Saturday, March 16, 2013

Pie Tree Orchard Brick Oven




By March 18th, the building for the Pie Tree Orchard brick oven
www.pietreeorchards.com/ will be enclosed and heated to mortar-friendly temperatures.
In preparation for that, I have laid out the brick plan, the arch dimension for the dome and the mouth bricks on the floor of the indoor workspace.
Cutting and fitting the bricks for the first nine courses has been done and I can proceed to pre-cut and fit the mouth arch bricks.
I am often asked if I can supply 'kits' for people to build their own domes using these pre-cut bricks.
On the surface, it seems like a good idea (although tedious for whoever is doing the kit brick cutting).  However, the assembly of the oven bricks with a thin layer of mortar and the fitting of the dome to the mouth is an aspect that is difficult and custom even when experienced.  (Gaps shown in arch and dome account for future mortar joints.)I feel that for the oven to have long-term durability, performance and safety, I need to be there for assembly.  Sometimes this means that I build only the 'core'; most often I build the entire oven structure which allows me to create the aesthetic appearance of the oven in accordance with the owner's tastes.

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