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I apologize that some of these questions come up with minor variations over and over, but please realize that for those of us who are complete novices in construction, confidence in the designs and specifications is shaky at best.
The Pompeii directions prescribe a 5.5" #4 rebar and mesh reinforced foundation.
I meticulously calculated the actual pressure that the oven is going to impart on the foundation wall, factoring in the weight of all materials involved and dividing by the footprint of the wall against the foundation, as subtracted by the voids in the empty cores, and I got a whopping 6 lbs / in^2. That's right. The full weight from the bottom of the walls to the top of the chimney should be in the 4000-6000 lb range for a stucco design and the footprint (for my exact wall design) is 996 in^2, and that is with two openings in the wall. Thus, about 6000 / 1000 = 6 lbs / in^2, and that's for 6000 lbs, the heavier end of my weight estimate. Given that the original Pompeii directions have only one opening, there is more area against the ground in such a design and thus even lower overall pressure, maybe as low as 3 lbs / in^2 for a lighter oven on a complete wall.
This makes me wonder why I need 5.5" of #4 rebar and mesh concrete. Please forgive my naivete in these matters. What am I missing here? My favorite contractor (I realize many folks on this forum are weary of contractors because they may not understand the demands of a brick oven, but be that as it may) suggested 4" of meshed concrete, job done.
I'm thinking about the guy who decides to take this thing apart some day, I don't want to make that eventual job more difficult than necessary...but without sacrificing the stability of the oven. I really don't want to sell out the oven's stability, but I don't want to do more than is necessary and make the job down the road a hundred times harder.
How about 4" with mesh? Would I be a naive fool asking for my oven to fall over in a pile of rubble if I went that route?
Thanks.
The Pompeii directions prescribe a 5.5" #4 rebar and mesh reinforced foundation.
I meticulously calculated the actual pressure that the oven is going to impart on the foundation wall, factoring in the weight of all materials involved and dividing by the footprint of the wall against the foundation, as subtracted by the voids in the empty cores, and I got a whopping 6 lbs / in^2. That's right. The full weight from the bottom of the walls to the top of the chimney should be in the 4000-6000 lb range for a stucco design and the footprint (for my exact wall design) is 996 in^2, and that is with two openings in the wall. Thus, about 6000 / 1000 = 6 lbs / in^2, and that's for 6000 lbs, the heavier end of my weight estimate. Given that the original Pompeii directions have only one opening, there is more area against the ground in such a design and thus even lower overall pressure, maybe as low as 3 lbs / in^2 for a lighter oven on a complete wall.
This makes me wonder why I need 5.5" of #4 rebar and mesh concrete. Please forgive my naivete in these matters. What am I missing here? My favorite contractor (I realize many folks on this forum are weary of contractors because they may not understand the demands of a brick oven, but be that as it may) suggested 4" of meshed concrete, job done.
I'm thinking about the guy who decides to take this thing apart some day, I don't want to make that eventual job more difficult than necessary...but without sacrificing the stability of the oven. I really don't want to sell out the oven's stability, but I don't want to do more than is necessary and make the job down the road a hundred times harder.
How about 4" with mesh? Would I be a naive fool asking for my oven to fall over in a pile of rubble if I went that route?
Thanks.
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