Buttressing brick wall

[hubert_s]

I am trying to figure out how to finish up the entry of my oven. I have a stainless steel vent that I plan to set on two brick walls 15 1/2 inches high by 12" deep and 23 1/2" apart. I am wondering what I need to do to keep the walls from falling over. My initial thought was to use 1" insulation board backed up by steel studs, but it turns out that I made a little planning error and I do not have enough room for that.

Can I put the steel studs directly against the brick or is that a bad idea?

I plan to use tapcons to bolt down the vent into the top bricks. Is that enough to keep the walls from falling the other way (inwards), or do I need some sort of brick ties?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

G'day
12 ins deep is a brick and a 1/2. Could you buttress one brick deep at the back then you would have a structure that tied together 2/3rds of its depth. It's not really a big structure so that should be overkill anyway?
Regards dave

[hubert_s]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

Dave, I do have more room in the back and can fit the 1" insulation. I thouht I could fit a single stud in the center of the bricks for support.

Do I need ties as well?

[cobblerdave]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

G'day
I think a pic would come in handy about this time. I'm a little confused with the insulation board
Regards dave

[hubert_s]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

I have attached a sketch that hopefully explains the situation. Here is the color code for the sketch, in case it is not obvious:

Green - Oven base
Dark red - The brick walls for the entry, stainless steel vent goes on top
Black C shaped things - Steel studs
Blue - Insulation board

My original plan was to have a 1" insulation board behind the entire length of the brick wall backed up by steel studs for buttressing. I realized the other day that there is not enough room for a 1" insulation board at the front of the oven base.

My questions are:

1. Is it ok to have galvanized steel studs in direct contact with the brick in the entry area, or will it get too hot? I think it's probably ok.
2. The buttressing on the left and right of the walls only prevents them from falling one way. Do I need brick ties connected to the studs to prevent the walls from falling the other way? Or will the stainless steel vent bolted to the top row of bricks provide sufficient support?

I was hoping to finish it before heading to Australia on Monday to give the mortar time to cure while I am away, but I don't think that is going to happen with the soccer game tomorrow.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

G'day
Sorry I missed you post the other day, didn't mean to appear rude.



Yes a pics worth a thousand words. This shows what I was trying to say before. If you brick it like this it should bond and give you a strong structure for your metal vent to sit on. You should then still be able to fit the walls of your enclosure in as well.
I'm sorry but I cannot see how a steel stud and insulation being rigid enough to hold a single brick structure. Unfortunately you'll probably crack the mortar trying to drill holes for the tapcons.
Anyway that's my thoughts on that
Regards Dave

[boerwarrior]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

On my thread post 56 you can see how I buttressed my front arch/chimney support

http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/8/32...a-19283-6.html

not sure if this is what you are trying to do...

[Les]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

Wow Bo - that was serious bracing, pretty sure the strongest I have seen. My approach was a little milder and so far it has worked. I just dropped a couple of pieces of iron into the hearth. Thread #130

http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/8/le...d-4207-19.html

[boerwarrior]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

yeah I have a tendency to over-engineer things!

we do get earthquakes here in Northern California. I plan to hide under my pizza oven next time we get one - I think that will be the safest place!

Neil

[hubert_s]

Re: Buttressing brick wall

Thanks everybody for your replies.

Cobbler: my sketch was not really complete, the stud would be braced at the top for ridgidity. Sort of like boer's bracing. I like your idea of simply making the wall wider, but I would have to buy more bricks. They are cheap, but the brick yard is a bit of a drive... Boer's bracing is similar to what I had planned, just made from galvanized studs with insulation board in between.

Now you have me wondering about the tapcons. My plan was to use the short ones and set them while the mortar between the top brick and the vent is still wet. The whole thing is a bit complicated, as the chimney is already in place. I made a jig involving a car jack, 2x4s and some plywood to lift the vent and chimney up high enough while building the entry walls. Once the walls are built, I plan to drill the holes in the bricks, put dowels in them while applying mortar, then remove dowels and lower car jack, fasten tapcons and let cure...

I have to think about this some more, plenty of time on my flight back from Melbourne this Sunday. Any other ideas would be appreciated.