From mixing concrete to mixing pizza dough

[trapper]

Hello all,

I finally had the first pizza party using my freshly cured WFO last Saturday...amazing results.

I have been lurking more than posting in the past few months and now I am ready to show what I've been doing.
I build the 42" Pompeii as per the FB instructions. Last year I build the foundation, block wall and hearth. This year I built the dome on top of 2" of FB board. The dome was covered with 4" of KAOL wool and the voids filled with vermiculite. I finished the enclosure using cement board on the walls and poured a concrete roof to keep it weather tight. Next year I will finish the outside using field stone or faux stone to get that stone house look.

I started curing the oven using the 7 fire regime and quickly opted for the propane method after the second fire. Using a propane tiger tourch I kept the oven temp at 190F for 18 hours then started raising it by 50F every 4 to 6 hours until I got to 700F. I highly recommend this method.

last Friday when I got to my camp (that's where I build the oven) I light a big-azz fire. The chimney drew well and the oven heated up nicely. The following day I light another big-azz fire to get ready for the first pie. The first pizza cooked in less than two minutes with a floor temp of 650F. The next morning (Sunday) the oven was 400F we had to cool it down before we baked some cinnamon buns. The following Tuesday evening I poured a concrete cap at the top of the chimney and the oven was still warm with a floor temp of 180F!! three days after the fire.

I made most of my own oven tools and will post some photos next chance I get.

Thanks everyone out there I couldn't have done this without reading the information and advice from your posts.

Cheers

[mrchipster]

Your photos are tiny, could you post a larger version?

Chip

[Aegis]

Originally Posted by mrchipster

Your photos are tiny, could you post a larger version?

Chip

GREAT JOB AND MANY congrats are in High order! I thought I smelled a good pizza cooking the other day!

Larger pics are a must now!

Good luck on great food with wonderful friends and family!

[trapper]

Thanks guys,

Yes the pic size is what was delaying me from posting some of my construction pictures. All of the pics I took are 1.2MB and can't figure out how to reduce them to a good size to post. I tried cropping them but it did not reduce it down to a suitable size. Any suggestions?

[Aegis]

Originally Posted by trapper

Thanks guys,

Yes the pic size is what was delaying me from posting some of my construction pictures. All of the pics I took are 1.2MB and can't figure out how to reduce them to a good size to post. I tried cropping them but it did not reduce it down to a suitable size. Any suggestions?

If you picture program allows image resize then use 800 pixels by 600 pixels in what ever direction the picture was taken. i.e. a horizontal picture would be 800x600 a vertical picture would be 600x800 Horizontal meaning the longest side is horizontal____________________________ as in this line.

[trapper]

Okay...I think I got the picture resizing thing figured out...thanks for the help.

I'm off now to camp to spark up a fire so i can bake bread tomorrow morning then pizza for dinner.....ribs on Sunday..Ooooh..ya

[Lburou]

Congratulations!

Glad to see you have the requisite hydration handy

Those temperatures are right in line with my oven.

I'm learning that the residual heat can be shifted several hours by building a small fire after pizza, letting it burn down, and then placing an insulated door over the entrance. It shifts that 180 F point at least twelve hours, extending useful cooking times that much too.

Well done.

[brickie in oz]

Originally Posted by trapper

Any suggestions?

PIXresizer - Download