Matt Walker continental stove build

Its taken me awhile to source and collect enough material to get going on this, had to adapt and make do with what i have to hand , lots of time spent watching broaudio and taking notes , and emails to Matt , always answered and advised , my best advise to myself ---do nt  try to out think or over think this ---just get going and thankfully Matt has done all the thinking out of this concept. First i dry built to layer 11  but left out the CFB parts as this needs to be done when the stove is mortared up and there will be slight measurement differences, then all dismantled and re start from ground up .The floor was prepped with a borax treatment then a membrane barrier in place and vermiculite concrete mix put down and a base layer of bricks layed out , these are actually arch way  build bricks , part of the mixed pallets i bought , about 750 clay bricks comprising of 4 differant batches ,with these hidden away in the middle.So adapt and make do , the idea is to create an airway channel system , a hardiebacker board will be on top of this and then layers 1 to 11 rebuilt up . Just have to get some fireclay and then back onto it

That's awesome to see another thread about building one of Matt's stoves.

Hopefully we can compare notes all the way through, and test them thoroughly over the first burning season.

Lots of photos please!

Yes - Thanks for sharing your build Tony (and Burra ). I look forwards to seeing how it progresses.

Capped   the  vermicrete   with  a  lime/cement/sand mix layer  about 1/2 " thick  ,  and then spaced out the ventilation layer of bricks  ,  put down the tilebacker board cut to size   and mortared the base layer into place ,   took some time to fill in all the holes of the bricks , i think by the end of this build  i will have no fingerprints left   , but at least the clay sand mix is easy on the skin and clean up of tools is no bother.

First layer ,, second layer if you were to follow Matt s plans , but i have deleted one of the  two base layers , some dithering going on at the moment---fill the holes in around the outer layers or not ---as i wont have enough fireclay for the mix this will consume---do have sand , some hydrated lime , some hydraulic lime and 3 bags of white cement that has gone and hardend up.  Its magnesium based , thinking if i smash it up a bit and throw into the mixer with 10 or 2"steel balls lying around somewhere in the shed ---that might work . Shall think more about it as i weld up some tube onto the water jacket so i can cut out the bricks on the next layers in waiting.

I'm enjoying following along on your build. Thank you for keeping us updated.

The water jacket in place ready to be entombed ,inspired  design and build by  --Frank.n.stein , could be in the functional art  category ---maybe , ..from bits dug up out underneath my workbench  .., again the main thinking out and appearance of it was driven by ---adapting  what i had to hand.  The two water lines have collars around them to be mortared into the brickwork , the pipelines will be wrapped in ceramic cord to seal them up inside the collar, the hope is that as the jacket expands and contracts any movement will not crack or push out the mortared brickwork-----this is my over the top backyard engineering  way of thinking  ---not based on any proven concept

Hi! Nice neat masonry work!
Two questions if i may:
-how do you deal with ventilated brick course like that and it not becoming critter city? I mean, mice and roaches, for instance. How do you avoid them settling there?
-Do you plan a maintenance access for the water jacket? Perhaps so as to replace or if clogged with scale, or corroded because of water, and even to clean the light ashes that adhere to its surfaces and reduce the thermal transmittance coefficient?

It's looking good.  I too wonder about critters in the bottom bit.  Did you have a plan in mind for the gaps in the base layer, or was it to save bricks?  I'm not a full blown expert but I don't really see a need for ventilation there.

Like the idea of building in the water heater, if I were building a big stove that would have been considered too.  

About the cement that's gone hard, you can break it up to use as aggregate but once it's hard it's hard as it's changed chemically as far as I know, so you can't use it as cement.

