Block stand question

[dbhansen]

Seeking advice concerning my lintel, which is supported on 2 - 56" lengths of 3" angle iron (the red arrow in attached pic #4 shows the span). I took a grinder to the bottom of my lintel blocks so the iron wouldn't show from the front of the oven (see pics 1 & 3). The problem is, I mortared my block wall, so the tops of the 3 blocks resting on the iron are going to be 3/8" lower than the rest of the wall (I can mortar the corner blocks to raise them up, but the problem lies with the 3 blocks spanning the opening) (see pic #2). Any suggestions for raising the blocks & iron so it's level with the rest of the stand? A couple of options come to mind (but maybe I'm missing an obvious alternative):
a. Just mortar the ends of the blocks together and then fill them with concrete when I pour the hearth, making everything 'locked & level'.
b. Put some scrap pieces of steel under the ends of the angle iron to raise it up (I have some that will work) and then mortar everything into place. This would put all the weight onto those 2 small pieces of steel (about 2.5"W x 6"L). Perhaps I could fill the 2 cores that lie under the ends of the iron, so the small pieces are not resting over an open core.
c. Fill the cores under the ends of the angle iron and have the concrete go above the core by 3/8", and then rest the iron on that and then mortar everything into place.
d. Get 3 new blocks and put the angle iron on the outside edges instead of trying to be so fancy!

Thoughts? I'm leaning toward "b", but I'm not sure if it would be structurally sound.

[Dutchoven]

Db
Will the blocks be visible on the finished product or will you do stucco/brick facing? Depending on your answer...well in fact no matter what your answer... I think if it were me I would just set the blocks as they are and pour the hearth slab level...I seriously doubt that anyone would ever notice the difference...you would most likely be the only one who new...structurally it should be fine the way it is...probably better than fine...very well reinforced in fact
My $0.02
Best
Dutch

[dbhansen]

Thanks Dutch. Yes, the block stand will be completely covered and hidden eventually. I was just a little worried that leaving them uneven would cause some unforseen problem down the road (and not just with my ego!).

[gjbingham]

It took about 10 minutes of reading and re-reading your post to understand what went wrong for you. The picture from underneath shows what really caused your situation.

I agree with Dutch. Almost any finish you use will cover your irons if you leave them exposed - they look flat (?) Regardless, the alternative is that you can reshape your forms for the hearth to allow for that 3/8ths inch or the others you suggest. The most expensive fix would be to use iron on top to make up the missing height under your hearth form.

[dbhansen]

Sorry to cause some confusion; yes, the first picture shows that I ground some slots in the bottom of the lintel blocks so they fit over the iron, but doing so also made them sit lower than they otherwise would have. That wouldn't have caused a problem if I had dry-stacked the stand. I hadn't planned to use such heavy angle iron but it was the only option at the local salvage yard. A metal-cutting blade on my circular saw went through it without much trouble. Thanks for the replies!

[CajunKnight]

Simple enough add the steel shims and the mortar. The steel shims will be only shims when dried and the mortar will be supporting the load across the area. This will level your top accordingly.

Just my two cents worth.

Looks great so far.