Building The Dixie Darling

[Gulf]

Dan,

Actually, you did the chimney the way it is supposed to be done. That is, with stretchers. It won't take but a few minutes to heat it up. Fireplaces with 8" masonry don't take very long to heat up.by normal means. I built a Rumford design outdoor frireplace with 8" thick chimney walls. About 1 minute with my gas weed burner or 1 full lump charcoal chimney starter is all it takes. The chimney on my oven was designed to save brick and overall thickness. I saved only 4" on the overall width, but I saved a lot of brick .

[WarEagle90]

The copper is expensive but I can get it at cost through my wife's business. I think she quoted me $150.00 per 3x10 sheet of 22 or 24 gauge. Probably will need 3-4 sheets. There was a post a few days ago where someone had essentially used pennies to cover the oven. I thought it looked quite nice and certainly unique. Based on my math it would take around $50.00 in pennies but I would probably pull what little hair I have left out before I glued on 5000 of them. End the end, I'll probably settle on some sort of stone or brick veneer.

[rwiegand]

Looking great! I can taste the pizza now!

As to copper, just the flashing I used on my roof was shockingly expensive. The flashing was twice the price of the slate shingles. Wonderful stuff, but ouch!

[WarEagle90]

Thanks, Russell and Joe. The humidity here is generally 60-80%, which is bad enough, but with all the rain we've had the last few weeks, its been in the upper 90's with afternoon temps 95-100. I have a full face respirator that I bought years ago when I was blowing insulation in our attic. It is a 3M product with replaceable canisters that allow you to match the filter to the job at hand. I used it when I was cutting the calsil board. I plan to wear some old painters overalls I have and as you suggested, just throw them away when done. The boy will begin his college life in less than 2 weeks. We move him into his apartment next week. He's pumped, but he will get a dose of reality once he has that first mid-term .

Joe, I hope I have done your oven concept justice. I chose to continue to use stretchers simply due to my comfort level with them versus the shiners. I had some frustrations with the couple of courses where I used shiners in the transition. I did not consider the added thermal mass of the stretchers. Oh, well, I'll just have to have another beer or twelve while the vent comes up to temp. Darn .

[Gulf]

It's looking great, Dan. I see that you did your flue liner out of stretchers. The flue may take a little more time to preheat but, I'm sure that it will draw just fine.

When working with the insulation, orient your fan to blow the fibers away from you and your work space. Also, make note of the wind direction so that the fibers don't drift back on to you.

Have you tried a water mister for your fan. They do help a bunch this time of year imo.

[UtahBeehiver]

Dan,

Nice work, coming along great. I moan here in Utah when the humidity hits 30% so I can't imagine 100%. I guess the boy starts his first year at Auburn here shortly. I am not sure you need full Tyvex overalls with installing the CaSi blanket. But do use a Noish 95 dust mask. I have seen some builder buy those inexpensive paint/insulation coveralls at the big box stores then chuck em when done.

[WarEagle90]

More photos .....

[WarEagle90]

Its been a few weeks since the last update. Believe it or not I have been working on the oven. With temps in the mid to upper 90's and almost 100% humidity, its tough to stay out there very long even with the temporary top providing shade and a fan running. But, the work must go on. I topped the chimney out on Saturday. Currently I have a little over 32 inches of 8" x 8" vent sitting on top of about 30" of vent transition. I may add a few more courses once I move the temporary cover but that won't happen until I get the permanent top built. I'm within one course of touching the top now and I've already raised the canopy once, so it will have to wait. Once I know the oven draws well, I will build a top on the chimney itself with some screening to serve as a spark arrestor. I'll get the vent floor installed this weekend and start the arduous task of installing the ceramic blanket insulation. Not looking forward to all the PPE that must be worn when working with that stuff. As if it weren't hot enough in shorts and a t-shirt . Now, some of the photos below make it look like the oven is leaning but its not. The problem is between the ground and the camera ..... me . I left the brick going around the arch ragged because it will all be covered by a decorative brick facade, one day. Let me know if anyone sees anything that causes concern. Thanks for following along.

