81 Inch First Build (and first post)

[windage]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

tile on wall and oven hot

[lwalper]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

And I thought my oven was hungry?? Wow that pizza looks great! That's our plans for tomorrow, so have the fire lit now. If the dough was ready we could have pizza tonight - 745? on the hearth, 780? in the dome after 4 hours of fire with "junk" wood (a alanthus snag fell in the yard a few days ago so thought this would be a good way to do some yard cleanup). The hearth 5 inches deep is 535?. I'll let this fire burn down to saturate the dome and see what we have in there tomorrow.

[windage]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

So far the oven has exeeded my expectations...after a week of slow fire, then 2 weeks rest, I fired for another week, building more fire each day till I hit 1,050f, then let off for a couple hours till it "cooled" to 850 to 900f and got the pizza in under 2 minute thing.
I stop feeding it bits of dry wood at around 8 pm and oven coasts from 800 down to 500 by next morning (with no door yet). To bring it back up takes a whole bushel basket of small, dry hardwoods feed over 3 hours. I don't have my various thermocouples hooked up, so I don't know how deep the heat is going just yet. I am using less than a pickup truck load of hardwood per week and around 2 trash cans full per day of small hardwood pieces from a local cabinet factory.
Lots of cracks everywhere, but none threatening. Outside the dome temp seems to be ambient, it's hot here, but dome around 90-95f. Have a few hot spots around the "girdle" which was poured and therefore more dense/less air entrapment and is not as good an insulator as the top portion of the dome, which was troweled on "fluffier".
43 bags of perlite, 10 bags of CA cement, 12 bags of regular portland cement, 1 bag lime, 3 bags fireclay, over 1,000 firebricks and uncounted hours of labor...just to get some good pizza! more pix coming.

[kebwi]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

I stand corrected. I see the relevant photos now. Big enough *and* sufficient heat retention to roast a buffalo! Probably takes a quarter-cord to cold-start though.

[Mitchamus]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

This thing is huge, isn't it going to take years for it to get to pizza temp?

yes at first - but it's going to be used every day - so it will still be hot from the day before - and just need a top up each day.

with that amount of mass - I'm guessing it would take about a week to cool down to room temp.

[BrickStoneOven]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

Am I wrong?

No. That is why I was asking because he was using the full length of the brick to make the dome.

[kebwi]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

It might take a bigger fire, but my guess would be that the saturation time is a function of the wall thickness.

Am I wrong?

[BrickStoneOven]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

This thing is huge, isn't it going to take years for it to get to pizza temp?

[PizzaPolice]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

Congratulations! You all have worked so hard on this project. Have fun with it.
BTW... Without me delving into the past posts, did you install a powered vent fan on your chimney? Otherwise, that window shaker is gonna earn its keep.

[turkey]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

mmmmmm thats making me salivate

the mosaic is very nice as well, do you have any final shots of your home made light setup? that is very interesting design you detailed.

congrats

[drogers]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

A great looking pizza. The oven is looking nice, with all of the work that has been done on the front of it. I like your tool for handling wood.

[windage]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

after a 5 day slow firing, I got up some heat and made PIZZA!


numbero uno pie


lasted 2 minutes..

[mustbecrazy]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

Windage....a very impressive feat. I hope your opening of your new pizza place is a great success. Gene

[drogers]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

More chimney height would improve the draw.

[windage]

Re: 81 Inch First Build (and first post)

Oh Happy Day...first small firing late Sunday PM, fired all day Monday and again this morning, Tuesday.
Dealing with small amounts of smoke spilling around outer arch when fire down to smoldering (making lots of smoke) found chimney cleanout door not fitted well, taped it shut..helped some. Also hung a "curtain" of cardboard on front arch, extending it down 3 inches...helped lots.
I may try inserting some sheet metal, on each side, between the 2 arches, choking the opening narrower, towards the center. My thoughts are, that I may have diluted the suction of the flue by flaring out too wide at the mouth.
Otherwise, so far, so good. I don't have the thermocouples hooked up, so no temps to report....too many other items to attend to and we prepare to open next week.
Roger