Continued from Masonry Heater Project
One decision that had to be made was, how should the top of the stove be finished off? Flat one-piece? Flat bricked? Arched? Corbelled? How did we want it to look? Which would be more practical? Which would be easier to build? Each idea had to be analyzed in terms of time, skill, and resources.
Dan continually asked for my input and preferences, but I was honestly okay with any of the
above. I told him to choose the option that he felt most comfortable
with. The following photos will pretty much speak for the process.
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| Form for a brick arch. There isn't anything you can't learn on YouTube. |
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| If you recall, the woodstove alcove walls above the bricks are cement board. |
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| Dan cut the bricks to make the circular shape |
One question that might come to mind is, how did we know how big to make it? There's a formula for that! Ours is a 6-inch system (based on the size of the chimney pipe), so we aimed for an internal surface area (ISA) of approximately 57 square feet.
WOW!!! Can't wait for the next installment!
ReplyDelete:)
DeleteWhat plans for the J tube are you using? That seems to be the critical aspect of making a 6 inch RMH work well and draft.
ReplyDeleteMichael, we're using Peter van den Berg's double shoebox batch box (DSR2) design. He has all the critical measurements at his website for the core and other components.
DeleteSo much talent and impressive work. Love all your content and shame on me for not commenting more. Of everyone I watch, you inspire me the most to think about being prepared and organizing my home. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteBarbara, good to hear from you! And thank you for the comment. These days we're just puttering along. :)
DeleteWhat kind of temperatures do you think you will achieve on the outside of the brick? If they only get warm, I would have gone with the arch too. If it got warm enough to maybe simmer a pot of beans on top, I might have opted for a flat surface. I love smelling a pot of beans simmering on top of a woodstove.
ReplyDeleteEd, that was something we discussed quite a bit, i.e. being able to cook on it. I'm not sure that the thermal mass would reach simmering temp, but sometimes people put a cookplate over the firebox for cooking. We initially looked at a design like that, but it was more complicated than we were willing to work with. However (spoiler!) we're going to make a pizza oven in the arched part and I'm hoping I can use it for baking and roasting.
DeleteI agree with Goatldi! Wowzers! It looks incredible. Good on ya!
ReplyDeleteDaisy, as always, we're hoping it turns out as planned!
DeleteThat is an excellent idea! I can't wait to see it all come together.
ReplyDeleteEd, I'm pretty excited about that part. :)
DeleteVery impressive!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
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