Tuesday, April 28, 2009

First Fire


Here's a photo of an oven I just completed at my home. The interior is brick with angle iron supports. It's insulated with perlite, and the exterior is coated with surface bonding cement, also know as structural skin. I am quite confident the oven will be watertight without a roof.
Now we'll see how it performs.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

The Case Of The Missing Blue Stone

In this photo, you can see the small space where the blue stone belongs. When my son and I go to France this June, we'll be on the lookout.

How's this for an unspeakably beautiful oven

Here's an email I received today. If you have any information about the BLUE STONE, please get in touch with Marcus Flynn: pyromasse@gmail.com

Hello,
My name is Marcus Flynn and I am a builder of Masonry stoves, and on
occasion ovens, and I eat bread regularly.

There is an English man in Brittany who is asking me some questions
about an oven he has just aquired with a property.
In the second image of the oven detailed here
http://www.pyromasse.ca/ovensfr.html there are three large dark brick
visible at the back of the bake chambe ( which is cold )The owner told me
that these brick would change colour when the oven was at opporating
temperature. I took little notice at the time. Now though the man in
Brittany is asking me about a special stone that fits into a nich in the
ovens facing just below the avaloire, and changes colour when the oven is
hot enough ( for what ??? ) The stone has been lost but old people have told
him that it is called Pierre Bleue ( blue stone ) and that it comes from
another area of france.????

Do you know anythig about this stone ? Or do you know the supreeme
athoraty on French Ovens ? who I can ask. I have heard about it only on the
two occasions mentioned above, both of which are more or less in the same
location.