Ben and Mia's Oven

[SpringJim]

refresher....

Dave, I'm a Grandpa with twin grandchildren! That's my wife with Mia, the firstborn babe....Benjamin was a half hour later!

The firebricks for the BenjaMia Oven came from Western University in Kalamazoo....they just tore down their old ceramics/pottery school and I was able to pick up whatever I wanted...so a full pick up truckload! I like finding free and recycled stuff (or cheap stuff like your firewood) and have been finding cinderblocks, used rebar, a steel plate for under the oven, lots of various lumber and even a set of concrete forms (2x6) which had previously been roofing trusses so this is at least their third use...fourth for the cures?

Dmum suggested keeping the building and putting the oven in the back through the back wall.....so we decided to build a bakehouse using the old building...should be interesting building it inside. I've dubbed it the BenjaMia Bakehouse Project.

My son in law Gary suggested we move the building and my wife suggested a slab. (It's easy ) So we have the forms ready to pour this week and the building will be moved back into the corner on an angle.

The building has been homes to racoons, squirrels, etc. so we stripped it inside and out. It will be slid over to the new slab at the end of this week. It's on pvc pipe rollers now just to move it out of the way for the new slab.

Yup Frances, the second oven is going to be much more fun than the first. The project grew into a bakehouse but in the end I think it's going to be fun teaching the twins how to bake.

XJ

[Frances]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

Jim, I hope you know how lucky you are, getting to build another oven....
I lie awake nights just dreaming of a chance like that.

Those bricks look good!

(And there's another one for "things that have changed since I built my oven": I get really excited about piles of old bricks...)

[asudavew]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

And ... (I probably missed it) but where did you score all of those bricks?

[asudavew]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

So are you going to build the oven in that building?

Congrats on the birthdays! First children?

[SpringJim]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

Inventoried the firebricks...enough for the dome and insulation.

[SpringJim]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

Here's the building stripped of it's siding....and Mia doing an inspection.

[SpringJim]

First Official Purchase...

Benjamin and Mia are one year old today!

To celebrate, I made my first official purchase for the BenjaMia Bakehouse project...

....three tons of crushed concrete (22a mixture) for $18 including tip!

but I'll keep scrounging, collecting, recycling, reusing

[SpringJim]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

Well, after the topsoil and all the roots and other garbage (plastic, cobbles, leaves, etc.) we dug down enough that we need some fill so I think it's crushed concrete for a base to bring the slab up to/above grade. I know the sand base would work but didn't like it at/below grade for the BenjaMia Bakehouse building....

[dmun]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

This is in Northern Michigan, right? If I remember correctly, there is almost nothing except sand there, as deep as you can dig. You shouldn't have any problem with drainage.

[SpringJim]

Slab

I talked to a local builder today and they do garage floors without any mesh, just pour the slab on the local sand...so I'm going to go simple.

Slab on native sand. I am going to spend the extra $6 per yard of concrete to to to a 6 sack mix over the 5 sack....for some additional strength!

Prepping the site and setting forms now.

[Ed_]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

Jim,

From what I've seen here in Iowa, new brick starts at about $0.35 each and goes up from there. If the appearance is acceptable, I'd snap them up at a quarter each!

Ed

[SpringJim]

The Project Grows

Stripped the aluminium siding off the shed and decided to take up Dmum's idea of turning it into a bakehouse with the oven half way out the back wall!

Cleaned out the shed and found all sorts of materials for use with the Benjamia Oven build...lumber, plywood, tarps, even 10 new can lights and enough floor tile for the Benjamia Bakehouse!

...but my SIL Gary wants to move the building back into the corner and my wife wants a concrete slab.....oh my achin' back!

Jim

[SpringJim]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

I can get some new common brick for the outside enclosure for 25 cents a brick....is that a pretty good price? They are leftovers from a house build.

[SpringJim]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

that drawing in Wikipedia is spot on...I climbed up inside the monster!

Is Anagama japanese for groundhog

[jbaker]

Re: Ben and Mia's Oven

Here's some other links concerning a "hillside" kiln for pottery

Definition of an Anagama:
Anagama kiln - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Take a look at Moby Dick here. Incredible oven build.
Anagama: Building 'Moby Dick'