Countryboy build in SC, US

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Thanks, Scott.

The Lord knows, I have a hundred other projects that are unfinished!! I don't want this to be one of them... Seriously, I know a lot of guys on here have limited time or take their time. I just don't want to still be drooling for pizza in eight months!

[I looked at all the pics for your mill a day or two ago. Quite a project! Is it functional? I couldn't quite figure that out. Looks designed to be.]


The fire has gotten bigger each day. No cracking that I can see inside the dome, but I have several 'expansion cracks' on the outside. They open and close with temp rise. Hoped I wouldn't, but was not dismayed or surprised.

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

By the light of the moon... well, that and a street lamp!

Finished getting the hardibacker up. If all goes well tomorrow I will make the trip to the big box store for some lath and we'll get it stuccoed tomorrow evening.

Most of the backerboard was pieced together. Fairly straight forward except over the arch... Will be covered with felt, lath and stucco so I was not real concerned about tight precise fit... Mortar covers everything...

I included a couple pics of the roof. It is not screwed down yet, but is fitted. I'll screw it down and add a support bracket for the chimney after I get the vermiculite in.

Figured out the weirdness of the apparent bulge in the steel supports... Seems it is indeed level, only the far end of the right wall drops down a bit. Not sure how I ended up doing that, but it is staying that way. I am confident once the stucco is on and the rocks on the top it will be almost invisible... If not, well just have gatherings around the oven after dark or in heavy fog...

Pics follow.

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

A couple better pics with flash...

Got to go feed the fish. Will check in later.

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Going to get more done on the oven later today, but had time this morning to work on my oven tools for a bit.

Posted info and multiple pics in DIY Oven Tools.

One teaser pic below...

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Accomplished a good bit more after 6:30 p.m. today... Had a lot of help from my trusty 14 y.o. assistant!!

We started by flashing around the arch and upper section where it joined the base so any rain/runoff will be carried away from the oven and masonry work that might be affected by moisture. Also, I caulked some of these connections with a roof cement to also impede any water flow/seepage.

Next we covered the enclosure with tar paper/roofing felt before shaping and attaching lath to the three unstuccoed sides. (Sorry, no pics of back yet, but will get those in the near future...)

Then, as darkness encroached we started madly slinging stucco. My son took the large areas and I did the delicate work around and above the arch. As we were feverishly working we started to hear thunder and see lightning in the distance and by the time we finished there were rain drops starting to fall!! Quickly covered everything up with plastic and washed tools.

Had a couple bags of vermiculite ready to pour into the enclosure, but decided not to do that until we can totally seal the roof to prevent any leaked water from being absorbed...

Still need to doctor on the roof support immediately behind the front wall as well as build a support for the chimney. I want to go one section/2' higher, but need better support to prevent a strong wind from making a mess of the chimney.

Pics follow.

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

And a couple more pics...

Also, with the stucco on, it looks like the weirdness of that strange hump seems to be taken care of. Finish coat and the rock on the top and I think it will all be solved.

One side note from this evening.. While screwing in the lath I slipped with the drill and the bit, while still spinning hit the base of my left thumbnail and went right through!! Nice bloody mess.

My wife asked, "You need to go to the hospital?"

I said, "No! I need to get to work. We just mixed the stucco and I want to get it up!"

Kinda throbbing now, but hey, ya gotta do what ya gotta do!!

Overall, a good progress day!

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Well, a couple siblings heard mom was coming over for the inaugural pizza cooking and next thing you know I have 16 people including me planning to eat here tonight!!

I was up until a little after midnight making dough and getting it into the fridge to proof. Not sure the 12 balls I have is enough, so gonna make a little more in a bit. Worst case we eat them in the next few days!

Up at 6:30 this morning with a LIST of things to do, not the least of which was to clean the patio.

I started with making a little vermicrete for the lowest areas in the enclosure to discourage vermiculite from finding little holes and leaking out. I mixed it fairly dry and dumped/leveled it in side the enclosure before adding five more bags. May need one or two more, but the oven is well insulated.

Next I mixed and applied the finish coat of stucco to the oven and back of the counter wall. Darn the color.. can't quite get them to match... Paint over the stucco will have to be the final solution to get the exact colors I want, but the current colors will suffice while the stucco cures.

Next I cut and screwed in sheet metal flashing to encourage run off from the top of the wall to clear the stucco and to get well out on to the roof. Some trick working around the chimney... Still have to build a brace for it and go one section higher, but it works for now.

Painted the chimney black as some of the flashing and a couple of the parts were galvanised and I wanted it all to match..

Fabricated an inner door with available materials. (Have several loaves of bread proofing, so they will go in the oven after pizza gathering is over...) The door is made of aluminum on the inside and outside with hardibacker in the middle... Fingers crossed to see how it does. The fit is snug, so it should hold a good bit of heat.

