What to do about a wet floor?

[MarkJerling]

I really enjoyed building my pizza oven. We have made some excellent pizzas and had lots of fun with friends around the oven. We live in rainy Pennsylvania and I have a problem with moisture. I laid the FB insulation on the concrete slab and I have the counter space around the oven. I think the FB board absorbs any rain water that migrates down to the concrete slab. The result is I can't get the floor hot with out firing the oven for a day or more to get it dried out. Do I need to build a roof over the over the entire structure to keep it dry? Is it possible to elevate the floor to help it stay dry?

As we live in rainy New Zealand (Our town, 1,000mm rain a year / 39" rain a year, and we're in a dry part of the country!) I have found the only solution is to cover the oven with a pair of tarps between firings.
A roof would be good, but not practical. I may do a pergola with a pull-out awning or a louvre awning.

[david s]

Drill some holes through the concrete supporting slab until they break through to the insulation. This will allow a path for moisture to escape when it is driven away by the heat.

[NCMan]

It's tough to tell from the photos just where the water is getting in, but I'd start w/the outer shell and do what you can to seal it up, including at the base of the oven, etc. It really should be dry when you do any caulking, etc,, so covering it up for awhile may be a good idea. Absent those things, it may still eventually need a roof, but not necessarily. Sometimes it's just tough to go back after the fact and attempt to seal things up, but I'd sure do all I could. You may want to also look into a door to slide into the entrance, sort of a storm door, to help. Best of luck to you and that's a fine looking oven.

[JoeT62]

I have always found that if the chimney is cold it will "push back" the smoke (higher density air in the chimney) so that it spills out the front. On particularly cold days, I started by making a small fire just under the flue to heat it up, then push it back once you get the proper flow going.

Regarding the wet floor, I don't think you can raise it at this point without a major renovation. A roof would be the best solution. Barring that, make sure your stucco and granite surround is sealed and caulk any joints that might be letting water in. Finally, a good old fashioned tarp when the weather looks like rain is coming might help.

[Gulf]

Excess smoke can also be caused by a wet oven and/or wet wood. What size oven do you have and what is the inside diameter of the chimney/flue?

Is the corner fence on the property line or is there a setback for your local building code?

[Windnut]

Building a roof may be the best solution but it is a major project. The photo is a beautiful example. That oven is in Sorrento. They don't need to build for a snow load. I think the chimney on mine is not large enough. Excessive smoke when starting the fire has been a problem for me. I get a lot of smoke coming out the door until it gets really hot.

[Gulf]

Hi Windnut,

Welcome to the forum. Raising the floor would be difficult and raising the dome walls would be next to impossible. Doing one without the other would not help much IMO. There are some things that you can do to lower the level of the water in the "swimming pool". But, first and foremost, I like your idea of building a roof over the oven and side wings.

[Windnut]

I really enjoyed building my pizza oven. We have made some excellent pizzas and had lots of fun with friends around the oven. We live in rainy Pennsylvania and I have a problem with moisture. I laid the FB insulation on the concrete slab and I have the counter space around the oven. I think the FB board absorbs any rain water that migrates down to the concrete slab. The result is I can't get the floor hot with out firing the oven for a day or more to get it dried out. Do I need to build a roof over the over the entire structure to keep it dry? Is it possible to elevate the floor to help it stay dry?