bread oven

planning on building a bread /pizza oven in my garden have a question has anyone ever done one on here .but i have some concrete blocks that i would like to use as a base they are round ones will put pictures on later thought i would ask first have been trawling round the net to get some info the blocks i have are block paving 80s era

As a pure guess I would suspect that your blocks will crack-up with the heat, and even worse may send fragments flying.

The principle of a bread oven is to soak up the heat from a fire burning 'in the oven'. When the oven has gained sufficient heat (latent heat) you rake out the fire and put in the bread/ pizza.
I would think that 'paving' blocks would not be suitable, even as a base.
I could suggest that you try one on a bonfire, but it may have potentially dangerous consequences. Also bearing in mind, that one on a fire is not the same as several together absorbing and storing heat.

Maybe if the base is covered with a fire cement it might work OK. perhaps one of the pro's with fireplaces may be able to give you a more relaible answer.
Please let me know how you get on 'cos I was considering doing a similar project myself.

That's not how I understand a pizza oven. They have the furnace underneath the oven, entirely separate.
Edit; it's only the wood that goes underneath, not the fire.

no the oven is where the fire is. the idea is the bricks soak up teh heat from the fire. Ive got a link on my other pc to a good website guide. Ill post it later. you need to use firebricks to do it

When you're using a bread oven, you place the articles inside in the correct sequence., e.g. bread/pizza first, roast meat second.
The idea is using the hotest cycle of the oven first, then exploiting the slightly cooler, slower cooking capability.
You can also use clay, mixed with lime or similar, (hence 'clay oven') but then it'll need some protection from the elements.

There was a bakery in a place called Reyrevigne, near to Figeac in France that baked their bread in a bread oven. It was in great demand in the locality. They did two bakes a day and if you weren't there in the first hour you missed out.

this should tell you all you need to know

http://www.traditionaloven.com/building/details/igloooven.shtml

thank you all for your input the principle would use the blocks for a base not the fire build in a circular shape then use fire bricks then cover fire bricks with heat blanket and chicken wire and then cover overall with cement mixed with cat litter as this makes up a good paste seen this done just want to make i am doing it right

Just make sure it's new cat litter you use, not the stuff out of the litter tray.

you want vermiculite not cat litter. very cheap from most builders merchants or garden centres

There is a great video about a chap building one of these on you tube. He is in the UK and gives you a list of materials etc etc. Very informative.
Have a quick search if you can and in the mean time i will try and find the link for you.

Hello Savage
one of my interests is history and I re-enact medieaval history and our camp has it's own bread oven. It's based on illustrations of a mobile oven that was in use in towns of the period, hence it being on a hand cart. There are references to large ones being built on wagons pulled by oxen. Goggle medieaval bread oven for the original.
Here it is

We have had to make some alterations to the original. They were originaly built of clay and the domed shape came from using hazel canes to build a former with which was then coated in clay. The domed shape is also important as it helps reflect the heat and reduce cold spots. The completed oven would live on the cart until it finally fell apart, however we have had to build in the abbility to be humped in and out of a van several weekends a year.
The way we built it is this-we started with a steel box covered in a furnace insulation, then mesh and render to give it its external apperance. Inside we placed a layer of bricks and then a layer ofceramic tiles again from the same people who supplied the insulation, Fuel Conservation Services. We then used loose bricks placed in to provide more of a heat sink. If they had not been loose the weight would have made in very difficult to move into the van and off onto the cart. We have used concrete paviors and had no problem with cracking or blowing at all. Clay paviors also work but they tend to crack and break.
Because yours would be a permanent feature and weight is not important you can dispence with the box, insulation and loose bricks all together.
The procedure for using is as follows-using small dry pieces of timber build a fire inside and light and continue to feed with the same timber. How long to heat for is likey to be a matter of experience as there are variables such as wind and dryness and type of timber. It's a fun learning curve. There is a test that involves throwing in some flour which should burn up before it hits the deck.
When the heat is up scrape out the fire and wipe the floor with a meekin, damp rags on a stick, which will clean the base and also add a little moisture. Then place in your bread with your peel, a birch bladed spade and seal the door. We use a piece of oak around 2" thick which can be damped on the inside first. Tradionally the door was sealed with bread dough and when this is cooked it's a very good indication that the bread inside is also cooked.
We have enjoyed using the oven and have had fresh bread on every event some of which are almost just a field in the middle of nowhere.

Here's our cook prepareing the dough for a bake

Ladylola

I love the picture of your medieaval wood-fired oven.

I run a busy interactive wood-burning oven forum for anybody who is thinking of building their own oven or trying to source refractory materials within the UK...... http://woodovenukforum.forumup.co.uk/index.php?mforum=woodovenukforum

May I put a picture of your oven on the forum as many of the members are also bakers and would find the picture fascinating....as I do

Terry (C.F)

Hello, crannyfradrock (love the name by the way)
I've got no problem with you using the pictures, indeed you may find some more here http://www.ferrershousehold.co.uk/Gallery.html that may be of help too.
Since the shot above we've had a mishap when the cart collasped. Principally this was my fault as because the whole thing was something of an experiment I'd used some oak for the cart that could best be described as "almost crap". The oven was lit at the time and the whole thing seemed to fall in slow motion like a house of cards, but , the oven remained intact and level and no fire escaped and we carried on using it for the rest of the day . This explains why the oven is on benches in some of the other shots. We are currently sorceing wheels and a new decent cart is planned.
Also planned is to try and make an oven in a more traditional manner using haxel and a clay mix. On the re-enactment circuit it has indeed raised much interest and a couple of other groups have expressed a disire to build one. Weight , however, remains the biggest problem.
The oven will next be seen at Lincoln Castle on the 21st 22nd of august if any of your members are interested in seeing the thing working.
As has been posted before my reply bread and roast meats can be done in it and the last thing to go in tends to be a egg custard, ummmmm

Ladylola........many thanks for the permission..... and your picture. and website are now in our Cob/clay/adobe section of our busy wood-burning oven UK forum and I am sure it will draw a lot of interest.

I am interested in military history, mainly ww1, ww11, the French foreign legion and the struggles of the American Indians but found your Medieval website fascinating

Again....many thanks

Terry (C.F)

Sorry you've had a few problems with the pictures.
The oven forum looks very interesting and I may just have to login in to see all the pictures and links.
I've linked it into our own Ferrers forum as I'm sure we would like to see what others say about it, even if the comments are only derogaratory, stops us becoming complaceiant. Elaine , our cook and wearing the yellow dress above, is the main worker of the oven with one or two others feeding the beast with the wood.
Your historical interests would have been catered for (pun?) at the English Heritage event at Kelmarsh a veritable festival of history. Indeed, in the last shot that Turkey brought up from our site was taken there. In the background can be seen some deckchairs that formed the family seaside holiday section of the event.