Newly completed cob oven

[tchism]

We just finished our cob oven and have been drying it out and cooking with it. I think it turned out great.

Here is a small slideshow/video of it's construction.
Our Cob Oven Project - YouTube

Also, some pictures of the first sourdough made in it.

[stonecutter]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

Beautiful loaves!

[cobblerdave]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

Gudday
Enjoyed your construction Utube it was good. I also like the results that oven looks good ... I've tended to see a lot of pretty ugly cob constructions now that I have seen yours.... Beautiful oven
Which brings me to a question. You had a dedicated band of cob mixers .... Is it possible to do that cob mixing in a cement mixer?
Regards dave

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

Nice to see a good looking and successful alternative WFO oven.

[tchism]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

Thank you for the comments everyone!

cobblerdave, Sorry for taking so long to reply! We did use a mixer for the thermal layer of cob and could have used it in the sub floor which was a 25% fire clay to 75% sand mix. For the insulating layer of clay and redwood bark chips we ended up mixing it by hand. It kept wanting to stick to the paddles in the mixer and seemed more of a the it was worth. I think the hand mixing had the best results on that layer.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

Thank you for the comments everyone!

cobblerdave, Sorry for taking so long to reply! We did use a mixer for the thermal layer of cob and could have used it in the sub floor which was a 25% fire clay to 75% sand mix. For the insulating layer of clay and redwood bark chips we ended up mixing it by hand. It kept wanting to stick to the paddles in the mixer and seemed more of a the it was worth. I think the hand mixing had the best results on that layer.

Gudday thanks for the reply
I ask the question because of the cob construction I have seen usually involves a cast of thousand bare foot workers, the use of a cement mixer could bring that down to a one or two workers.
Regards Dave

[tchism]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

We were able to do it with four of us but it took a good part of the day. I think having a smaller group helped us keep the quality up.

[david s]

Re: Newly completed cob oven

Thank you for the comments everyone!

cobblerdave, Sorry for taking so long to reply! We did use a mixer for the thermal layer of cob and could have used it in the sub floor which was a 25% fire clay to 75% sand mix. For the insulating layer of clay and redwood bark chips we ended up mixing it by hand. It kept wanting to stick to the paddles in the mixer and seemed more of a the it was worth. I think the hand mixing had the best results on that layer.

Yes, I found the same with trying to mix vermicrete in a mixer. It just sticks to the sides and paddles and makes cleaning it a bitch. Better to mix by hand. With a denser mix the mixer is ok but with insulating ones, not so.