insulate before curing

[lwood]

Re: insulate before curing

I feel all dejected being called an engineer as I actually work for a living.

Stop sobbing brickie, your getting the keyboard wet. Your just bored, now that you finished your second oven. You need another project. That's why I drag mine out for a year, so it will I don't get bored. My wife doesn't like it, but she likes the Pizza.

[brickie in oz]

Re: insulate before curing

I feel all dejected being called an engineer as I actually work for a living.

[david s]

Re: insulate before curing

Lwood, I agree, and you need to give the vermiculite/perlite layer longer to dry because it takes up so much water. I've cracked a couple of outer shells from not letting it dry enough first. Of course if you are doing an enclosure you don't have this problem.

[lwood]

Re: insulate before curing

Hi Faith, no doubt Engineers are the worst customers I am faced with a similar situation with the stucco layer. My oven has been in-use for about a year now without a stucco layer. I haven't been able to get more expanded perlite until now. I am getting ready to add another 2 to 3" of perlcrete to the outside of my dome. The dome already has 3 to 4" of un-expanded perlite as insulation. It wasn't enough...duh. Actually it's not so bad, the external temperature of the dome at full saturation is about 150F. So I'm adding 3" of expanded perlite and then stucco.

So that gets me to the same point as this thread. The question, as I see it, is when to apply the stucco. How much curing is enough to apply the stucco layer, without cracking. I think, the more the better. Don't stucco until the insulation is completely dry. Assuming you keep the exterior dry. If you must stucco asap then 10 firings should be plenty to drive all the water out. The pre-stucco stage is a good stopping point, if you can keep the exterior dry. Once the dome is dry, the stucco can be put on at any time.

[Faith In Virginia]

Re: insulate before curing

I do understand. When customers are involved I learned long ago shortcuts can come back to haunt you.

What will you tell the customer if there are issues with oven temp or steaming cracks from the stucco? Really, I did build you a quality oven?

I checked out your project and you do beautiful work.

[waynespizzaworld]

Re: insulate before curing

To answer your question "Faith in Virgina" as to why not cure the oven first is I have a customer that is wanting to cook pizza. The project has taken a bit longer than first thought. So as I said, if I put on the stucco right after the insulation and the first coat of stucco needs to cure for one week before I can put on the final coat then if I was to cure the oven during the week of stucco cure I would be able to let my customer start cooking one week earlier.

I am seeing from responses here that I would be best to cure first then stucco. I kind of thought so but wanted to check. Thanks everyone .............wayne

[Faith In Virginia]

Re: insulate before curing

That's pretty harsh on Engineers, I'm pretty sure we have lots of Engineers on the forum besides myself.

LOL... I have a family full of engineers. It's not to be harsh it just takes me twice as long because I have to explain everything...in small words...and draw lots of pictures. So it takes twice as long.

SO my thinking is

If you insulate then you'll want to protect your insulation from outside moisture, bugs, birds and little kids that want to play. so you insulate then stucco. A vapor barrier works both ways no moisture in and none out. So if you try and cure the oven after insulation and stucco you will trap moisture in the insulation layer. That just prolongs the process

So why not cure the oven first?

[dmun]

Re: insulate before curing

But I guess my main question is will it be ok to cure the oven just after I put on the stucco. My concern with all the water coming out of the pour of the brick it may effect the stucco.

If, and this is a big if, the stucco seals against water coming in, it will also seal against water getting out. This may make your drying-out process a long, drawn out one.

[waynespizzaworld]

Re: insulate before curing

Thinking about things I don't think it matters all that much if the insulation is on or not. I will put on the insulation first before curing.

But I guess my main question is will it be ok to cure the oven just after I put on the stucco. My concern with all the water coming out of the pour of the brick it may effect the stucco.

It will let me get cooking one week sooner if I can start the curing process at the same time as laying the stucco down.

I hope this is an OK approach.

Thanks for this .................Wayne

[lwood]

Re: insulate before curing

That's pretty harsh on Engineers, I'm pretty sure we have lots of Engineers on the forum besides myself.

[Faith In Virginia]

Re: insulate before curing

I did, Built the oven let it set for about 2 weeks did some curing fires then put on the insulation.

Engineers if an engineer asks me to do work for them I charge them double. They always know more about your job then you do.

[Neil2]

Re: insulate before curing

As Thomas Watson, founder of IBM once said:

"If I have two engineers who agree on absolutely everything, then I can get rid of one of them."

[brickie in oz]

Re: insulate before curing

Listen to Davids he is the expert in the field, not me.
Ill crawl back into my box now.

[david s]

Re: insulate before curing

Actually the outer shell of an igloo oven is more akin to ferro cement construction. Try any of those links and they all recommend keeping the work moist.

[brickie in oz]

Re: insulate before curing

Fast drying render is prone to cracking.This can be alleviated by keeping it moist. It takes 28 days to get to full strength. Check this link for advice from the experts.
Cement Render | Texture Coatings | Solid Plastering

Unless you have forgotten, I am one of them experts that work day in day out with cement based products.

Mortar cracks when high clay content sand is used, its the clay that shrinks to form the cracks.

You really are scraping the google barrel to come up with that link.
What makes you think they are the experts?