Corner Build in South East PA

[Grahamstein]

I doubt you'll regret it.

[Chris inPA]

Weep hole question: Is there anything wrong with simply using a long drill bit and boring through the slab to create my weep holes?

[UtahBeehiver]

You can. I drill from the bottom up the drill blow out will be on top and not seen. Also, cut some wire mesh and silicon over the holes to prevent bugs from building homes.

[NCMan]

I recommend you give careful consideration to the height of your cooking surface. Specifically to how much you will need to bend over to tend to your fire and pizzas.
It's most definitely a personal choice but do your back a favor. Make a mock up of your oven floor and your outer arch, then simulate reaching into the 'oven' to build a fire and use a broom handle to place and tend to 'pizzas'.

I'm 6 feet and my oven floor is 48.5 inches from the ground.

Yeah....I'm even more of an armpit guy. To me, it's the best working elevation for an oven. Anywhere from the elbow to the armpit is a good suggestion for the main user.

[Chris inPA]

Lots of rain this week. So, I couldn't start on my cinder block base for the hearth.

I built my I T.
I modified the wet saw to allow bricks to fit under the motor housing.
I started building my brick cutting jig.

But, I still haven't figured out how to resize my photos.

[Grahamstein]

Lots of rain this week. So, I couldn't start on my cinder block base for the hearth.

I built my I T.
I modified the wet saw to allow bricks to fit under the motor housing.
I started building my brick cutting jig.

But, I still haven't figured out how to resize my photos.

HA! You'll get there. From my phone I use and app called "photo and picture resizer". Pick the photo and shrink it by 50%. Works easy enough for me.

[Chris inPA]

Trying to resize and attach. Technically challenged I am.

[Chris inPA]

This is my jig for cutting bricks with the wet saw.

[Chris inPA]

26 inches deep under the footprint of where my block will sit. 2.5 yards of concrete, 2 layers of rebar for reinforcing it.

[Chris inPA]

My slab wet and after I stripped the forms.

[Chris inPA]

Rebar is epoxy set into the slab. Waiting for a dry day to set the blocks.

[Chris inPA]

The horizontal bars in the picture are just tied in to allow me to keep the vertical bars level. Of course they're coming off to allow the blocks to slide over them.

[Chris inPA]

It's a 7" wet saw. So, it won't cut through a brick in 1 stroke. I'll need to flip the brick to cut the remainder. I have it raised high enough to allow it to pass over my jig without cutting into it.

[david s]

The normal procedure is to have short starter bars hooked over, then lay the blocks, then hooking the longer bar onto the starter bars just before filling the cores. This avoids having to thread the blocks over each bar.

It doesn’t make much difference, doing it your way eliminates bending the hooks. But it would be a pain building blocks 3m high that way.

[Chris inPA]

David S, I don;t have a bender. And I'm only going 3 courses high.