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32 Igloo Build, Lakeway TX
I've finally started! And the concrete is set now, no going back without a sledge hammer at least!
I'm sticking essentially with my original square plan as described in the Outdoor Kitchen Design subforum, with all the components (pizza oven, propane fire pit, propane grill) inside the square left by removal of an old hot-tub.
Last weekend I worked on 'squaring' the slab by filling in mortar mix on top of the paving stones surrounding the slab itself -- no more than ~3" on any one side, but the original slab was far from square somehow ;-). I don't forsee any structural problems from this, all the cinder blocks will be 70% on the slab at least and at least one of the hearth walls will essentially be right down the center of the slab.
The grille (26" RCS Junior) arrived about 2 days after ordering (bbqguys) and my aunt is lending me her HarborFreight cement mixer, so it was time to start in earnest!
Here's the SketchUp design model:
Here's me laying the last CMU. The camera-boy is on top of the large stone wall behind the grill. I'm essentially standing in the middle of the countertop that will be across the back (note grill insert hole), the pizza oven hearth will be on the other side of my big head.
Got rebar and concrete poured down every other CMU hole:
Hopefully from these pics you can see a bit more of the area I'm working with. I obviously wanted to use the old slab, a primary design driver. Any part of the slab I didnt cover in pizza oven/kitchen would be at best an ugly floor. At best. And while it's true that people generally sit around a firepit, I think 3 or four people can still do that, and be facing and talking to the giller or the pizza chef. If we have more company than that, there's always the chiminea.
Anyway, hopefully I will have the support wood frame for the hearth cut over the next couple weeks (away next weekend) and then pour the hearth slab around May 4th. Then vermiculite concrete layer on the 5th and then countertops a week or two after that. Then I'll have to get firebrick and start doming :-).
My biggest concern is around concrete -- this is my first concrete project and Texas Summer is approaching. Last weekend was very pleasant, but still dry (I liberally wet down the CMUs after pouring the concrete). As it gets hotter I'm not sure I'll be treating the cement right.
I generally know I shouldn't mix the cement too wet or it loses strength, but is it possible to wet it too much after pouring? E.g. if I liberally water it with the hose rather than misting every 6 hours or so, would that be bad? Or do i just need to wet it if it looks dry (and minimize that by covering in plastic)?
My hearth will be ~4" thick with 1/2" rebar on 12" centers, with ~6" vermiculite concrete on top of that.
Ok, that's enough brain dump for now, hopefully I provided all the right info ;-). Sorry for being long-winded, it's a habit.
I'm sticking essentially with my original square plan as described in the Outdoor Kitchen Design subforum, with all the components (pizza oven, propane fire pit, propane grill) inside the square left by removal of an old hot-tub.
Last weekend I worked on 'squaring' the slab by filling in mortar mix on top of the paving stones surrounding the slab itself -- no more than ~3" on any one side, but the original slab was far from square somehow ;-). I don't forsee any structural problems from this, all the cinder blocks will be 70% on the slab at least and at least one of the hearth walls will essentially be right down the center of the slab.
The grille (26" RCS Junior) arrived about 2 days after ordering (bbqguys) and my aunt is lending me her HarborFreight cement mixer, so it was time to start in earnest!
Here's the SketchUp design model:
Here's me laying the last CMU. The camera-boy is on top of the large stone wall behind the grill. I'm essentially standing in the middle of the countertop that will be across the back (note grill insert hole), the pizza oven hearth will be on the other side of my big head.
Got rebar and concrete poured down every other CMU hole:
Hopefully from these pics you can see a bit more of the area I'm working with. I obviously wanted to use the old slab, a primary design driver. Any part of the slab I didnt cover in pizza oven/kitchen would be at best an ugly floor. At best. And while it's true that people generally sit around a firepit, I think 3 or four people can still do that, and be facing and talking to the giller or the pizza chef. If we have more company than that, there's always the chiminea.
Anyway, hopefully I will have the support wood frame for the hearth cut over the next couple weeks (away next weekend) and then pour the hearth slab around May 4th. Then vermiculite concrete layer on the 5th and then countertops a week or two after that. Then I'll have to get firebrick and start doming :-).
My biggest concern is around concrete -- this is my first concrete project and Texas Summer is approaching. Last weekend was very pleasant, but still dry (I liberally wet down the CMUs after pouring the concrete). As it gets hotter I'm not sure I'll be treating the cement right.
I generally know I shouldn't mix the cement too wet or it loses strength, but is it possible to wet it too much after pouring? E.g. if I liberally water it with the hose rather than misting every 6 hours or so, would that be bad? Or do i just need to wet it if it looks dry (and minimize that by covering in plastic)?
My hearth will be ~4" thick with 1/2" rebar on 12" centers, with ~6" vermiculite concrete on top of that.
Ok, that's enough brain dump for now, hopefully I provided all the right info ;-). Sorry for being long-winded, it's a habit.
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