Hello from Utah

[Bayaba]

I've been working on several projects for my wife, who is from Chile/Argentina.

One of her requests was for an horno de barrow, which she became accustomed to in Argentina. In doing some research, I came across the FB site. I'm impressed with the volumes of information here and would like to thank all of you who have contributed.

My other current project is a parron de uvas (overhead grape arbor), which will be located near the horno and is typically how grapes are grown in Chile (according to my wife). This weekend was spent on the parron and on planning for some materials for the next step in my oven project, the hearth insulation and floor.

I would appreciate a little input on thermocouple usefulness and placement before I begin the hearth, as I suspect it is easiest to place the TCs before the hearth goes into place.

Also, will 5 sheets of FB Board provide enough material for a 42" oven or should I go with 6? I may also want some for insulating the door as well.

Home made Empanadas are being prepared as I write........next time they should be coming out of our new Horno

[Xabia Jim]

Re: Hello from Utah

I've been working on several projects for my wife

yeah...join the club

Welcome

[Bayaba]

Re: Hello from Utah

But I am the pyromaniac.........and the cook, so who do you really think the mass of comcrete and brick out back is really for?

[dbhansen]

Re: Hello from Utah

I would appreciate a little input on thermocouple usefulness and placement before I begin the hearth, as I suspect it is easiest to place the TCs before the hearth goes into place.

Welcome! Thermocouples are a topic of much debate here; try a search and you'll see. Some people just go by feel, others use infrared thermometers only, and others install 4, 6, even 8 or more thermocouples and swear by them. It seems that many people use their thermocouples for a season or two and then go by feel. Bottom line: they're probably a nice (but expensive) gadget to have, especially for beginners, but you can do without them (as people the world over have for centuries).

Here's an interesting chart concerning oven temps: Link I believe the "Mississippi's" column refers to how many seconds your bare hand can stand the heat!

It is a good idea to make a decision before you start the hearth, because if you use them you'll probably want a thermocouple (or several) embedded in the oven floor, so you'll need to leave a straw-hole in the hearth.

I have no personal experience with thermocouples yet, but based on my research I intend to install 4 of them: 1 near the surface of the oven floor in the "pizza position"; 1 for ambient dome temps, located "in the air" near the 10 o'clock or 2 o'clock position relative to the door; 1 between the cladding and bricks higher up in the dome; and 1 between the cladding and the top vermiculite layer. I would suggest checking out some of the readers that are available, because if you want one that will show you multiple temps simultaneously, it'll cost ya'. Or you can get units that read 4, 6, or 8 thermocouples, but only 1 at a time. I plan to get a portable battery-powered unit (like this one) that will read 1 or 2 thermocouples at a time and also has an infrarfed thermometer. As for sources, many people go with Omega, but James was looking into stocking some at the FornoBrave store. You'll probably want K-type thermocouples.
My 2 cents, for what it's worth!
Daren