The gap underneath is partially to break the heat transfer into the underlying floor , and partially to have warm air flow under the stove and out /up into the room, and then the added insulation of the vermicrete pad ,these are points Matt talks about on his broaudio , i could have perhaps used a thicker vermicrete pad and no bricks ---but only had the one bag (100 L) of vermiculite and plenty of those archway cut /shape bricks to use up. And i like the concept of having warm air flowing around the whole stove,  as for bugs and mice getting underneath --well  living in the county side  we just deal with them as the problems arise ---no different to now with my electric cooker ,fridge and range  having gaps underneath them for things to get into---come winter we always have traps down anyway just in case . I have a copperpipe lance made up for the vacuum cleaner as well to use for access into those gaps , if it all becomes too big a problem ---the option could be to just seal up the gaps with the mortar mix. Getting to the back would be harder but if were to cast a raised platform high enough to cover the gaps --job done.   The clean out of scale build up is planned for , the bottom water line inlet still has to be modified  ---but i have no weld rods left ---another couple of weeks till i get them--but i need to progress with the stove build ---so i will have weld on a T join fitting (another item i am waiting for)-- in place --not fun but can be done---this will then have a gatevalve  to drain the system. As our water comes from a bore its mineral enriched and i use a purpose made unit/system which contains phospate balls ---the water flows over them and out to be used in the electric shower and washing machine. It does not remove the calcium or iron but prevents this from building up on the heater element, have been using it for a long time now ---works for me--- so this will be used on the waterline going into the waterjacket. My other secret weapon would be to use the dairy farm industries , bulktank and milklines flushing out treatments ,this is added into the system with water ----heated up circulated and then flushed out---very similar process i also use on my washing machine with those store bought tablets.

Yes the white cement is only of use if it can be crushed up fine as sand and used as a sand replacement ---not achievable for me ----so it will just be crushed hammered into chunks later for use in a concrete pathway --wont go far but will be recycled

nearly half way now , all the channel pathways built so its just perimeter layers of bricks now, the s/steel sheet to build the core onto , so far its taken 2 bags of fireclay  ,and  despite having done a dry build and taking pics of each layer as i broke it down--- doing the rebuild and mortaring up --i have gone and done some of it different to my original steps. I think if it was done another 4 or 5 times  --something different would evolve again.  Still on the lookout for a a granite paving slab  , these are cheaper to buy and easier to source---problem is  to travel just for them and if buying from a retailer yard --have to buy a pack of 6 , but something will turn up. Other good news  ,, doctor says my fingerprints will come back , its just the other side effects that might be of some concern  ---he says it could be an allergy due to my procrastination reaction on having to do some work , and totally curable with a home treatment of fermented barley or apple pulp  ---the colour should come back or fade a little and possibly most of the hair should fall out.

Still making progress , but having a technical problem  , i want to take pics of the build as i go along for future reference to the stove repairs and maintenance , just made the stove door and its all from inside my head and what i had to hand ---so no drawings no measurements as such but not too much of a bother other than i would like to have a visual record ,as to why or how i did some things. Busy trying to get my phone to take pics but no luck , will have to take it round to a friend who s fiendishly clever with phones. Or dig up my old sony digital camera ,track down some battery  and possibly its connection cable ---this could be a days work with lots of "fowl language" flowing.

borrowed a phone , got some pics , and so onto some explaining , because i have not followed the plans exactly by using insulated fire brick in place of the ceramic fibreboard , the cores outside dimensions have grown   , the width i was able to get into the  plans sizing and position, of course having added onto the overall length of the stove from 65 inches to 79 inches helped this . But the cores depth has now grown by approx one brick in width ,not wanting to make the stove wider i made a deviation from plans  , by making the firebox door part of an insert panel  i can get around this and just brick up around this. The insert at the top has an extra strip welded on ---a lintel --to help support the last layer of brick,,  to steady this insert into place i intend to weld it behind  , onto the s/steel "core support" plate and weld  a strip of s/steel on either side "triangulating" back down onto the core plate----these will be in between /outside the core and fit behind the clay bricks surrounding the IFB  ---so wont be exposed to any direct heat.  The primary air feed looks to big ---but it only has to open halfway---its adjustable and can be locked in place ---once i have gotten to firing up and done a few runs ---which by reading other stove builds can take some time to settle down and become stable enough---i could dot punch a few calibration marks as settings .

one more

well i was not halfway , too optimistic , have to make up the oven side of things now , another insert planned, so i can only continue laying up bricks when this is in position , and using up bits of old scrap  means more cleaning and cutting of  rusty steel , also re did the core layout following the Matt Walker plans of the CFB core   , stuck to these measurements exactly . Which meant some cutting of the IFB s to size to make them work out to the CFB core sizes, i had tried to lay out the core following the IFB plans ,or rather what i thought was the core using IFB , but although it was deemed okay to work as a core , i had a rethink about it . Not much point in going off course from the plans to suit what i thought could work and to suit my use of off plan materials  --when this style stove has been designed and proved to work from a particular bespoke core---so it should be me adapting to suit it.

