Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

[waitingtocook]

Welcome to what I imagine will be a major miniseries centered around moving my 47 inch low vault Pompeii style oven.

I hope this is the right place to post this. If not, let me know.

To set the scene, I built my igloo style 47 inch oven a few years back, and love it to bits. However, I am only renting my current house from a friend, and will soon be leaving. I am building a house just outside of Geelong, Victoria, and have decided instead of leaving my oven where it is or dismantling it, to move it the 80 km odd to my new place.

I originally built my oven with transport in mind. It is constructed on a wooden base with a pallet like set up under the hearth, allowing me to get a forklift in and under to lift it.

Now, this all won't be happening for a few months, but I thought I'd start the brainstorming process and invite suggestions or ideas of anyone.

The basic scenario as I imagine it will be as follows:
1.) Construct a new, permanent block stand at the new house.
2.) Hire a forklift a and a truck big enough to support the oven
3.) Lift said oven onto truck with forklift and transport to new house
4.) Use forklift to lift oven off of truck and onto new base
5.) Complete new base/enclosure to secure the old hearth.

Ideally to keep costs down, I'd love a truck that could carry both the oven and the forklift I hire for the day, so I could transport the forklift which I've paid for, and not have to hire another one closer to the new house. This of course raises the issues of getting the forklift onto the truck. Tilt tray or ramps? Any help?

So at this stage, does anyone know of a good forklift hire place? Or a truck hire place other than those in the yellow pages (which are rather pedestrian)? My Dad used to drive big rigs so has the appropriate license to drive the size of truck I'm thinking of. Forklift license may be a different issue, I may have to ask a mate who knows a guy who knows a guy etc etc.

So to sum up, I'm in the planning stages at the moment. Trying to conceive every possible scenario. I know there are others out there who have attempted to transport an oven, either successfully or not. Let me know what you think you did wrong, as much as what you did right.

Photos and more info to come, closer to moving date.

Cheers,

Nicko

[TropicalCoasting]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

How do you get the pallet out from under the dome.

I suggest a ceremonial burning of the pallet as you watch the dome slowly descend and perfectly come to rest on its foundations with ash and flames cascading out in a well synchronised manoeuvre set to music.

* far more theatrical than jacks

[waitingtocook]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Hey Tropical,

I had thought about that. Under the dome is not a 'full' pallet, simply a few cross beams to allow enough space for the fork lift tines.

What I imagine I will do is leave spaces in the new base where when the hearth is lowered onto it, the cross beams slot into, and the exposed hearth becomes supported itself on the new stand. Then I can ceremoniously burn the beams away Then fill the gaps.

Or perhaps I'll knock them free and ceremoniously burn them inside the oven. As far as music goes, Carmina Burana 'O Fortuna' seems fitting, if a little dramatic.

[Lburou]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Do you have pictures, or, are you posting the move on youtube?

[buckeyebreadman]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

I Really wanna see this move..........pics please!!!

[waitingtocook]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

There will be pics, rest assured. A lot of pics. Like I said tho, I'm only at the planning stage at the moment. I am designing the new stand at the moment, and will soon post some sketchup drawings and photos of the current situation so you can all get a better idea what I'm proposing.

[brickie in oz]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

I have a feeling it will all just collapse into a pile of rubble, especially if the oven has been fired before.
The adhesion between the bricks will have been compromised with the heat and as soon as you start to jiggle it........

It would be quicker to knock down and rebuild.
And I want to see a vid of it too....

[TropicalCoasting]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

I would be calling Monster Moves to film it.

[waitingtocook]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Crumble it may Al, only time will tell! But now I'm hooked on the idea of trying to move it, and if it works, hurrah! If it crumbles, then I get to rebuild! Hurrah again!

You have got me thinking about how to make the oven as secure as possible whilst in transit, not so it doesn't fall of the truck, but more so it has no opportunity to flex too much. I was thinking about putting some suspension underneath it on the truck some how. Perhaps some old tyres ?

Nicko

[brickie in oz]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Perhaps some old tires?

Nicko

Some what?

[waitingtocook]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Hi all, sorry for not contuing or updating this thread. I thank all for their input and advice. It sure would have been a a site and an experience to try and move the oven, whether it collapses into a pile of rubble or not.

Due to a death in the family, circumstances have changed and I cannot move it anymore. So I have decided to dismantle it and rebuild in its new location.

If anyone near me does decide to move an oven, I've got my hand raised and ready to volunteer in any way possible to help out.

Thanks,

Nicko

[david s]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

[QUOTE=waitingtocook;125582). Perhaps some old tyres ?

Nicko[/QUOTE]

When transporting oven kits I place an old large diam dirt bike front tyre on the pallet then put the supporting slab on it and everything else sits on top of that. Works really well, haven't had a failure yet. You can get these tyres for nothing from the bike shops as they are just rubbish for them, you may need four.

[jimkramer]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Can you post pics of your oven as it is now? (Assuming you haven't taken it down yet.) I'm curious to see how it's set up so you can move it. I'd like to set mine up like that, in case I want to move it to another location in my yard. We plan to make lots of changes in my yard that will probably occur over a period of years, and it would be nice to be able to move it if need be. I can imagine a pallet under it, but that seems too weak to hold up for a few years. HOwever, seems you were able to pull it off.

[waitingtocook]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

Hey Jim,

Here are some quick pics of my oven as it is now.I'll be sure to send you some more detailed ones once I start to take it apart. Feel free to pm me any questions. I've started to remove some of the exterior tiling from around the landing area, and the palms broke free of their constraints in the wind the lost few weeks and need to be trimmed off, so excuse them.

As you can see, I built the base out of red gum stumps, two legs across the front and four down each side. Each leg is two stumps thick, (two bolted together) The corner legs are 3 stumps, in an L shape. See the first 2 pics.

On top of each leg is another red gum post that runs across the width of the oven. Then on top of that, sits the pallet type arrangement. Not a pallet per se, but it leaves enough room between the pallet part and the horizontal posts to fit the fork lift into. The formwork for the concrete base was then built ontop of and around that. Then I edged it in red gum sleepers to give it rigidity. As you can see. As the majority of the weight f the oven is around the perimeter, it makes sense to have the most support on the edges.

I haven't taken the front sleeper off, but when I do, I'll show you a better pic of how it looks, which will give you a better idea of how the forklift can get access under.

A brick base is ideal, and my new oven will be permanent and on one, but this has served its purpose just fine and does not budge and inch! Plus, I get to burn all the red gum when I build my new oven. Kind of a circle of life type thing.

[Mike D]

Re: Moving My Oven, the miniseries. Part 1 - Introduction

-Sorry to hear about the death in the family. That sucks.
-Is it possible to dismantle brick and re use them? Won't the mortar be hard to remove?

Mike