36" Midwestern Pompeii

[Saluki]

Slab was poured last Fall, oven construction has now began, hopefully finish by this Fall.

[Saluki]

[Saluki]

[Saluki]

[Saluki]

I made the base layer from split upon the recommendation of someone on the forums to avoid a seam where the floor meets the wall. Not sure if it will matter but figured I would give it a whirl

[Larry P]

I made the base layer from split upon the recommendation of someone on the forums to avoid a seam where the floor meets the wall. Not sure if it will matter but figured I would give it a whirl

I like the idea. I heard of people having problems with their peel getting wedged in that gap. I put a think layer of 50/50 sand & fireclay under the floor, which raised the floor about 1/8 inch and provided the same protection you have. But, your idea is a little simpler.

Make sure you have a gap between the floor and the wall. The floor will expand faster than the wall when burning, and you need some give there to prevent it from cracking the walls. A strip of corrugated cardboard should be wide enough.

[RandyJ]

Yes make sure that you have the expansion gap. It is very necessary. I had heard the same thing about getting the peel stuck but I think it might just be a rumor. I have never hit the back of the oven so I don't see getting it stuck. But I did a half solider course to prevent it.

Randy

[Saluki]

Thanks. I did leave a gap, based on recommendations found here, Been lurking for a while, the dome is steadily going up.

[Saluki]

[Saluki]

[RandyJ]

Wow looks like you are making a lot of progress. Keep up the good work.

Randy

[Saluki]

Here is the jig I made up, I don't think I needed it based on the saw but it made things go much quicker.

[Saluki]

[JRPizza]

Build is looking good. What kind of mortar are you using? The color is quite a bit different than the homebrew I used.

[Saluki]

It's the Heatstop50. First batch was a bit of a learning curve, went with smaller batches after that and seems to be laying out pretty well. Price adds up in a hurry thou.