Dino's 42" Pizza Oven Starts

[jrparks]

Re: Dino's 42" Pizza Oven Starts

Your first course looks great. Sometimes I wish I was making my first oven for a friend and apply all I learn towards my own.
My past experience with mortar as taught me to let the mortar sit for 10 minutes after you initially mix it. During this time the ingredients in the mortar will hydrate and start to thicken. I then give it another mix and add a little water to get the mix right. This give you a longer working time with the mortar. Hope this helps.
Cheers,

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: Dino's 42" Pizza Oven Starts

Thanks for the "autopad" pic Elizabeth, I'll do that for the next few rings I think. JR is right, the more you work with mortar, the better you get. And I do have a circle of plywood that I took out to really clean the soldier courses from the drips that went all the way down into floor. It's cut into 3 pieces but it would barely come out the oven with 1st course narrowing in diameter. I'll cut it up to smaller puzzle pieces.

Do the drips tend not to run down the inside of the dome as you go up closer to the center (smaller rings) or do you always have mortar to clean up near the floor? Maybe I'll also stuff a rag around the edge of the floor.

Here are 2 pics of how I did my compound cuts for the 1st ring (6 degree angle and a small trowel tilting it up to compensate for upside down V's) and the other pic my cake frosting spatula ($2.50) that's small enough for pointing and compressing the Refmix from the outside and my flower foam I've been buying on sale just to make pretend cuts for difficult bricks. Plus, I'll use them later for flowers for the house.

[bbell]

Re: Dino's 42" Pizza Oven Starts

Dino, it's looking great. I wish I had cleaned up the inside bricks when they were most accessible during the first few rings. Didn't quite keep that wet sponge close enough. Meant a little extra inside time when I was all bricked in. Keep the sponge close!

[egalecki]

Re: Dino's 42" Pizza Oven Starts

<<Do the drips tend not to run down the inside of the dome as you go up closer to the center (smaller rings) or do you always have mortar to clean up near the floor?>>

I seem to remember that I was only cleaning up the last couple of rings, not the whole thing. I did that after EVERY row, though. I still had to go in after I was finished and use a brass bristle brush to clean up, but it wasn't bad. If I had actually dried what I'd cleaned with a towel, it would have been better.

[gjbingham]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

If you didn't see it before, here's a slap to the forehead for you - a real "why didn't I think of that!" idea.

I think it was Ken that came up with the idea of cutting out a cardboard circle the exact size of the oven floor. Lay that hummer in there and you can forget about the drips on the floor. No sweat. All you need to do is clean the newest mortar joints after each session. I'm not sure that there is a huge benefit to cleaning these either, except for the personal satisfaction of a pretty oven interior.

[Ken524]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

I think it was Ken that came up with the idea of cutting out a cardboard circle the exact size of the oven floor. Lay that hummer in there and you can forget about the drips on the floor. No sweat.

Yeah, I made a post about that. Works great. The corrugated cardboard also protects your floor from dropped bricks (I have butterfingers).

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

I've got plywood circle protecting my floor now. I cut into a puzzle of 1 large piece and 3 pieces. I will be able to easily hack off a peice to pull it out after the dome gets closed up. I also now use towels and a sheet around the edge to catch stuff and Elizabeths idea of also drying off the bricks after sponging (not just air drying) keeps 'em cleaner.
I've ripped out my oven landing front edge bricks and re-set some old, some newer cut bricks so I have a perpendicular and flat outer arch-front. I'm glad I did it, everything is straighter and ready for landing walls to go up.
I've got good lines on my second ring of bricks. I've got a better (and gentler) lift for the compound cut that straightened the V's.
Now I'm cutting bricks in 3rds and they site really nice! Maybe should have done that last course too.
Thanks for the help all, Dino

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

I've cut and placed my 2nd ring. I figured out to make my compound lift much smaller to get rid of the inverted "V" much nicer on this row. Can't go back to the 1st but it's good to learn from each row.
I also cut the 3rd row and it's the best one yet. I had to go to 3rd cuts and used straight cuts only and the "V's" are tolerable. I hope the next row is the same but I have a feeling they may not be.
Last pic is a dry run of my arch walls. Making sure they fit.
Cheers, Dino

[bbell]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

Dino, looks fantastic. You're going to have very little brick waste relative to mine. I'm still tripping over pieces.
Great job.

[Ellie]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

Dino, it all looks so precise and pretty. You are doing a fantastic job of it.

Ellie

[exceloven]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

Looks great Dino, When I show my wife she won't even see your oven (big cat lover). I appreciate the brick work though. What you are drinking is the real question!

Mark

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

No Bill, I'm also collecting brick bits since I feel like if there is daylight, I must be cutting brick. No time to take out stuff to the trash.

And its never precise enough it seems Ellie, Oh yes it is. Sometimes it seems all wrong like my arch walls, but I measured it afterwords, and it's level (cant believe it) and the right width and actually perpendicular to the center line of the dome! I know the arch will trip me up somewhere.

Yes, Mark, Inspector Cat could not be moved until I used a water-spray bottle to wet the last course. She moved. And that's iced tea, I have to be wired up all day to keep cutting and laying bricks then its Pinot Noir all night to comiser...I mean celebrate.

Here is a better pic of the side walls mortared in. 1 more row puts me at 10" (too high for the door edge) so I'll have to cut that at an angle to get to 8.5" inches and then 12" at the middle. Since my landing is wide, I have to decide if I can tapper an angle into that 4th row that starts my arch. More ice tea, definitely. Others have 4 bricks high some 3. It should 8-9" at the opeing edges and 12" in the middle, Right? Thanks, Dino

[egalecki]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

Are you going to try to make your arch at the same time as the oven wall? That's awfully tricky. I did my arch and then fit the walls to it. Much easier that way. You can do your arch one day, leave the form in, and keep on going the next. Just don't take out the form for several days to a week.

The work looks really good- but I don't know what you'll do when you get to the top and the v's get to you- the rest of us went to 1/3 bricks- but you've already done that!

[Ken524]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

Dino,

I like how your are tying the vent walls into the dome structure. I didn't do that (wish I had). Nice work!

[christo]

Re: Dino's 42&quot; Pizza Oven Starts

I agree! Looking fabulous! I like the cuts you made on the entry bricks to make the lip. Looks like tough cuts but you're doing (what looks like) a very consistent job.

If it ever gets to be too much, remember an ugly oven cooks pretty much like a pretty one!!! Besides - you're getting to the point where people will have to look up to see any inconsistencies (I cannot bring myself to call them mistakes).

Great job - I love the cat!

Christo