2017- 36" pompeii oven construction in Sac California.

[JRPizza]

Can't tell much dimensionally looking at a picture, but I am sure it feels good to start laying bricks!

[jas0ny]

It does feel great. Another question, I'm using brick shims to set the dome angle, do people leave those shims in when mortarting?

[UtahBeehiver]

What is the height of the highest point on your arch form? It should be around 63-65% of the radius of the dome, ie 42" inch oven = 21" radius x .65% = 13.65". Maybe it is an optical illusion but the form seems taller. Also, you need to make sure there is at least 1/2" form release on the bottom of the arch form so it can be removed after the arch is done. Save the form because it will be the template for your door.

[jas0ny]

Utah, I have my arch height at 11.34", once I start on the arch part itself I will put a shim underneth. Thank you for your help!

[jas0ny]

[UtahBeehiver]

Tip, make your brick width adjustments in the front half of the dome rather than the back half. Then they are never seen when looking in the oven.

[JRPizza]

He appears to be alternating wide and narrow bricks, so keeping the bond lines from aligning vertically is going to be a little more challenging.

[jas0ny]

Every other brick was a taper/bezel not sure what you would call it so the outside of the dome would have less of a gap, not sure if this the correct way of doing it.

[jas0ny]

[dakzaag]

Don't worry about the outside dome gaps, they can be filled with mortar anytime before you insulate. The inside gaps need to be filled as you lay them up and if you really want to get fancy, sponge the work down several times each day that you build so when you get done, the pictures look nice. Once you start burning, all that cleaning is for naught so it's up to you if a few pics are worth the effort. Try to keep your vertical joints from lining up or stacked as we call it. Every now and then you usually have to stick a little piece in to offset the joints.

It is no problem that you are alternating, just keep the joints as tight as you reasonably can. The smaller the joint thickness the more durable the oven will be long term. So there is a good reason to maintain some tolerances during the build. For most back yard ovens, this is a mute point, but if you had a commercial oven that fired every day then the difference is much more important.

[UtahBeehiver]

These are taper/angle cuts as you move up you will need to add a bevel cut to the taper/angle "if" you want to avoid an invert "v" joint.

[jas0ny]

So much cutting!

[dakzaag]

Yep, 24 hours on the saw for a beginner to cut a proper oven. With experience, you can get it down to 12-14 hours, but really isn't worth it unless you have a commercial application.

[George_M]

Good job!
Don't forget to clean with a wet sponge the brick joints inside the oven while is wet.

[jas0ny]

non stop rain! But got some done!