Forno Montagna

[schallert]

Re: Forno Montagna

Dino, I use Adobe Illustrator on a MAC for my plans. 1/10 scale.

[schallert]

Re: Forno Montagna

Making some progress now. Work got in the way of my build the past two weeks. Cut the floor and dry fit the prices together. Need to by a hand grinder to make a few of the cuts today. The off to Helsinki for a week! Have a nice pail full of reclaimed fireclay now so I can make the slurry to set the floor.

Dan

[schallert]

Re: Forno Montagna

Made some more cuts this weekend, made the entry layers, cut the soldiers at 15 degree angle. Ready to spread the fireclay/sand mixture to set the floor. I will use this fireclay to set the floor, the entry (first layer) and the soldiers...How thick of a heat stop mortar layer do I use for the next levels of the entry? Also, how best do I mortar the soldiers? Do I use a pastry bag? Should I cut wedges/shims to maintain equal angles?

[schallert]

Soldiers and arch begin

mortared the soldiers, the landing walls and dry-fitting the arch... I do love this project... hope I can finish before the snow flies.

Dan

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: Forno Montagna

looks like your doing a great job..... Isnt it amazing how fast we can learn to do basic masonry when we are inspired ? I actually buttered a lot of my brick, rather than using a pastry bag...

[cecilB]

Re: Forno Montagna

Dan,
Your oven looks great - everything looks very nice and neat and tidy.
I got most of the floor down, but had to stop because of darkness and mosquitoes!

Well, I'll just get back to it tomorrow...and I will assign a photographer around here to get pictures...darnit!

c

[schallert]

3 courses complete!

Need more time off to get the dome closed before the snow. I assume that we it gets to below freezing my build is done until next spring. Any winter storage suggestions? Just wrap it up in plastic tarps?

Dan

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: Forno Montagna

I wish I could remember the name , but theres a video on youtube of a guy standing in the snow building his.. You have posts up for the tarp.. wrap the wole thing in plastic sheeting.. Throw in a space heater and you can build a while longer.. I dont know how the temps affect the concrete,but im sure once you get near freezing its not good, for you or the cament..

[jrparks]

Re: Forno Montagna

I built mine all thru the winter with a tarp on post to protect from the weather. I only mortared bricks when the weather was above freezing and would use a space heater to keep let the mortar set if it was going to freeze that night. The only real challange was cutting bricks with the water below 40 deg. Yikes! Lights under the tarp were necessary to keep working in to the night.

[cecilB]

Re: Forno Montagna

Dan, your oven looks great! I hope you get your dome done before it gets too cold - I, too want to complete mine before the nights are freezing too much - but I bet I have more time before that happens than you do!

I posted pictures of my progress in the photos section. I'm not real happy and after looking at yours and others' I am tempted to take out the opening again and try to do it neater. But than I think that, in the end, the outside will be covered up and as long as it keeps its heat, it doesn't really matter....does it?
I am learning a lot, though, so by the time we gut and renovate this kitchen, I'll be ready to put in a bigger and better oven!

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: Forno Montagna

Great job Dan! Excellent outer arch and nice opening over your vent landing. It looks like it's a bit more than 1 brick deep. It will draw the smoke well.

You've already done the hardest parts (we won't worry about the last 2 rings and cork) so I think it'll go pretty quickly now. You might beat the snow after all. I think the thing to focus on is how nice it WILL be when you've got your oven going and cooking during the snow.

Thanks for posting good, clear pics. The whole oven looks great. -Dino

[schallert]

Re: Forno Montagna

Thanks for the encouragement and compliments... You and all who have gone before are HUGE inspiration to me. I am prepping the job site for possible winter construction now. CecilB, I, as many others have stated, have imperfections... We are mostly amateurs with great expectations for ourselves. My approach has always been one of solid construction and focus on the beauty elements when I create the facade. I have seen many techniques and varied degrees of neatness. I have yet to hear anyone state that it didn't cook well. Keep to it! I agree with you, we are all learning in this process!

Dan

[schallert]

To buttress or not to buttress?

I have seen several builders place steel brackets to support entry arch... I was planning on doing the same as I had a slight wall collapse when "pounding" my first brick in the outer arch in position. I learned not to do that again. I was trying to squeeze some mortar out. The entry stack was not cured yet and I had to rebuild. It seems strong now but I am concerned when I add more weight for the chimney. Also saw others use hollow bricks and rebar. And yet again I remember seeing a photo of someone standing on their arch! I bought a few steel brackets like Mfiore and Dbhansen did, placed a piece of insulation board between, but I can not seem to get enough pressure on the wall to make a difference. Does this make sense? I feel that if the entry wall fails with these brackets in place, it will not be enough to save the wall and I would have to rebuild/mortar again anyhow. My question is... what's the right path and when?

Thanks, Dan

[jmhepworth]

Re: Forno Montagna

Dan, all of the trouble I had with building my decorative arch (not a true arch, but legs on the side and an arch between them) came when I tried to build the arch before I allowed the legs to cure. I had the same experience that you had. Trying to force mortar out of the joint caused the uncured legs to fail. When I re-did it (the third time), I let the leg cure and building the arch was uneventful.

Because of the concern with buttressing the arch in the vent (not the decorative arch), I doubled up on the bricks on the legs. Because I planned a gable roof enclosure, you can't tell that the sides of the vent are extra wide. That seemed to work really well for me, and I had no difficulty at all with the arches that form the vent.

Joe

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: Forno Montagna

Dan, if you are building an enclosure around the dome like mine (dog house or out-house style) then you will naturally have a buttress at your front-entry arch: I put my front steel studs about 1/4" from the left and right outer arch and sandwiched a piece of FB Blanket tightly between them for that vertical 12" or so on each side. I did not want the steel studs to tough the arch wall and wick away any heat but I wanted them pressed against that outer arch wall with that insulation against it.

My inner arch was completely integrated with the side arch-walls so there wouldn't be any weak spots there and I assume yours is similar.

cheers, Dino