Time frame for oven completion

[Darrell]

Hello,
I have just completed the base for my cast refractory pizza oven (6" reinforced concrete slab, cement block walls filled with concrete and a 4" reinforced concrete slab on top of that. I have purchased some calsil board and will be purchasing medium-density firebricks. I live in Wyoming where the weather is unpredictable. We can get snow in June and 80 degrees in November.....so if I place the calsil boards am I on a must be done by fall path or can I cover it with plastic if the weather changes on me and finish perhaps in the Spring? I am guessing I can get the calsil board, the firebricks and the cast refractory oven complete before poor weather but will definitely not be able to complete the entire project by then. Thanks!

[RandyJ]

You should be able to cover the oven with plastic and tarps. I know that I had to cover mine during some terrible rain storms. Everything stayed nice and dry. In a perfect world it would be nice to finish before it freezes but as long as you are well sealed it should be fine.

[RandyJ]

As for how long that all depends on how much time you have available to spend on the oven. I kept rough count on hours and wound up at about 300. Roughly half of those were base and dome and the other half were enclosure and prep counter and stone work.

[Firebrick4]

Just cover it with some tarps etc however concrete is a lot harder to curse in cold weather (below 40) and can significantly reduce the strength if it ever freezes. I would skip any concrete/stucco until the weather brightens, anything that’s already done just cover and you should be good.

[MarkJerling]

I started my build in May 2020, most of the time was spent building up the base out of bricks, on weekends, weather and other commitments and weekends only, I finally got to the slab under the oven near the edn of July. Oven floor was done by end of July and in beginning August I started the dome bottom course. In the last week of August I had the door arch done and by middle September I had the dome about halfway built. By last week of September the dome was done and I was onto the chimney gather. From then everything went fast and by end September it was insulation. Dome plastering was quick, so by 4th October that was done and then on the 11th of October we cooked our first pizzas.