Rachel McGill

Hello Thomas,
    I made the cob oven.
   I'm not sure if it'll work yet, as it's only just finished.
 Took the sand out and now it's drying out.
Made a unit next to it for plates and just becausemy daughter suggested the idea, so she's happy now.
Decided to make a 15% trial maquette oven first, before I do a bigger one.
My parents had just dug up an old pool at their house, tested their clay and it's great for making the cob.
Very exciting taking the sand out of it and seeing it still standing.
Not quite finished shaping the outside, building the base out at the front and widening the chimney too I think. Got a bit more bricklaying to do with the cob yet and building up the left of the unit.
I think I can easily make sculptures with this stuff and paint it, it's fantastic. I've never  used it before, great find. Thanks for your advice Thomas.

Hello again,
I have seen lots of cob ovens bursting flames out of the front of them, so a chimney seemed logical to me and then I saw this video whilst I was planning it, though my knowledge is very weak in this area.
How would you exhaust rocket flame to vent inside the thermal chamber please?
I haven't started on the cob dome yet, I am still strengthening the foundation.
Are chimneys completely unnecessary on cob ovens in your opinion?
The smoke bothering my neighbours and the idea of the emmissions being described as cleaner attracted me to the chimney idea.
I am learning though and happy to hear all superior knowledge, I only know how to sculpt objects and balance them.

Hello again,
Just rewatched the video.
I think I understand.
The bottom of the chimney looks like it's set in the centre of the front chamber and the baking door sets in flush behind it.
Am I understanding that correctly?

Hello Ernie,
I was collecting clay to make a cob oven with a chimney and then saw your video of your double chamber oven.
Please could you tell me, is the door to the baking chamber set behind the flue please or in front of it?
It looks like it's behind.
I live in a village in Catalonia where they make cocas, a very thick pizza, sometimes covered in sweets, they hand them out at festivals.
I wanted to return the favour and make thin pizzas for my neighbours at festivals, they have a lot here.
Planning a 34 inch one to accommodate the pizza and bread making.
The base is already popping out of the ground, as it's part of a ruined house in the garden, so just strengthening that up first before I add my lower thermal insulation layer of bottles and cob.
I will definitely add a burn door at the front, that's a great idea. Is it a steel door?
Would you recommend the best length for the passage from the dome to the front burn door please for a 34 inch cob oven, I'm keen not to pollute the festival areas with smoke, my garden is right next to the square where they hold them.
Thank you.

Will do. I'll take one today before it starts to grow.
My friend just left, I have the right flat red bricks in the building rubble I dug up in the garden, so that's a bonus.

Thank you Thomas.
That's a great help.
I have the rock base developing now, looking good, just need to add an insulation layer of glass bottles and sand, then decide what materials I have that will work best for the refractory layer.
I'll find out where to get the straw and follow your advice.
I normally make sculptures out of clay, not functional objects.
I'm enjoying this a lot though.
Got my builder friend coming to have a look today, she'll help me on teh refractory layer I hope.
Definitely going for the old roof shingles on the outside after the two layers of cob have been added to weatherproof it.
Have a lovely week, will post a photo of it when I'm done if you'd like to see what you've helped with.

Thanks Thomas.
Would I just pack that mix down flat as the oven bed floor instead of layering fire bricks then?
I'm making an oven to cook pizzas, meat and bake bread in ideally.
I am clueless on the ratio required, 2 :1, sand to clay?
Do you happen to know the ratio of wood ash and straw I would need to add to this please Thomas?

Thanks for moving my post Thomas and Hello.
Thank you for the advice too, greatly appreciated.
What is "all cob" though please?

Hello, Would it be possible to use old roof shingles to form an arch or keep the heat in an outdoor oven please? They're over a hundred years old, yellow and cream in colour. I live in Catalonia nd they're all over the place here.Thought perhaps I could stack them up top form the sides of the dome, and stick them together in place with local clay and builders' sand, they're the curved ones.
People use them here to cook cebollas in, so guessed they could possibly be suitable.
I also found old terracotta tiles and bricks, the bricks are yellow too. Thought the tiles might be suitable for the floor of the pizza oven instead of fire bricks I can't afford.
Could I test them by sticking them in somebody's log burner first or is that a dangerous idea?
I'd prefer to build the oven with what's lying around in the garden,there's loads of building rubble here. The new bricks I'm finding are obvioulsy useless they have holes in and shatter easy.
I have masses of rocks, but have read that they could explode.
I'm quite keen not to explode myself whilst making the oven.  Thank you.