Closed in and ready to fire!

Many days of hard work paid off. I managed to get 6 chains up without use of a yoga ball and also with the help of my eldest son. 

After the opening was set, I figured it was time to get a ball to use. And to start to close the Forno up. 

The closing went well however the bricks I laid weren't perfect, so unfortunately the ceiling is a mix of crappy cut bricks and globs of mortar.  Oh well it's still functional!! 

I built the archway with a 10"x8" opening for the flue. I used all firebricks and fire mortar to keep the heat resistance all the way out. 

Once the archway was mortared and set, the next step was to insulate. I used Roxul ComfortBat insulation.  It's a stone fiber insulation that I made myself believe would work the best for my price range. I covered the insulation with chicken wire to prep the dome for the final stucco coats. 

After I believed the dome was set naturally enough (about a week) I started to set small fires to cure the mortar.  These were used firebricks, so the bricks are mostly all cured. 

Finally this past Sunday we fired the oven to around 650F at the floor and 700F at the dome.  We made 7 pizzas at around 7 mins per to cook. 

 I also made buns the following day at around 400F. Everything came out wonderfully. 

Next steps are to finish the facade of the archway and complete the stucco work. The plan is for a terracotta coloured stucco on the dome with a combination of charcoal and medium grey brick on the land and archway. Stay tuned...

Frenchy