I like that door.  Have you put a window in it?  I plan that for mine.  Co-incidentally I'm just about to post a door update on my thread!

thanks , i won t be able to put a window on that door there s no room for it , i did want too as i think its a way of being able to monitor the stove s running   ,  but after trying to scrounge up some heat proof glass  and more dithering around --- just built this , i suppose i could in the future make up another door and incorporate a view window. Had thought of placing a window next to the door but that position is at the end the core riser ----full out heat level s---so i just would not trust it , no matter how high temp the glass might be----fire makes me nervous and  cautious  , my previous  welded steel range that i built had 8mm plate all round and a 25mm top --- i had to build it inside the kitchen before we moved in . But as fool proof as i thought it could be on a few occasions my kids had the front of it of glowing ---way beyond red to that point which as a fabricator you would recognise as its about to go white and soft.

still going , got some more done ,only getting less time to put into it the further i make progress at it , the extra section i added on to build in the water jacket meant a lot more bricks to fill up the space behind this ,i will be over 450 i think , nearly a third bag of fireclay used up and so far half of my one cubic meter bag of sand. Stove insert made with a removable front plate as i have to cut out the oven box and door from a wood burn stove thats still in use , i  do not want to run this stove with a black oven ---i do like to BQ but prefer to do it over a wood fire ---and i have some CFB in the core  which although stable i do not want to test it out over my food ----another put off for me ---the CFB i have does not have great mechanical properties.

Is that little "fin" in the second pic how you'll be attaching your doors/frames to the stove itself? Do you have places you plan to use masonry screws that go through the door frames and into the bricks themselves? I'm still not sure how I plan to make the connections.

My bricks surrounding the oven and firebox door openings are quite short and I'm a bit concerned on how they'll hold up through years of use. Although, I did put some Tapcons in a rather small brick and whirled it around quite aggressively, trying to force a failure, and it held without any signs of stress.

I plan on pouring my insulated slab in the next couple of days and will begin work on my doors and frames while it cures. Those doors look beefy! Thanks for the inspiration and sharing your build.

hello ,some explanation --- this stove  has a support sheet under the core , i used 2.5mm stainless steel sheet, this extends just outside the core dimensions on my build   , made up that Firebox angle iron frame to  sit on top of the s/steel sheet ,   at the front of the stove---and its welded behind ---with just 3 small beads of weld on to the bottom of it.   The sides of the Firebox  frame ---have some pieces of s/steel sheet   welded on either side , these extend back down onto the core support sheet ---- triangulating /bracing them up . Just from scrap pieces of s/steel sheet i had lying around  .    The oven s   angleiron frame  ---at the top left hand side---has a piece of steel flat strip welded  onto it connecting  onto the firebox frame--- ,and the bottom of the angleiron frame  is located onto the lower brickwork by more pieces of angleiron welded behind it ---framing over the bricks  ----this  was only  lightly clamped in place --before some welding  ---so it can expand and not force or  crack the underneath layer of brick work.     The oven frame work on the right hand side ---- has 2 pieces  of homemade s/steel strapping welded on , these are mortared into the brickwork layers.

unfortunately i dont think its the bricks that are too soft to hold /take most masonry bolts ---its the clay based mortar thats  soft so drilling into the bricks whilest in position  ,, can vibrate the brick loose from the mortar ---and the fixing is only locating onto one brick ---so even if you have 3 or 4 fixings ---they are each only pulling on one brick . But some have had a good result using this way ---perhaps dont set the drill onto "hammer" or predrill them and carefully mark out the steelwork later to suit. I just noted this way of attaching framework into stove brickwork on some russian stove builders sites, they are able to but cast iron framework s that hold doors ---these have cast on lugs ---with predrilled holes in them ---then use some steel cable or rods buried into the mortar to hold it secure.

mentioned  these and forgot  to post the pics ,here they are

Thank you for the detailed explanation Tony; it's very helpful. I'm guessing the idea with the twisted wire, and your thin strapping, is that the lesser amount of expansion/contraction will be so minute that it shouldn't cause any issues because of its size? As opposed to pieces of the angle protruding into the mortar that will certainly experience more movement. I like the strapping/wire idea.

