Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

[cobblerdave]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

G'day Zoe
Whoops nearly missed one important thing. Pic 3 I noticed a gape where the arch meets the side walls . That's the point where you arch can fail. You going to have to beak out the dreaded angle grinder and cut some slithers of brick and mortar them in. Yes it is very important.
Regards dave

[Wildflower]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Hey Dave,
Thanks for the replies...not sure which gap you're talking about, so I've posted a sketch below..

[cobblerdave]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

G'day Zoe
Sorry I thought I'd hit the submit but must have missed it.
From the diagram it seems its well supported but I'd still fill that gape. Sorry just being fussy but it can't hurt.
Ovens looking pretty good, looked back through the pics,the whole thing is coming along real fine. I recon your going to enjoy cooking in the WFO.
Its a great to cook like my grandma did. Recipes with times and heat. Throw them away. I have a infrared thermometer and now-days the guests get more out of playing with it than I do.
Regards dave

[Wildflower]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Well HOORAH! We've got pizzas! Had a wildly successful afternoon (a 5 hour leisurely pizza-making session).
The oven got white-hot and the cracks opened up a little more, but nothing exploded and the results were amazing.
Very rewarding for me and fun for all.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

G'day Zoe
Congrats! Its all worth it when you can get to cook some food
Regards dave

[Wildflower]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Thanks Dave,
It felt very worth it! However, I'm now a little "stucco fatigued" and looking forward to finishing it! Mixing up stucco by the bucket isn't really that much fun, eh.
Anyway, here are some photos of my attempt to reinforce the oven walls - that I had planned from the outset when I put in those vertical bits of metal to hold the scrap grill plates up against with ceramic fibre board sandwiched in between. The measurements worked out except of the eastern wall, I had to put the grill up against the bricks and then squeeze the fibre board down. I figure it'll add a negligible bit of mass to heat. Nice to know now that the oven is as strong as I could make it...especially with those lovely cracks I got!
Then there's a couple of layers of ceramic fibre blanket and chicken wire for lath. I've got to do some more lath around the front of the Jotul, but thought I'd at least get the whole lot covered with one scratch coat so that there weren't any nasty fibres floating around.
It looks so much bigger now! Yikes!
By the way...those four tall bits of metal are supposed to support the roof (one day!)

[Wildflower]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Far out! I have to admit to being on the brink of tears with this stucco caper. Such a frustrating activity...I have no idea if I'm doing it right, just watched a couple of you tube videos and got into it as best as I could. Anyway, here are some shots of the second and third coat. I've robbed the kids' sandpit for the whole of the build's sand requirements, and it's getting a bit low...so might splash out and buy some nice white stucco plaster for the last few coats. Then it's time to think about the roof...still keen on Fornax Hominus' style...any other ideas??

[cobblerdave]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Gday
That's looking great! That pic of the final coat of smooth render should make it all worthwhile.
I agree with Fornax Hominus curved roof would look great on your oven. You have the larger square metal chimney already, so I recon you have this planned for a while.
Did a check on his threads but couldn't find much out on the roof.
Left a message on his page with a link to your oven, hope you get an answer
Again well done that's a good looking oven, and you've done what you set out to do...build a working oven using the stove front.
Regards dave

[fornax hominus]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Far out! I have to admit to being on the brink of tears with this stucco caper. Such a frustrating activity...I have no idea if I'm doing it right, just watched a couple of you tube videos and got into it as best as I could. Anyway, here are some shots of the second and third coat. I've robbed the kids' sandpit for the whole of the build's sand requirements, and it's getting a bit low...so might splash out and buy some nice white stucco plaster for the last few coats. Then it's time to think about the roof...still keen on Fornax Hominus' style...any other ideas??

Far out! I have to admit to being on the brink of tears with this stucco caper. Such a frustrating activity...I have no idea if I'm doing it right, just watched a couple of you tube videos and got into it as best as I could. Anyway, here are some shots of the second and third coat. I've robbed the kids' sandpit for the whole of the build's sand requirements, and it's getting a bit low...so might splash out and buy some nice white stucco plaster for the last few coats. Then it's time to think about the roof...still keen on Fornax Hominus' style...any other ideas??

Hi Zoe ,
I went several years before I got a roof ..as you have found out it does not stop you from having pizzas!
I remember pulling my first pizza out to find a big chunk of mortar embedded in the cheese .. since then no worries .....over 250 fire ups .

I was looking through my photos for roof pix and I don't have many ,, but I will take some today .. it's an unseasonable +10C here [normal for end of Nov....-1C] so I won't freeze.
My wife fabricated the roof structure by cold bending flat steel into an arc . The overhang rafters were made byheating and bending the next piece to the same arc but at 90 degrees , then she welded the seam efectivly making a curved angle iron .
Now I'm assuming that unlike us [ the record snowfall for a single season here is 4m ] you have no snow load to contend with so you can probably get away with just the cold bent rafter . When Lydia turned 50 she took a 4 month blacksmithing class and has been doing it full time ever since [15 years] mostly artistic gates , railings public sculptures ..not oven roofs.
having those embeded steel uprights is going to make things easier .. I had a non-square ..non level granite fieldstone and mortar.. the old build it and figure out how to put a roof on later. i'm going to load the pictures and you can see what I'm talking about .
get back to me with questions .

[Wildflower]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Hello Everyone!
Thanks so much for the encouragement and advice...just what's called for at this point in "the build"!
Also thanks Tim/FornaxHominus for the photos and instructions re: your roof. I so appreciate the time you took to do this, it gives me a good idea of how your roof works. Your wife is a talented woman. I have never done any blacksmithing, but never say never, eh! Yes, you're right, ovens without roofs work perfectly! I'm just afraid of losing momentum and not finishing, so I'm keen to keep some sort of momentum up. I'll have a good look at the way yours is made and design something similar. I will have to get some help with the welding.
Here's a pic after Stucco coat #4...
think I'll do another one or two with white cement and some fine whitish sand and lime, then call it good.
Cheers,
Zoe.

[fornax hominus]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

I despaired about ever getting my roof as well , two winters of redoing the tarps [ I think I went through 3 tarps ] and supports after every big wind or dump of snow.
After all that work you don't want to rush the ''crowning achievement'' I kind of wished I had made it a little bigger in the front as it [ just like cooking at the BBQ ..it seems to rain ..I just didn't want to distract my wife more than I had to from her ''real'' work .[ pix of real work below ] Find a welder friend and invite for pizzas [ WFO pizzas are a powerful persuader ] or take a night school welding class [ that's how Lydia started ] .... MIG welding is fun ! It's the glue gun of welding .
The steel roofing [actually wall sheathing ] is tapped and bolted on but I will give you my tips when you get closer to doing that . great oven and enjoy the pizzas . I bake bread and roast coffee every week in mine .
tim
The Fornax Hominus name I made up [latin for oven building man ] when it seemed like I would never get mine finished !

[Greenman]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

psssssssst..... hey wildflower.... look what I found... hmmmmmmm

Nice scrounging!

[Wildflower]

Re: Experimental Norse-Kiwi Hybrid Oven!

Nice scrounging indeed, Annie! What on EARTH could you be planning to do with it??
My oven is going alright I guess...haven't had too much time to spend on her this last week, but I've put the last coat of stucco on (wow, used nice fine whitish sand, what a treat after sifting the kid's sandpit sand for so long!).
I think I'll finish with a lime wash...anyone here done that?