36" in Chapin, SC

[hubert_s]

Hi,

I have started construction on a 36" Pompeii corner oven. The base is in place and I am waiting for the slab to cure.

Just wanted to say thanks to everybody who has posted here for all the great information provided.

Hubert.

[hubert_s]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

I have made some progress on the oven. I installed 4" of Insblock 19 and built a template for the dome out of OSB from a shipping crate. I also built an indispensable tool, cutting jig and an arch template. I started setting the floor brick and hope to finish that and the first course of bricks tomorrow.

[stonecutter]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Welcome... There are few of us from SC on here. Where did you get your board and firebrick?

[hubert_s]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Hi Stonecutter. I have read your thread and am quite impressed with your build. I bought firebrick from Carolina Ceramics (80 cents a brick). It is a wire cut brick and not very uniform, nominally 4"x8"x2.25". They do not have any specs as far as alumina content but say it is good to 2100 F. Boral Bricks has the same type of brick at $1.10. I purchased the Insblock from Reintjes Services in Columbia and when I went to pick it up, I saw they had a pressed fire brick ($2.86 a brick!!!). The bricks are very uniform and have 40% alumina, and they are 4.5"x9"x2.5". I purchased enough bricks for the floor and plan to use the other brick for the dome.

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Hubert,

How do the faces (side that would face the inside of the dome look? At 80 cents each, if the 4"X2.25" face are relatively clean then you might want to consider using them. The higher alumina bricks are harder to cut as well. Mortar can make up for irregularities of the bricks in the faces are fairly uniform and that is all you see anyway in a dome. I would think you want more uniform floor brick than dome brick.

[hubert_s]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Russel,

The sides of the bricks are ok. Some have surface cracks, but I did some drop testing and could not break them. When I cut the bricks, the cracks are not very deep at all. The two sides of the bricks look different, one is smooth with little to no exposed aggregate, the other shows specks. Oddly, the cheap brick is harder to cut than the high alumina brick. I had planned to use the wire cut brick for the floor as well and started dressing the uneven edges, but then I found the other brick and thought I could save myself some work...

[stonecutter]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Hi Stonecutter. I have read your thread and am quite impressed with your build. I bought firebrick from Carolina Ceramics (80 cents a brick). It is a wire cut brick and not very uniform, nominally 4"x8"x2.25". They do not have any specs as far as alumina content but say it is good to 2100 F. Boral Bricks has the same type of brick at $1.10. I purchased the Insblock from Reintjes Services in Columbia and when I went to pick it up, I saw they had a pressed fire brick ($2.86 a brick!!!). The bricks are very uniform and have 40% alumina, and they are 4.5"x9"x2.5". I purchased enough bricks for the floor and plan to use the other brick for the dome.

I used the ones made by CC but got them at a small stone and landscape supply place close to me for $1 each. They are low duty brick...yes, they are quite rough. But I faced the cuts to the outside, and I actually wet sanded the floor with 100 grit to close up the faces a bit. You don't need to do that, I have the equipment so I figured why not. Rougher brick won't effect anything to a measurable degree, it's just that they may create lippage...easy enough to feather out with a light touch from a grinding wheel.

[hubert_s]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

I used the ones made by CC but got them at a small stone and landscape supply place close to me for $1 each. They are low duty brick...yes, they are quite rough. But I faced the cuts to the outside, and I actually wet sanded the floor with 100 grit to close up the faces a bit. You don't need to do that, I have the equipment so I figured why not. Rougher brick won't effect anything to a measurable degree, it's just that they may create lippage...easy enough to feather out with a light touch from a grinding wheel.

Good to know that you have used the same bricks. I will use them for the dome and would have used them for the floor if I had not seen the other brick at the last minute. Those bricks fit together on the floor with minimal gaps compared to the CC bricks.

I should get the floor and the first course of brick finished tomorrow. As I understand, the first course goes on the floor brick without mortar. I am a little unclear as to how to do the second course with mortar. Does the mortar only go under the brick or do you also put mortar between the sides?

[stonecutter]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Full mortar joints as you build, and tuck the mortar into any empty cavities as you build or when you close it up.


40% alumina sounds like high duty brick....they have a higher thermal conductivity number, and may throw your oven out of balance....simply out, your floor will be hotter than your dome, and the bottom of your pizza will bake at a much,much faster rate than the top...and easier to burn.