I saw that Austin had issues with drilling into the bricks and have been pondering alternatives ever since. I'm now thinking about running wire into the mortar and then running strapping into the firebox and oven areas. Predrilling holes in the bricks and then lining up the strap, drill a hole through that, at the appropriate predrilled location on the bricks, and sinking a few screws in that manner. Thus having both the wire anchored in the mortar and the attached strapping anchored into the bricks themselves as a robust way to keep the doors in place. Thanks for the inspiration and the photos!  

yes the solutions are there , i would only say to keep it simple as possible --- spread out the push and pull forces on the metalwork on as many places as possibles , the strapping is available from hardware stores

getting close , another top row to mortar up to the level of the metal framework s , not going to lay down another row of bricks across the "lintel"  it will make the work top too high --it will now support the CFB gasket for the cook  top glass and the granite slabs  angle iron framework , started sieving the sand and clay now through the baking  flour sieve ---nicked from the wifes pantry----its alright ,perfectly safe ---shes away at the moment , wont be back till monday , i will have plenty of time to replace it ---if it gets damaged. Makes a very nice mortar mix ,smooth and easy to work with---will be easier to lay the final bead of mortar on top and lay the CFB gasket layer on top/into it.   Fire Up day draws closer

heres the last of the brickwork done ,just puzzling out my top lid and the flue pipe arrangement ,  some friends  came round to have a look and see how it works on the inside , also to make out if the could take on a build of their own.  One remark made me re -think a lot about my build , as noted by a friend that it would be not achievable for them mostly due to all the custom pieces done / welded up , and the extra section added on for the water jacket.. Its easy for me to layout what i have done and to waffle on a bit about it, as i have the ability to weld up stuff and a pile of scrap to scrounge through and stuff i have hoarded up over the years, ---combine this with my own custom reworking of Matts design ---which has the ability to be adjusted  by some one willing or able to do their own design and build  as you go along ---just shows how much thought and fore thinking went into his plans. ---But its not really fair to the original plans  for me to label my build as a continental stove as it maybe  slightly off putting--- for some one who my wish to build as per Matts plan .  Which  is designed to use off the shelf items like doors and ovens  , so apologies to anyone who i might have discouraged or put off .

tony uljee wrote: noted by a friend that it would be not achievable for them mostly due to all the custom pieces  ...  i have the ability to weld up stuff ... combine this with my own custom reworking of Matts design ----But its not really fair to the original plans for me to label my build as a continental stove as it maybe  slightly off putting for some one who my wish to build as per Matts plan .  Which  is designed to use off the shelf items like doors and ovens  , so apologies to anyone who i might have discouraged or put off .

I know how you feel on this! We're building the Tiny Cookstove version and opted to go for the simplest doors possible and then add to them until they worked well enough, in the hope that way we'd get the best balance between functionality and not being too intimidating for people to copy.

Yours do look awesome though, I must admit...

Thanks , and thanks for pie and to others who have given apples , still not sure how that all works ---my computer skills and forum etiquette are rough and rudimentary  ,  --- i am busy at the moment working out how to position and seal up the ceramic glass cooktop   i will be using , the suggested method is to lay down a bed of very fine mortar mix ---the clay sand type---then place a gasket of the CFB over it and then the angleiron surround frame followed by the  worktops and cook top onto the  gasket----heres what i have noticed though . After leaving a piece of the cfb in contact with the damp brickwork or mortar  it absorbs the moisture/water and swell s up slightly and become very fragile almost crumbly---a large section of it like this it would fall apart on you if you tried to pick it ---its almost like handling soaked wet brown cardboard  ---it does recover a bit when left to dry out completely----- so i am thinking that in the meantime i will lay some scrap pieces of the membrane i have underneath it , do all my layout and cutting  ---have it all exact  and ready to lay down in one go----have the firebox already loaded for a small fire  --- then fairly lively connect up the flue ---and fire  it up before the damp/wet mortar on cfb contact becomes to much of a problem.