[UtahBeehiver]

Dan,

You do need a solid substrate under the copper, I had 2" of 8 to 1 pcrete topped with 1/2" stucco but I think 1.5-2" of refractory is plenty strong. I used 1.25" SS screws that I predrilled into pcrete/stucco for the single clips. Caveat emptor, even the price of sheet copper will give you sticker price shock. I found mine at a surplus store and paid scrap metal price, the material cost alone was $800 back in 2012. I used 4.5 sheets of 3'X10'.

[Gulf]

Dan,

I think that your last question is better for Russell to answer. Since he has direct experience with attaching the copper shingles. I call Russel's very fine oven "The Copper Dragon" .

[WarEagle90]

Mike, you make a good point about the screening. We do have those flying critters Joe mentioned, but what Joe failed to mention is not only do they fly, they bite, too. As the sun goes down in the summertime, it becomes an all out war and the flying critters usually win . We have talked about screening part of the deck, but the way our roof line is designed it would be a pain to tie back into the house roofing (see photo below). I've considered extending the gable end to cover what will eventually be an outdoor kitchen to the right of the oven in the photos below. But due to its odd angle with the oven, the roof would take some careful planning. Once I get the oven usable, I will certainly revisit this idea.

Joe, again, most of my inspiration comes from your oven and I do like the way you finished the dome and left it exposed but protected it with a roof. The wife works for an HVAC company that has a nice sheet metal shop and I've talked with the owner about making copper shingles to cover the oven. He said he would gladly do it if I just paid for the copper sheets. So that is certainly an option. I think Russell used copper on his oven ....... or am I just making that up ? And yes, we have those same winged critters. Ours just carry around pocket knives. How about yours?

Dome insulation question: I will install 3 inches of ceramic fiber blanket on the dome and I have enough insulating castable refractory mix to add 1-2 inches on top of the blanket. Do you think it is worth the effort to add it? If I do, would I still need to add an additional layer to attach any finishing material to or would the refractory be strong enough to support say the copper shingles? I got the stuff to seal around the thermal break after stuffing the void with ceramic rope and sealing with hi-temp caulk. I got a good deal so I bought enough to cover the dome too.

[Gulf]

Dan,

Mike has a good point about screening in an area in front of the oven. That may be in the Queen's future. I'm sure that you have about the same problem that we have with the many types of flying critters here "next door" in MS

I had the same conserns as you. I could have easily bult an enclosure and that woud have been that. But, In the end, I could not bring myself to hide a perfect half sphere with a "doggie house". The oven, entry, and masonry flue are the hardest part. By this stage, a builder has acquired the skills and confidence to do anything related to masonry. They may need to take a short break from it all to recharge the "ambition", though.....................just sayin' .

[SableSprings]

It was my wife who suggested that we enclosed the 18'x18' concrete pad and make it an enclosed/screened outside den. Our oven sits in the corner and is a focal point of the den...so all my hard work on making the oven look good isn't diminished by being inside (IMHO). You definitely want her solidly behind the final design. One additional selling point is that since we don't have AC in the house, during the summer we don't have to turn on the inside electric oven nearly as often. I also ended up building a prep room in the garage, so she was even happier I was making my dough away from "her kitchen".

Even when we're not baking, we love to go out into the den to read and just enjoy the fresh air. She often has some girl friends that come over and play cards in the den...and that's my quiet time in the house

[WarEagle90]

Thanks RW, Joe and Mike. Its been a long journey and I can't quite see the end of the path yet, but I'm told its out there somewhere. The wife and I have started to discuss our options on finishing the oven. At a minimum, I plan to build a roof over the dome and brick the hearth stand to match the house.. An enclosure would be the easiest method for me but I am wrestling with myself over covering up all the hard work I put into the dome. I think the wife wants the enclosure simply because she can envision it better than she can a finished dome. I am concerned about being able to do a proper job on a partially exposed dome. Decision, decisions.

[SableSprings]

Great job Dan! I love the way these entry and smoke chambers flow visually (and I'm sure it will during firing as well ). Next stop...curing and beginning the culinary journey.