[ATK406]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

40% alumina sounds like high duty brick....they have a higher thermal conductivity number, and may throw your oven out of balance.... the bottom of your pizza will bake at a much,much faster rate than the top...and easier to burn.

I was thinking the same thing but it's been awhile since I read about the relative alumina content between low duty, medium duty and high duty brick. I'm pretty sure I have medium duty bricks (slabs actually) on my hearth floor. They were darker and seemed a little harder to cut than the Firebrick that I purchased for the dome (at the time, I was under the impression that medium duty was preferred). Anyway, I have to be careful not to burn the bottoms of my pizzas while I'm waiting for the tops to brown (when we're cooking pizzas in under 2 minutes, I suppose we all have to stay alert), sometimes I wish I had used the low duty brick for the floor too...lord knows it would have been cheaper.

AT

[hubert_s]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Full mortar joints as you build, and tuck the mortar into any empty cavities as you build or when you close it up.


40% alumina sounds like high duty brick....they have a higher thermal conductivity number, and may throw your oven out of balance....simply out, your floor will be hotter than your dome, and the bottom of your pizza will bake at a much,much faster rate than the top...and easier to burn.

The brick primer on this site has medium duty listed at 38% and high duty at >50%. The plans say to use medium duty while it seems a lot of people post that they prefer low duty bricks. I am confused and don't know which brick will be better, or if I will even be able to tell a difference in performance. Visually the 40% alumina brick is a lot nicer, but that does not help if I end up burning all my pizzas... For what it's worth, the guys that sell the 40% brick said it has been used for quite a few pizza ovens. I hope some more people will comment on using higher alumina content brick for the floor.

[hubert_s]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

I was thinking the same thing but it's been awhile since I read about the relative alumina content between low duty, medium duty and high duty brick. I'm pretty sure I have medium duty bricks (slabs actually) on my hearth floor. They were darker and seemed a little harder to cut than the Firebrick that I purchased for the dome (at the time, I was under the impression that medium duty was preferred). Anyway, I have to be careful not to burn the bottoms of my pizzas while I'm waiting for the tops to brown (when we're cooking pizzas in under 2 minutes, I suppose we all have to stay alert), sometimes I wish I had used the low duty brick for the floor too...lord knows it would have been cheaper.

AT

I just read the brick primer again a few minutes ago and looked at the brick specs. The brick I have is actually only 36% alumina, not 40% like I posted above. According to the FB chart, it would be a medium duty brick. I have the opposite from you. These bricks are lighter in color than the low duty bricks that I have and easier to cut.

I can see how the conductivity will make a difference. When I switched from pizza stone to a pizza steel, I had some burned bottoms and had to move the oven rack up to get the pizzas to come out right. (The steel has been a great improvement over the stone and I can only recommend it if you bake pizza in a regular oven.) Anyway, I hope the difference between the types of bricks is just a small adjustment in cooking technique.

[stonecutter]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

I just read the brick primer again a few minutes ago and looked at the brick specs. The brick I have is actually only 36% alumina, not 40% like I posted above. According to the FB chart, it would be a medium duty brick. I have the opposite from you. These bricks are lighter in color than the low duty bricks that I have and easier to cut.

I can see how the conductivity will make a difference. When I switched from pizza stone to a pizza steel, I had some burned bottoms and had to move the oven rack up to get the pizzas to come out right. (The steel has been a great improvement over the stone and I can only recommend it if you bake pizza in a regular oven.) Anyway, I hope the difference between the types of bricks is just a small adjustment in cooking technique.

I just wanted you to be aware of the potential issue with high duty brick. 36% alumina does put that brick into the low end of high duty range brick. Also, med duty brick alumina % can go up into the high thirtys too. The point is, the higher the alumina content, the greater the thermal conductivity of the brick is.

I'm not sure what you mean by saying you have the opposite of me? Information?

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

Herbert,

My build is made up of Super High duty bricks 60-65% Alumina. Have I burned the bottoms, sure, but that is due to me getting side track and drinking a brew instead of watching the pies. You can burn the bottoms just as easy in any oven if you are not paying attention. So go with what works for you in terms of cost and quality of brick. Do try and get the floor as consistency level as possible and like SC says, knock the high points off with a grinder. This keeps the peels from hitting the high points.

[ATK406]

Re: 36" in Chapin, SC

I second what the Beaver said you'll be fine.