Installation Time

[Van Slyke]

Wow I am finally getting close. I have been lurking this forum for years and have received many great ideas. The info on this forum is unbelievable. I have seen many problems solved in minutes. Many thanks to thoughts that help.
Now my question is: how long should I allow to install a prefab wood oven with the help of a professional. This oven will have a smooth stucco dome finish on top of a very basic block base that already exists.
Thanks for the info.

[SableSprings]

Re: Installation Time

Last year I went up to Canada to put in a Casa2g90 with some friends. There were three of us for the base construction and two of us to set the dome modules up. Here's a brief summary of what we accomplished:

22 June: cleared and dug base area for slab & base foundation + set forms (about 6 hrs of three folks working)
23 June: finished putting in rebar and mixed/poured 30 bags of concrete (another 6 hrs for three folks and a cement mixer)
24 June: set cement blocks on slab, formed up for top slab and tied in rebar (4 hours with three folks)
25 June: mixed 18 bags of concrete and filled in top slab piece (4 hrs, still three guys)
26 June: removed forms, laid chicken wire under insulation board, sand set cooking sections, and placed three dome modules into position. Mixed about 30# of the 50# Forno Bravo refractory mortar (wow, that is really a pleasure to work with!) and covered the dome joints as instructed. Installed chimney sections. (7 hours - just two of us now)
27 June: laid insulation blankets over dome. Pulled chicken wire up and secured it over insulation. Mixed up and applied 3.5 bags of water resistant mortar (used as a stucco base) over the chicken wire...3/4" to 1" thick. Scratched the outer coat to help in final stucco coating layer to be done next week (4 hrs - just the two of us). That night we had a tiny initial warming fire started with a bit of fine scotch...a great tradition that I highly recommend!

My buddy went back up a week later and applied an outer stucco coat. He went through the 5-6 day gradual fire curing at that time. We went up with a larger group at the end of July and used the oven extensively. Great pizza, bread, ribs, & chicken...Thanks to Forno Bravo for making these terrific modular ovens with such well thought out kits.

I hope this helps answer your question of "how long does it take to build?" even though we had to start with dirt and you've got your block base ready to go. The photos hopefully will help give you a little scope for the final construction stages of "Big O" on Hihium Lake, B.C. Let me know if you'd like to see more of the modular assembly process and I'll post some of the photos I've got of the oven in the "pre-insulation" stages.

[Van Slyke]

Re: Installation Time

Wow Now thats what I am talking about. You ask and you get the answer. Thanks. Now my problem is we can not burn wood in our area. Can I install a gas burner to heat the oven?

[Capt]

Re: Installation Time

Wow Now thats what I am talking about. You ask and you get the answer. Thanks. Now my problem is we can not burn wood in our area. Can I install a gas burner to heat the oven?

Van, why can you not burn wood in your area? There is a big difference between burning wood for recreation (bonfires) and burning wood to cook food and feed your family.

[SableSprings]

Re: Installation Time

I know there are commercial pizza ovens that use gas, but I also know that there are a lot of different requirements and special installation/equipment involved in running them. DO NOT just think you can install a gas burner yourself in an oven designed to be wood fired. Hopefully someone in the forum who knows more about gas masonry ovens will be able to give you some more detailed answers and options.

I'm actually kind of shocked that you can't use a WFO in your area...where did you get that mandate? I was pretty sure we had some forum members that were building and using wood fired systems around you. Of course you have to follow the local rules, but again it seems that you may simply need to talk to the right people for the correct building/use info. You should try contacting Forno Bravo installation/sales people since they probably know if they can or can't sell their ovens for use in your area and what if any special regulations will apply in your situation.

I posted a link below to a thread you might find interesting to read about why you should not use gas in your oven...

http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/f16/...ht=fired+ovens

[moderator]

Re: Installation Time

Hello Van

I'm sorry for the ban on the wood burning. Forno Bravo does not recommend installing a gas burner in your residential oven. There are just to many things that could go wrong.

Mike.. thank you for posting the link for Van to read. :-)

Amber

[Van Slyke]

Re: Installation Time

Thanks guys. The gas burner does sound like a bomb that could do some damage. The HOA says no wood burning fire pits. I am considering the oven a BBQ from now on. Problem solved.

[deejayoh]

Re: Installation Time

I hope this helps answer your question of "how long does it take to build?" even though we had to start with dirt and you've got your block base ready to go. The photos hopefully will help give you a little scope for the final construction stages of "Big O" on Hihium Lake, B.C. Let me know if you'd like to see more of the modular assembly process and I'll post some of the photos I've got of the oven in the "pre-insulation" stages.

Mike -
My Dad has gone up to the Hi Hium fishing resort for 25 years or so and I have joined him on many occasions. What a beautiful spot. Now that I know there's a WFO oven on the shore, I may have to tie up at your dock next time I am there!

Dennis

[brickie in oz]

Re: Installation Time

laid chicken wire under insulation

Why?

[SableSprings]

Re: Installation Time

Hi Brickie! We laid a couple of long sections of chicken wire on top of the slab, laid the insulation board down on top of it, and then assembled the modular oven. After we put the module sections in place and mortared the joints, we laid the sheets of insulation over the oven. With the insulation blankets on, we simply pulled the chicken wire up and over, secured it & we were ready to mortar. I guess the bottom line is that I thought it would be much quicker/easier to hold the insulation in place...and it did work well for us. Like wrapping a package up.

[david s]

Re: Installation Time

I do much the same thing, but use thin wire rather than the chicken wire, to anchor the the stuff in place like a spiders web. I find the chicken wire does not conform to a compound curve easily.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Installation Time

Gudday Davids
Beg to differ but...i found the easy way to get the chicken wire to conform to shape was to grab some of the wires in the loose section with the pliers and twist sideways to take up the slack.

Regards Dave