finished the dome, need help with finishing chimney

[czaunb2]

I just finished my dome and left a vent area, and am needing advise on moving forward. I really like the look of the brick front (including arch and going up the chimney) with the stucco back; but I am concerned that the arch might not be able to support the extra weight of the bricks. Since I already have the arch in place (haven't used any angle iron, is this ok?)

I am new to this, but going to try to attach a pic of where I am at currently as well as a pic of what I am going for (courtesy of Forno Bravo pics)

[Tscarborough]

You will need to buttress the sides more to keep the arch from splaying, but other than that it should be no problem.

[czaunb2]

Thanks! Do you think I can just insert a 6" single wall stove pipe above the vent area and brick around it (leaving a couple of inches of air in between the pipe and bricks), or do you think that I will be much better off going the refractory clay flue or dura vent route? Now that I am thinking about it, do I even need an insert at all, or will the clay bricks be enough to handle the heat?

Thanks for the advise!

[Tscarborough]

It depends. if you do the chimney with modular or common bricks 20x20 OD, it will give you a 12x12 ID. If you do it 16x16 OD it will give you 8x8 ID. What that means is you will have to use metal in the 16x16 OD and can use terra cotta flue in the 20x20 OD. It gets pretty warm in the stack so I would worry about cracking with just the brick.

[Derkp]

Tom,

In my chimney do I need to leave a air gap in between the terracota flue and the outside finished brick?

Is the honey all gone yet? I am working on this years crop, hope it will be a big one.

Derk

[Tscarborough]

You should leave a gap on at least 2 sides so it can expand and contract. The honey butter is almost gone and I shared the bounty with a friend (he got the smaller bottle).

[Neil2]

"In my chimney do I need to leave a air gap in between the terracota flue and the outside finished brick?"

You can fill this gap with loose perlite and "seal" the top of the gap with refractory mortar. You can also do this if using the stove pipe.

[czaunb2]

So, if I am planning on the 8x8ID with brick and using a 6" single wall stove pipe, it would be a good idea to add the loose perlite afterward. I had that thought, but was worried that the really thin metal would get too hot and potentially burn the perlite. If you don't think that it is a problem, I will likely do that to protect the bricks and mortar a little better.

[Tscarborough]

Perlite won't burn at the temps we are dealing with.

[czaunb2]

Thanks! By the way, Tscarborough, if you are the same guy from the "Contractor's Talk" website, that is were I found the idea for the "modified rumford" throat for the fireplace I am building beside the oven. I am planning on doing a plywood cutout and just making an inclined throat (vs. the typical curved one.) He says that he just split firebricks, laid them in and then poured mortar on top. I am planning to do just that with a grid of rebar and concrete on top of it. If you have any cautionary tales or suggestions, I am all ears.

Thanks a million!