daves build

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

thanks garage!

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: daves build

Hey Dave,,
Looking good... Keep up the nice work

Cheers
Mark

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

attached flue to top today lined the base plate with blanket for the expansion of the steel , hopefully wont crack. Drew the smoke well.
Cheers
Dave

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

Long time coming ! first paper fire!
Even without the flue the chimmney drew the smoke well!
It was a bit hard to guage the temp in there but the top went slightly black!
I hope that wasnt to hot.
Cheers
Dave

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

Hey Dino is this what you meant by increasing smoke chamber before flue?
I will attach the flue to the top of this chimmney extension.
Cheers
Dave

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

After talking to guys at brick refractory, (thanks for all your help) I decided to put a layer of sherlite I think its called , which is a bit more insulation before putting blanket on then the render. It is pourous and breathes. I am really keen on getting the oven to retain its heat for longer periods of time so hence the extra insulation! Also got the boy to earn some of those pizza's he has been ordering at the same time.
Cheers
Dave

[Johnny the oven man]

Re: daves build

The most impotant bit that some builders miss, is not to put the acrylic render on before you have got every bit of water out of the drying out process. YOU CAN NOT PUSH STEAM THROUGH A WATER PROOF BARRIER.

[eprante]

Re: daves build

Dave,
I got a 500w halogen lamp and put it in my dome for the week while I was waiting to start curing. It kept the temp inside at 100f.
Eric

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

Thanks Raff for your detailed reply,
I really dont care about cracks I cant see on the outside and if they dont effect the ovens performance then so be it so I guess I will put blanket on before curing, thanks for the tip to ask if its permable, its those little gems of info that make this forum what it is!
Cheers
Dave

[Raffy]

Re: daves build

I am a bit confused regarding these fires? Do I build a paper fire and then let it go out or do I keep adding paper for a few hours.

I cannot expertly comment on this but what I tried to achieve during these firings is to maintain a constant temp. on each day, gradually increasing the temp every succeeding day by what the Curing Fire PDF prescribes.

Once the temp went down I would fire another piece of newspaper and so on and so forth only because I have copious amounts of time to dedicate to the oven. But, of course, I would let the oven cool down for the next days firing. By making the oven expand and contract gradually through a heating and cooling cycle, you are, in essence, slowly "breaking in" the oven's dome. Not to mention you are also helping the oven expel any moisture trapped in it.

Also guys I am going to add a insulating blanket, so should I attach that before curing or wait untill curing is finished?

I put my insulation blanket on while doing the curing fires. Others would say that it doesn't matter either way but I wanted to keep the heat in to help dry the dome. I haven't seen any proof if this really helps but the oven has not suffered any ill effects with the ceramic blanket on. Others would keep the blanket off to patch up any cracks that may appear during curing fires.

According to the specification sheet of my ceramic blanket, it is vapor permeable, allowing the steam to escape. Yours should be the same but I'd check to be sure.

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

Also guys I am going to add a insulating blanket, so should I attach that before curing or wait untill curing is finished?

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

thanks guys for your advice, yes I am going to build another couple of bricks higher into the transition to flue. I am a bit confused regarding these fires? Do I build a paper fire and then let it go out or do I keep adding paper for a few hours? Hey dino with that crack you are talking about , can you do anything about the cracks when they appear ?ie like re mortaring? Or do they just open and close as the oven does its thing?
cheers
dave

[Raffy]

Re: daves build

Dino has good advice on the chimney/vent. I made sure mine had an adequate void for the air/smoke to be collected then sucked out. Usually when you start fires air flow is not consistent because the air is not hot enough. When the air in the oven and chimney void do get hot enough you will get a consistent draw up the chimney. I occasionally get smoke out the opening during start up so my only regrets are a bigger vent opening and void.

About the drying the dome, I was also thinking you could get those portable butane burning stoves for camping. It costs only 15 USD at ace hardware over here. It could be a good alternative for drying your dome. That way you can control the intensity of the heat.

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: daves build

Waiting a week is the best thing. If you can wait a little longer that's even better. I only asked about your oven size because I think the larger ovens tend to be more problematic in the early curing stages but if you follow the FB plans of 100 deg per day, (in a week or so) it'll be fine.

Your 6" vent is fine but if can add some sort of length ( another inch or 2 of brick) in your transition to the 6" vent, you create a bigger flu box or vent-void to pull the smoke up before it's constricted to the 6" pipe and the whole thing sucks smoke much better.

If I did all over again, I would get a heater. My mistake happened on the 3rd day (300 deg fire) but I misunderstood the guide lines and in a 42" oven, if you only build 1-2 smaller 100-200 deg fires, much of the dome stays cold soooo, when I hit it with 300 deg on day 3, it got a decent crack. But, even that turned out to be no big deal. You've got a smaller oven so when you do your early fires, keep those low temps for a few hours to make sure the entire oven sees those daily temps and you'll be fine. Your almost done! this is exciting. Cheers, Dino

[crwdtb]

Re: daves build

Thanks Dino,
its 36 inches , I was going to go bigger but im happy with the size I went with , it will be more than sufficient for our needs.
I am going with a 6 inch stainless steel flue , 900 mm high which I am told is enough for a 36 inch oven. I was planning on leaving oven for a week or so then starting the curing fires? most of it has already been sitting there for a couple of weeks its only the top 3 rows or so.Will that be sufficient do you think or should I invest in a heater?
Cheers
Dave