Help restore my late husbands pizza oven

[bllabata]

Hi everyone and thank you for reading my message.
My husband built this lovely wood fired oven a few years ago and decorated it with Valencia's style mosaic ( trencadis: similar to Gaudi's in Barcelona)
Unfortunately my husband passed away this April after a long illness. When I took the winter cover off I discovered that most of the tiles at the front fell completely and don't know how to repair it.
some of the tiles have chipped too.
I feel really sad that It's all falling apart

I was wondering if anyone could help with instructions on how to repair it.

[Giovanni Rossi]

Since no one has replied, I'll give you my amateur opinion. First, sorry for your loss bllabata. I'm sure this discovery was disheartening.

Looking at the 2 photos that uploaded... The tiles at the front of the oven were laid tight to the steel door frame. It's likely that the expansion of the metal caused the tiles to sheer from the thinset / mortar bed.

Unfortunately, it looks like there is a significant problem with the tiles themselves in the 3rd photo. More are going to fail in the same way as the 2 that already have. It looks like the insulation layer was getting wet and when the oven was fired steam was penetrating the tiles. Not sure of your climate, but it's possible the tiles themselves retained moisture and freezing temps caused the damage. Possibly both.

I fear significant work will be needed to further diagnose, mitigate and repair. You're going to need a DIY'er or professional with some experience in this type of construction.

Maybe more experienced Forum members will have better news.

Good luck

[bllabata]

Hi Giovanni
Thank you so much for replying to my post and your condolences. I really appreciate that you took the time to give me this advice.
I live in England so the humidity and moisture are mostly to blame here.
I will see if I can get someone to help me as it does look like a big job but I do need to repair it one way or another.
Thank you

[cleverdick]

Hi Bilbata,

Sorry for not picking up on this earlier. This forum has got a bit quiet in recent years, but rest assured that a lot of us are still around and in the background, willing to help.

First I would suggest a slow, gentle firing to drive all the moisture out of the structure. Otherwise known as a curing fire. Obviously only use dry, natural hardwood (kiln-dried for log burners is ideal) but take care not to let it burn too fiercely. (Try to avoid letting the flames roll around the top of the dome, basically.) You might need to do this for a full day, maybe more.

Then, I would say, remove anything that's loose. Next, see about repairing the damage (which you might need a professional tiler to do). Also, I'd suggest using refractory mortar (which you can get from Vitcas) to bed the tiles.

I think the design possibly doesn't have enough insulation, so a little bit of cracking now and again is inevitable.

Key points from me are: (1) Always build up the heat gently, (2) Make repairs as often as needed, and (3) Keep the structure covered and dry when you're not using it.

Which part of the UK are you in?

Good luck,

Rich