushed gravel and sand, put in a small wood deck between the boundary of our lower patio and fence, made a small wood shed, installed pavers on our upper patio, and have begun a lighting scheme. So, now it's time to return to working on our oven.

We have enough firebricks to get started and have a couple large bags of Perlite. So, we need to settle on the finish for the landing so we can pour the insulation slab at the proper thickness. We hope to have the hearth laid before the weekend and to do the soldier course this weekend. We know we have a ways to go, but our aim is to have an end-of-summer pizza party.

Here's a couple of pics...





Ciao e presto!
Dixie and Ken Morgan

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

We bought some HeatStop mortar, and then I read this morning how the wet pre-mix was water-soluble. Sigh... So, we did some research this morning and decided not to mess around and ordered some RefMix through Forno Bravo's e-store.

In the meanwile, we cut a lot of brick today and "dry-fit" much of them together...



Our grandaughter stayed the weekend with us, and she was inspired to erect her own "soldier course" of sorts...



We hope to have the hearth set tomorrow and perhaps cut a few more brick, but if the mortar arrives this next week, we should see some real progress by the end of next weekend.

Cheers!

Dixie and Ken

[Ken524]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Hi Dixie and Ken,

Your progress is outstanding, I love the patio!

We bought some HeatStop mortar, and then I read this morning how the wet pre-mix was water-soluble. Sigh... So, we did some research this morning and decided not to mess around and ordered some RefMix through Forno Bravo's e-store.

Yep, the pre-mixed stuff has to stay covered and protected until it's fired. The dry HeatStop is what many of us have used. You won't go wrong with FB's morter

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

That is one outstanding patio area. You are going to love having all of that counter space around the oven.

Drake

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Thanks for the kind words on our patio. We can't wait to actually use it in leisure.

Last weekend we poured the insulation slab. It's 1:6 portland cement-to-perlite. We had errored when we poured our structural slab and made it an inch lower than what we really wanted, so the insulation slab is 5 inches thick. Oh well, better than being too thin...

This weekend we cut all the hearth bricks and got them installed. They are levelled on a thin film of sand mixed with the sediment from the brick saw. After we were satisfied with the level, we watered it down and continued tapping with a mallet.

So, now we're waiting for the mortar and perhaps will work a little more on patio details.




Dixie and Ken Morgan

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Hello all,

We recieved our ReMix mortar today (was exceptionally fast!!!), but I had thought each bag was around 30 pounds. They are 22 pounds (10 kilos), so instead of what I (mistakenly) thought was a total of 90 pounds of dry mix, we have 66 pounds of dry mix.

We're building a 36" pompeii style dome, and we're wondering how much mortar some of you guys that have "been there, done that" think we should have on hand. Is 66 pounds enough?

Thanks in advance,

Dixie and Ken

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

hi Dixie and ken,
i have a 42 inch dome, (measured inside) i used 2 1/2 50 lb bags of heat stop, I laid 220 bricks including the floor and chimney. But I am sure i used more than necessary and had a bunch of spillage, as well as mixing too much at once and then not being able to use it.

I think if your very neat, keep your joints tight, dont drop half of it or mix too much you should be fine,,, I am glad when some one else can learn from my misteaks.

Check your local masonry supply for heat stop 50 dry mix, In case you run out you can pick up another bag quiickly if you need to.

One More Question

are you considering polishing the concrete coutertops ? I started buying the equipment for it, just havent had time to do it yet,

GREAT JOB on your build I hope you are both very proud
Good luck and welcome to the club
Mark

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Hello Mark,

Thanks for the response. Did some of those 2-1/2 bags go into putting a layer over the finished dome? If so, how thick of a layer did you use?

We have been talking about polishing, staining, and sealing the large, lower counter top. The small upper one we are going to tile. The remainder of the structure will be stucco. We'd be very interested hearing your experience and seeing photos of the process and tools you use to polish your concrete.

Thanks again,

Dixie and ken

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

hi dixie & ken

I used whatever heat stop was left over after i was done laying bricks for the day and applied it to the dome. I would say I have about a 1/2 inch layer at the most over the whole dome, after i applied it to the dome i would smooth it out with a wet tile sponge.

i bought a cement polishing kit from an importer on ebay because the price was good and never received it. I finally got my money back from paypal.

I just bought the other day a pack of 4" grinder discs from harbor freight for polishing concrete (they claim) I am planning on doing it soon. it was cheap (12.95) so I figured it wouldnt hurt to try it. I will let you know how it goes.....

ebay has tons of nice polishing stuff, just stay away from the importers,,,,,

good luck,,
Mark

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

This weekend we began on the dome. Friday night, I decided I did not like the hearth we had layed-out. I thought it was too uneven and had some pretty large gaps. So, we tore it out and re-screeded and reset on Saturday morning. Shortly afterward, we put in the soldier coarse and one 1/2 brick coarse.



That ugly mug is me The re-installation of the hearth was a major improvement. There were still a few edges that were high and I wanted to fix them. I read on here where some people sand them down, and just the other night I read a comment where some asked "Can you imagine rubbing bricks together to obtain a good fit?" - referring to an old-world way that craftsmen would work. I chose a brick with a chipped corner, and layed it on the hearth and began rubbing (grinding) the hearth by hand. It actually works very well! I found if the bricks are moist and the dust (mud) cleaned-off from time to time, it actually goes pretty fast. I spent about 10 minutes doing this and will probably do about another 10 minutes before the door arch goes up. The hearth is really smooth and slick!

We put in the beginnings of the door opening arch buttress and packed all the gaps with mortar after the whole thing set-up. We used 20 kg of RefMix up to this point, leaving us with only 10 more kg, so we are going to need to get some more before next weekend.

The first coarse of 1/2 bricks were "eyeballed" - all subsequent courses will be set using a pivot arm and incline indicator.



Living the dream! We're stoked to be to this point.

Dixie and Ken

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Ken, that looks great for eyeballing! Also, those soldiers do take up a lot of Refixm, it scared me too but it went farther with the brick rings.

I see you're doing the "wedge-and-fill" method for mortaring. Looks good. And if the rest of your build looks as good as your floor, your oven will be a work of art. Good job, Dino

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Great Job Dixie & Ken,

After its done you will be consumed with cooking in it, Sunday Night I roasted a beer can chicken in a pot with potato's around it, and cooked a few loaves of bread while it was in there. Great dinner with no mess or heat in the house

Mark

[vintagemx0]

Re: The Morgan's WFO build

Dino, thanks for the kind words. We're finding that we're really "winging-it", and having reference to all the great builds on this forum is what's letting us proceed.

Mark - That chicken looks sooo good!

We spent the weekend building-up the dome. It's a little sloppy where the rings meet the arch, but it will be strong and will work-out with some fanciful cuts.









So, we'll try to keep plugging on it as time permits on the week nights, but will definately get much further ahead by the end of next weekend.

Dixie and Ken