full bricks to start dome

[toddj]

It looks like the first four rows of half bricks could be replaced with a standing row of full bricks. Seems like this would be much faster and there is only a 0.3" difference. any input??

[nissanneill]

Hi Todd,
If you are planning on locating the dome corses outside of you hearth bricks, then I would definitely use full 'soldier bricks; stood up on their ends as the first course. This is exactly as I did with my Pompeii but I cut the top 15˚off the soldier bricks to aid in the angling of course 2 of the dome.
If you plan on sitting your dome on the hearth bricks, then I would cut the bricks on a 15˚ angle (but exactly through the brick centre so that you end up with 2 identical cut bricks for your courses), whether you plan on a 3" or 4.5" thick dome.
See my build at:

http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/f8/n...-1-a-2005.html

and follow the links to the complete oven build.

Neill

[dmun]

There is a long tradition of using full upright bricks for the soldier course, but I think that trivial third of and inch adds to the stability of the oven: remember all that weight of the dome creates outward thrust on your upright bricks, and the oven is under stress every time it's heated up.

The low dome ovens where this is most common are often braced or buttressed on the outside of the soldier course.

[Ken524]

Todd,

My soldiers are stood up. I cut an angle on the tops of all the soldiers as Neill describes. This was a really big help when positioning the 2nd course.

I'm very happy with the results.

[mine]

I used full bricks with a cut on the top to start my low dome