**** Anyone have a 22" x 14" piece of 2" thick insulation board I can buy?? That is what I'd like to put between the aluminum pieces... PM me please.

Then, my boys and I did a LOT of cleaning!

Still have a number of details to take care of, but I can take a deep breath and shorten the honey-do list that has grown since starting this project seven weeks ago!! (Yep. Seven weeks since breaking ground on June 16. Feels a LOT longer, but glad to reach this plateau before finishing the patio stuff...)

Bunch of pics coming up...

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

A couple more pics...

While moving blocks around cleaning up I uncovered the handprints my boys and I made the day we poured this slab... A little dirt in them sets them off nicely...

Gonna rest and get ready to build a BIG fire in a couple hours!

Charging the battery in the camera to take a few pics of the gathering and the first pie!

[Tscarborough]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Thumbs up! What I found the first time I made a big batch of pies was that I was trying to hurry up too much. Pump a couple out to feed the immediate curiosity, then just settle in and enjoy it.

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Thumbs up! What I found the first time I made a big batch of pies was that I was trying to hurry up too much. Pump a couple out to feed the immediate curiosity, then just settle in and enjoy it.

Thanks for that info!! I so needed to hear that... Feeling a little stressed right now, but everything is done. So, I will relax and have a good time.

Thanks!

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Too tired to post pics right now, but I promise they'll go up sometime tomorrow.

Great evening with a lot learned. Predictably the first pizza went to the fire gods... LOL! After that we got better at the whole process. All total I think we cooked 17 pies, not counting the burnt offering.

Now we need to learn what a circle is, because every pizza we made this evening was some odd attempt. The only truly recognizable shape was the heart one of the guests made.

I raked all the hot coals out a little while ago. Oven is cooling now and I'll be putting in eight loaves of bread in an hour or so... Then a roast for overnight slow cook.

Getting bold on the first weekend!! But, hey! Why waste the heat? It's only flour and water... well, except for the huge hunk of steer that will slow cook!

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Pics and thoughts on the first pizza gathering and oven use...

TS took the pressure off and that made a huge difference in the whole process... Especially after the first pie wound up in the coals at the back of the oven!!

Overall, we had a great time.

Pics show the prep area in the kitchen, the first pizza IN the oven, first pizza OUT of the oven, then my ugly mug taking the first bite... (Normally a 'ladies first' guy, but after all that hard work building the oven, the first slice was MINE!!!! ) It was worth every struggle and brick laid. Tasted GREAT.

My boys, especially my eldest, enjoyed the process of making the pizzas... We all just need practice with handling the dough. Not many pizzas came out super thin or round... But you can't complain with a 90 second cook time. we easily had that... at about the 45-50 second mark we'd turn the pie. Wait a couple seconds and then it was time to take it out. VERY fast in the oven.

I did have to rake coals onto the hearth to reheat the hearth to crisp the bottom a little better, but over all I could not be happier with the cook time or evenness.

Pics follow in this and the next post.

[countryboy]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

Another pizza pic as well as some dessert pizza. The dessert pizza had apples, butter, honey, cinnamon and a little sugar. It was delicious.

Not sure what it is about the fireplace, but my brothers stood in it while eating... Must run in the family as you will recall two of my sons sat in it to eat the other night.... Weird!

A good pic of the bank of coals... Gonna have to learn how much wood to use to get what temps I want, etc...

Pulled almost all the coals out and let the oven rest for an hour and a half. The boys roasted marshmallows on coat hangers over the pile of coals. I asked to have a hanger with a marshmallow and held it inside the oven... Yielded a perfectly toasted marshmallow in about 60 seconds.

After the oven rested I put eight loaves of bread in. The pic makes them look prettier than they were... Had a nice smokey flavor, but I think the oven was still too hot for the bread as the surface was slightly overdone and I suspect it stifled oven spring resulting in dense loaves...

24 hours later and the oven is still very hot. It does need a little more insulation and I need a better inner door, but those will come in the near future. The other MAJOR item I need is a quality IR thermometer.

Trying to guess the temps is NOT the way to go... I put a roast in LATE last night and this morning at 6 a.m. I went out to fetch it out of the oven... Only got charcoal. Temps were WAY too high for "slow" cooking and I managed to turn a very nice piece of meat into charcoal... Oh well... There is/will be a learning curve!

Thanks again to all you guys out there that have led the way and posted lessons and pics. They helped me immensely to get to this point!

[BackyardPermaculture]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

CB, you look pretty excited about that pizza! Congratulations!
BTW, it really doesn't take long to get used to working with the dough and making round pizzas.
Cheers,
Mick

[fxpose]

Re: Countryboy build in SC, US

My pizzas often resemble Continents of Africa and Australia...