Hello from Columbus Ohio

[PIZZABOB1]

Hello everyone,

I will be attempting my first Wood Fired Pizza Oven very soon and would love some suggestions. Im needing some good refractory cement???????

[stonecutter]

Re: Hello from Columbus Ohio

You can mix your own fire mortar for a fraction of the cost of buying refractory mortar, like Heat stop 50 (which is a good product). Most people mix 3:1:1:1 sand:fireclay:lime : portland. Do search, there are a number of threads discussing it.

[caspian]

Re: Hello from Columbus Ohio

Welcome. You are very lucky and have a good resource in your own back yard. Ohio Coal and Lime is located in Columbus and that's where i bought my firebrick. They have the best prices i could find.

as for mortar, I used stone cutters mix to do mine and it works great. You can get everything but the fireclay at Menards. Ohio coal and lime will have the fireclay. it is MUCH cheaper to mix it yourself rather than buying the heat stop.

[hodgey1]

Re: Hello from Columbus Ohio

My suggestions would be :

. Read the Pompeii oven plans twice
. Be patient and not hurry threw any step
.If you think it'll take you a month or two to finish, allow 4 months to a year.
.If you think its only gonna cost a few $Hundy$, think a few thousand but tell your wife a few $Hundy$
.If your main focus is pizza, don't build it to cook multiples unless you'll have someone making them while you cook them cause they only take 2 ish minutes to finish.
.If pizza is your goal learn as much as you can about making good pizza before hand or you will be disappointed in your results after
.Because the temps you'll be cooking at, high moisture content in your dough is a must, mines 67%.
.Use Semolina flour on your peel, its much better that corn meal
.I used premixed mortar and had $250 ish total in it for my 42" and having it at my disposal to use anytime I had time to lay a few bricks was a benefit and time savings.
.Have a good/cheap/free source of hardwood at your disposal.
.Don't entertain guests until you get a few good pies under your belt.
.Enjoy it! Its way cool to see the pies come alive on the floor of the oven

Chris
Link to my album http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/memb...nsylvania.html

[stonecutter]

Re: Hello from Columbus Ohio

.....as for mortar, I used stone cutters mix to do mine and it works great.

I should not be credited with the 3:1:1:1 mix (glad you had success with it though)....that is a common ratio to this forum and masons have been using it or similar for years. My ratio is leaner, which is to say I make mine with a higher sand content, less Portland, more Lime and Fire Clay.

[JAG]

Re: Hello from Columbus Ohio

Pizzabob1

Hello pizzabob1, I live in Pickerington and finished my oven about 6 yrs ago. I also used the 3:1:1:1 mix and it worked great. Give my a shout sometime if you need anything.

John