Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Thanks Greenman, that's good news. I'll toss a piece in the pool. Have to take the Rottweiler swimming anyway, he's not had much exercise in the last few.

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Floats! :cheers:

[stonecutter]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Drill a series of holes, insert some dry sticks, add water, wait.
The sticks will expand and crack the rocks.

If the limestone is very dense this technique won't really work well....but not a bad suggestion, very early technique.

Lancer, I don't know if you can get Feathers and Wedges where you are, but you can make your own if need be....3/4" ( 19 mm?) re-bar or round steel stock for the wedges and steel shims (or round stock cut in half ) for the feathers will work. Here is a sequence using F/W splitting some granite I used for chimney cap supports....














F/W work on the same principle as the method Brickie described, but the shear forces are much,much greater. I split stone with them regularly and describe how on my blog...pm me if you want the link. It is still employed by stone quarries around the world..and it's a blast to do too.

[UtahBeehiver]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

always learning something new.

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Yes, such stuff would be next to impossible to find here. Been thinking about the process of making lime from limestone and the answer may be there. If I dig a hole under the limestone stone and set a fire under it and let it burn for a while, then simply by pouring water on it might make the thing fall apart. From what I've read it might just come apart practically explosively. The smaller chunks could then be heated better when we fire the bricks, then slaked.

Stonecutter, thanks for the info. My uncle built a house on a hill in Switzerland and told me a story. There was a huge boulder just in the middle of the property and various people tried this and that and could not break it up. So they brought in this old Italian stone mason who inspected the entire stone, drove a wedge or two and whacked it hard once and the thing fell to pieces.

[Sharkey]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

I discovered recently that there is a rock splitting chemical available. You mix up the chemical just like you would mortar and pour it into a series of holes drilled in the rock. It expands over several hours and cracks the rock.

Here is an example Expando Non Explosive Rock Breaking , but there are lots of them available.

I wish I knew about this a few years ago - it would have been useful on my build.

[stonecutter]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Another is called Dexpan. I didn't suggest chemicals because they might be hard to get. But dex would bust up that stone...check out the videos on YouTube

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Wonderful stuff. I'm sure anything that useful would never be found here.

[stonecutter]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Probably because labor is Pennies on the dollar compared to the cost of the material.

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Valid point. :b:

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

So inset into the big round table I'm going to set 7" thick of pumice all refractory mortared together and on top of that somewhat uneven surface I'll put a coating of refractory mortar which the floor bricks will set on, yes? The dome bricks could also set on the pumice/mortar too and that would improve insulation, right?

Have to make sure the pumice is well mortared together and all mortared to the table. Thoughts?

[brickie in oz]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

If you are

So inset into the big round table

which I take it to mean that you have a depression in the concrete slab to take the pumice, then I wouldnt make the pumice into a concrete as you will lose the insulating properties.
I would just put it in there loose but tightly packed then smooth the top off with mortar.

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Will do Brickie. Question is, with the pumice loose packed will it provide a strong base for the dome bricks? Alternately I could end the depression under the dome (start the concrete lip there) but then I lose insulation, yes? Perhaps I'll just mortar the pumice together under the dome.

[brickie in oz]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

Question is, with the pumice loose packed will it provide a strong base for the dome bricks?

Cant see why not, its not likely its going to move around under the oven.

[Lancer]

Re: Lancer's Philippine Build, Close to Australia Anyhoo...

You obviously don't live in the ring of fire.