You might be better off just using fiberglass rope or basalt rope for sealing the class top, ceramic fibre is not a good choice in high temperature areas where the fibers can escape into the air and besides rope is designed for the purpose and much safer to use.

kind of puzzled it out , some more steel and some more welding to it , the cfb is not exposed to the the air around /outside the stove its  under the cooktop and the worktops ---its just that the final mortar layer to level up the last perimeter row of bricks will be in contact to the cfb ----this is to  make up a  gas tight(ish)  seal ---then another seam of mortar is suggested between the ceramic cooktop --(-which is sitting on top on a cfb gasket )--and the worktops ---wet mortar onto this cfb that i have is my worry ---plus that i would like to perhaps try and eliminate the mortar shedding grains of sand over the ceramic glass over time ---getting between the bottom of pans /pots.  Onto a plus side , i have bought my granite paving slabs --3 pieces cost 80 euro and more than enough to do the whole top,  they are 22mm thick so should be strong   , just a light grey fine black flecking with smooth top --not polished.  Unfortunately i cant afford the really stunning pieces of granite of which quite a few come from irish quarries ----can t afford the plain slabs from irish quarries----strange that this granite comes from india and is much cheaper----i shall have to create a flaming hot prawn curry  on the stove to acknowledge the stone when its done

i have ordered some basalt woven fibre tape to use as  a gasket on the ceramic top , there will be a surround support shelf of cfb under the glass and then the basalt tape , meantime i am going to use some morgan super wool as a temp solution see if it will seal up on its own or need some mortar with it.  ----put down a leveling layer of mortar in the meantime to bring me up to a true flat surface to work up from--- the worktop solution that i am going to use  is far to complex i feel but its a habit of mine to overdo and overthink the simple of it ---i believe if i had to build another continental it would evolve into different again. So be warned people don t try this at home ---it could all go horribly wrong. ----and a  few items that have been appropriated from the kitchen to use on the build----cant show the vacuum cleaner as i have killed it ---i  put it back inside the kitchen  and removed the bag inside it ---no evidence---no crime---was nt me.

Looking Good Tony!

i have been slow and dithering around on the cooktop as my initial layup i felt was too high , the ergonomics of most stoves seems to be 33 to 36 inches --floor to cooktop---i was getting 39 1/2 inches  and  it also meant the space underneath the c/glass top to the core surface ----was too big as well ,  this  was working out to 4 1/2 to 4 3/4 inch ---about an inch too high ---most probably it would be okay but i am trying to follow Matt s core design to the measurements he designed---- even if i have gone over/out  them on the rest of the build. Also remembered that Peter v/d Berg noted that spacing the c/glass top s too far above the floor would lose a lot of cooking heat transfer .   Although my  the  stove gained its hight by the 2 inch vermiculite pad and the standing rows of  bricks for ventilation  ----these could  not be laid  side on as they are tapered ground for archway builds----  it made the floor of the firebox core work out to 24 inches from the floor ----i have now managed to get down to 36 1/2 inches of cooktop hight  ---another 1/2 inch to 1 inch could be knocked off but i do not want to cut any insulation material down to size---it would have to be de-layered --too much work and would become to uneven --not level ---and too much dust/fibres ---even though its superwool morgan.

Tony, i've been following your build and you are doing things to a very high standard. Congrats on that!
Just came to comment that I would not worry about the last inch. At my parents' home the cooktop is 92 cm / 36.2 inch. I've never felt it to be too high, nor has my brother or parents. But we are all tall people. My mother is 1m76 / about two inch less than 6 feet. Ergonomics are always to be considered for each individual!

You've been busy there!  Last time I looked it was a pile of bricks!!

As for the top, I used rope on mine.  The cooktop support is just more firebricks the same as I made the core from, and the stove top sits on those.

However, I had a gap around the edge of the (cast iron, on mine) top between that and the brick edges.  I didn't want that sealed solidly in case of differential expansion causing problems, but the sealing under the lid isn't good enough to stop smoke sneaking out there when lighting.  It's a little variable, something around 1/16" on average.  

