Power Tools and Progress Update

One really cool aspect about this project is that I am enjoying it on so many levels: there is the DIY part of me (power tools and fix it projects) and then there is the techy nerd part of me, too.

The DIY part is pretty obvious. Even more fun than getting new power tools, is actually using them! This is me cutting up bricks with my angle grinder. On every level of bricks I need to cut a keystone brick to fit in the odd space left and the angle grinder takes care of this job very nicely.




Now for the nerd part. When I finally get to fire up the oven, I'll want to keep track of the temperature inside. For the surface temp of the oven floor I have an infrared thermometer that I can use to check temps.



But I'll also need to keep track of the temp of the bricks so that I know when they are heat saturated. When the bricks are at the correct temp, then the oven will stay hot for a few hours and the fires can be banked. For that, I am installing thermocouples. These are wires that are embedded in the brick and then they connect back to the thermometer for a read out. So far I have one for the oven floor and one located halfway up the dome.










To install these, I drill a hole in the brick and put a special thermally sensitive wire inside.



And, of course, drilling holes means getting to use power tools!






Lastly, a progress update. The weather has been cooperative this weekend, not too much rain and nice cloudy skies so not hot at all. The only drawback was that the work was a little slow because the mortar would take longer to dry and set. I am now up to the 5th level of bricks and it is getting more challenging to keep the bricks at the right angle. The picture on the right shows a close up of the wood inserts that I use to hold the bricks at the right angle while the mortar dries. After it sets, the inserts can be removed and the space is mortared up.

Getting closer to fire up date!