Adobe Oven Q?!

[southpaw]

1. whats the diffrence between the adobe oven & the Pompeii Oven?

2. How long does it take to heat an adobe oven?

3. how long Does it reserve heat?

4. does it reach pizza heat?

5. can u build a round dome shaped adobe oven?

6. What are the dimensionsims (door opening, interior hight, ...etc)?


what is adobe soil (heavy clay garden soil)?
what do u mix it with?
and the ratio to build the dome?

thanks

[dmun]

Adobe is mud. Heavy clay garden soil will have some sand and some organic material that will smell weird when heated. You'd be better off with river deposit clay, like the potters use. Wood firing will not vitrify your mud. You'll have to keep it absolutely dry, as even atmospheric humidity or dew can cause it to decay.

Why would you want to do this, in an era of cheap and readily available refractory materials? To save money? Your insulation is going to cost way more than your savings on firebrick. And all your heat-up and retention questions depend on how well your oven is insulated, not what it's made out of.

Good luck with your project.

[southpaw]

Can you use the dimentions of a 36" diameter casa, but build the dome using river deposit clay?

can you insulate the oven with the same material used to insulate the pompeii oven, ceramic blanket + vermiculite cement?

the purpose of thinking to building an adobe oven is because im looking for an oven that is easier to build, at the same time reaches pizza heat temp. faster and retains heat longer!

[dmun]

Prepared potter's clay is expensive, and finding a natural clay deposit you could mine might not be easy, but yes, it could be done. I was a potter in another life. There's a reason that pots are thin - it promotes uniform drying to prevent cracking. There's a reason clay soils crack when they dry out. Adobe mixes straw with the clay to reduce this problem, but that makes the clay lighter, and reduces it's heat retention.

Here's the deal. Brick ovens are easy to build. The oven dome is the fun part, it's much harder to build the base and enclosure.

Nothing beats alumina bearing refractory materials for reliable reaction to high heat conditions. That's why they are used in kilns and furnaces, as well as fireplaces and ovens. Other materials can do the job, but not as well. The only reason not to use firebrick is if you can't get it, or the cost is prohibitive.

[jwnorris]

It was my nephews adobe oven that convinced me that I needed a WFO of my own. He used locally gathered materials and built an oven slightly smaller that a Casa80 [31.5"] and has been using it for two seasons without any serious problem. Both for pizza & bread, and other baking adventures.

As for heat issues, I don't believe that his oven heats any faster or retains heat any better. It does not have any trouble reaching pizza temperatures.

I'll see if I can't get him to post some additional information.

J W

Originally Posted by southpaw

Can you use the dimensions of a 36" diameter casa, but build the dome using river deposit clay?

can you insulate the oven with the same material used to insulate the pompeii oven, ceramic blanket + vermiculite cement?

the purpose of thinking to building an adobe oven is because im looking for an oven that is easier to build, at the same time reaches pizza heat temp. faster and retains heat longer!

[OC_Andrew]

Hi Everybody!

This is my first post, and I am JW's nephew, so you can ask me any adobe-centric questions that have been bothering you. As for heating and heat retention, mine takes about as long to heat up as my uncle's, about an hour to an hour-and-a-half. If you are crazy enough to actually build a pizza oven in your backyard, chances are that you're of a mind to take the time to do it right. Even if it took two hours, your pizzas will be so worth the wait.

[dmun]

We would like to see it. Do you have pictures?

[Archena]

Hmmm, where's that thread with the pictures of the cob oven?

[PizzaPolice]

Well...It's not my choice of material and I love my Italian pre-formed oven.
However, I saw this adobe working in Seattle and spoke with Matt the owner. Rain don't scare him. This thing runs as hot as mine and will turn out a respectable pizza.
http://www.fornobravo.com/forum/f27/...ghlight=veraci (Veraci Pizza)

[OC_Andrew]

HI dmun, I have pics on my external hard drive, so I'll have to search for those, unless I go out ant take a pic right now.

As for building an adobe oven, I recommend that you read Kiko Denzer's book on the subject.