That gap is now filled with some high temperature silicon (rated for 300°C / 570°F) which I regarded as marginal for the application but so far it's not gone on fire or anything.  As it's not that cold I haven't been burning the stove a lot and the stovetop hasn't come near that temperature, even at the "hotspot" above the core outlet.  I can imagine it getting a bit hotter in cold weather when I'll be burning it a bit more often / longer.

How are you finding the clay/sand mortar for long term adhesion to the brick?  That's something I've had some issues with.  I've been using approx 3:1 sand/clay, which is fine for setting the bricks on but I found that the bricks are easily knocked loose again.  It's possible that I've got the wrong kind of sand but I really can't see that making a lot of difference, and that sand is what they use for rendering walls here and, when mixed with cement it sticks pretty well.

To be fair the one I managed to loosen the other day is a little pointy bit of brick in my fancy corner work and as such has less area to stick to than a whole brick.  Using my 20/20 hindsight, it might've been better to assemble the corners with the refractory mortar and fit them as a complete unit.  I wanted to use clay mortar on the top couple of layers anyway in case I ever need to get it apart.

But I also found when drilling the bricks at the front to fit the doors that the vibration of the drill loosened the top one so in the end I had to drill it and then mortar it back into place.

hello and thanks to all , the pieces are coming together and some of it almost looks as if  i planned it all out,, i found the soft set mortar  makes a slower process of lay up for me and that i had to be careful  as even a slight knock broke that bond ---start again --- i could write an essay /short story on the mortar and my working with it ---all a learning curve  but all doable---i think my struggle with the mortar and laying it up was down  was the sand and clay were too coarse --should have used a finer screening from the beginning  ---trying to go less than a 10mm or 3/8 " bond a few times  so as to get back to level  requires too much hammer work ----the sand was a 6 and down screening size---common builders grade --plasterers sand  would have been great  ---and finer clay ---i used fireclay but its supplied un sieved----  had i just followed the advise from P v/d Berg to use fine blend to get the tighter bond/seams ---only on my last layers i home sieved the blend/mix to make getting level and easier workable mix.  As an experiment on the CFB that i used on my core build ---the top of it ---is a double layer of 1/2 " CFB--- his plan show the use of 1" CFB for the cores  ---here the worry is that  its too soft and easy to damage ----but  i do think Matts use of it is the right way ---and the stove does nt have to be force fed fuel --the old habits of having to quickly roughly load wood stoves is hard to break as we don t  want to burn hands------ i have tried an experiment on my CFB ---i have painted the surface area above the firebox core with calcium silicate --it sets up a harder layer that i feel will take more abuse ---as i will not be the only fire tender  i have to see if i can minimise it.   Not very easy to see or any bureau of standards testing  behind this i will try to show how the surface has toughened  up a bit ---piece on the left has a wood screw turned into treated cfb ---see it does not pull up the surface fibre layer as much as the right side test piece into untreated cfb   ----then a pic of the painted core area that will be above the fire box chamber

sorry got my chemistry wrong , its not calcium but sodium silicate i am using ---good old fashioned waterglass was its common name---good for 1000 C it says on the bottle ---sounds like a challange to me

You might be better off coating every CFB surface you can as you really dont want any loose fibers in your living space.
Water glass will help with that, I have found it will flake off if you put on too many coats, try painting on one coat and then another coat one hour later. I am not sure where you live but Vitcas have a ew products that can help to seal CFB.

thanks , i have only painted the cores section above the fire box roof  with 2 coats already ------i don t see its use in the secondary burn chamber as temperatures there could be above its heat  resistance  , and  the rest of any cfb used on the stove is not open to the air/atmosphere around the stove or inside the cabin---its all internal and closed off -protected by brick work  , metalwork  and under the granite slabs---but it can in theory be vented outside via the flue ---but no windows open on that side of the building ---so i expect  the exposure risk to be  minimal---i am aware of metal woodstove health effects from smoke ,ash and heavy metal particle shedding off them at high temps ---which is why i have chosen to build this type of stove plus the lower consumption of wood and less pollution from its exhaust gas---the fibre shedding is why i chose to go for the enclosed white oven ---which i will install later----the steel plate i have in place --is bolted up with a gasket behind it--