Foundation dimension question

[smshinck]

Hi all! I'm juuuust getting started (I downloaded the pompeii instructions two years ago) and am going to be building from scratch an oven. What size foundation do I use for a corner 42" oven? In the instructions, they say 73"x86" but I think that isn't for a corner oven. Thanks for the help and glad to be here!

[UtahBeehiver]

I did a 42" corner build and my pad was 86" long legs, 55 1/2" short legs and 45 degree across front (this allowed for a stone face on the dry stack CMUs) You can see my build by the link by my signature block. But taking a step back, a 42" is a very large oven. It is a large party oven, I do not fire up the oven for a couple pizzas. Smaller ovens, ie 32-36" can easily handle fairly large parties, use less fuel and heat up faster. But if 42" is what you need then great, just be aware the larger is not necessarily better. Look in the Newbie section under "treasure archives" these are some of the more documented builds. Also, the FB are a good baseline but dated, there have been many innovations and improved designs since the eplan was published. The blog is a great source but be cautious of YouTube vids, there are some really bad ones out there.

[smshinck]

I appreciate the advice! Do know of newer plans that are available? Or what exactly is the 'dated' portion of the FB build? Many, many thanks!

[UtahBeehiver]

No, and there are many new innovations since the e-plans came out, too many to list. If you have a certain question you can post to the blog members or root around using the search option. Try and keep all of you post to your main thread. That way everything is centralized for your build.

[Giovanni Rossi]

I know it can be time consuming but it's worth it to do a little research on this site. The cost of a build, both in $$ and your time, can add up quickly so you'll want to get as much info as possible to better manage those costs. There is no "perfect" plan available, but the more recent builds documented here have a lot of good ideas and will show the current thinking of the experienced builders and oven users who frequently contribute. Not "perfect" because there are a lot of variables to address from simple things like site location, oven size and floor height to the more complex like moisture management, insulation thickness, and specifications of all the components. The first questions you need to answer are; how long do I plan to live here, what foods do I want to cook and for how many people do I want to cook (and how often). Pretty much everything else goes from there. Start with the FB plans to get a general idea of the scheme. Then review some of the well-documented builds over the past 3 yrs. Take a lot of notes and then use the search function to clarify your questions and see if there are more current thoughts on particular topics. If you are serious about getting started, create a build thread so all the offered answers and advice is in one location for you to reference. Good Luck!