[Cob] Mobile Cob Oven

[Monica Proulx]

Wait! Have you just given me something else to worry about? ; )

I think you’re on to something here. Never even thought about springs/shocks, just intuitively knew something was beyond my ability to figure out how to do it safely. I feel somewhat vindicated (I wasn’t too popular at the time of decision)!

Love your dragon!


> On May 23, 2018, at 6:00 PM, Tim Ahearn <humantim at yahoo.com> wrote:
> 
> seven cents here…
> I think the mobile issue needs to be addressed more with the trailer and springs and shocks that are used rather than in the oven construction. The movement of the oven on the road should act act to compact and solidify the structure of the cob.
> Our oven was a dragon and we added two gas lines up to the nostrils with an igniter so it could breath smoke AND FIRE!
> Just one theory.
> <image1.jpeg>
> 
> 
>> On May 22, 2018, at 2:42 PM, Monica Proulx <mon.pro at gmail.com> wrote:
>> 
>> I have to add my 49 cents here (inflation). Besides, it’s a long post, 2 cents won’t cover it. 
>> 
>> A dozen years ago we built a beautiful (large, low, wide, well functioning) cob pizza oven on a sturdy trailer.  Two of my sons wanted to do a local pizza business at farmers markets and fairs (it was excellent pizza!) It was a fun build, the best oven of three that we’ve made, I’ll never forget how excited neighbor kids were, knocking on our door early begging to help, and they did a nice job! We treated them to a pizza party or two, and were the most popular family in the neighborhood that summer! I have fond memories of this oven. We had our parties and pizza cookouts but never towed it anywhere but around the block and from the curb to the driveway, I was too nervous about safety on the road as well as legal ramifications if it came apart during a trip/accident etc.  It looked and “pulled” heavy! We had an old F150. 
>> 
>> Some things to think about:
>> I don’t think pizza from a wood fired cob oven tastes any better than from a cement oven, but it feels nicer mentally on the sustainability scale! Some will never be able to justify using concrete, and I understand that. However I read that using refractory cement, or some other concrete mix option that people use for commercial ovens, has many benefits: it holds up much better over the long haul not just during bumps of dragging it around but many hours of cooking, and it seems like it would be safer from the standpoint of traffic accidents too (speaking of flying bits of heavy cob here, vs a dented but still intact concrete oven.) Cement is probably not lighter but may hold together during travel or (horrors) an accident. But using refractory cement may make it possible to reduce the thickness of the oven walls, which might help with weight and safety.
>> 
>> I saw a refractory pizza oven afterwards (low and wide, looked like ours in shape) at a farmers market and it made great pizza! I know what it was made if because I asked.
>> 
>> You may have read this nice article on the same topic, which discusses options of materials (not safety). https://www.traditionaloven.com/tutorials/concrete.html They also mention lightening it with inclusion of perlite in the mix I believe.
>> 
>> We built our cob oven to haul around, so used chicken wire in the outer layers of the cob structure and attached that to the base with metal straps and screws to try and hold the whole thing together up top (and hold oven onto the base better). 
>> 
>> We built a low wide plywood base, filled it almost to the top with perlite (this is not cheap) and left enough room to top it off with the firebricks. I believe we left a wooden “countertop” in front of the oven. Then we stuccoed (something we bought containing lime) the oven and base. The Perlite helped with the weight of the total and it contained the heat well, I think we had at least a two foot high base, or maybe only 1.5. I think the base is still in Utah, at my son’s place (I could ask). The base was at least 4-5 feet wide. We also put some perlite in the cob mix to try and lighten it.  I don’t recall that we attached the base to the trailer however, which was one of my sticking points in the end. It just sat on it.  The guys said that pulling the ramp up helped hold it on. 
>> 
>> Maybe one could make the inner layer of an oven from cob and then outer layer refractory cement with perlite for sturdiness purposes, and make it thinner/lighter.
>> 
>> In the end when one son finally busted it up a couple years later to use the trailer for a landscape business it was a tough job getting it apart!  We probably did a better job than I thought.  Just couldn’t get beyond the concern of safety and liability, it seemed greater than any return on the pizza business. I’m a worrier. Other people matter, I try to be a good citizen.
>> 
>>> On May 22, 2018, at 1:00 PM, coblist-request at deatech.com wrote:
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>>> Today's Topics:
>>> 
>>> 1. Mobile cob oven (Allison Rykken)
>>> 2. Re: Mobile cob oven (Shannon Dealy)
>>> 
>>> 
>>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>>> 
>>> Message: 1
>>> Date: Tue, 22 May 2018 07:46:35 -0500
>>> From: Allison Rykken <rykke019 at umn.edu>
>>> To: coblist at deatech.com
>>> Subject: [Cob] Mobile cob oven
>>> Message-ID:
>>>  <CANUWq9i7RT2OdrGiOKkyh0JXp=p2Pq3OntCvJsZirrXF0c1SBQ at mail.gmail.com>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"
>>> 
>>> Has anybody built a cob oven on a trailer? I'm looking into bringing an
>>> oven to a nearby farmer's market, but have never made a mobile one before
>>> and wondering what modifications should be made for traveling? Or even
>>> insulating/containing the heat on the bottom?
>>> 
>>> Thanks for any insight!
>>> 
>>> Allie
>>> 
>>> 
>>> ------------------------------
>>> 
>>> Message: 2
>>> Date: Tue, 22 May 2018 15:05:34 +0200 (CEST)
>>> From: Shannon Dealy <dealy at deatech.com>
>>> To: Allison Rykken <rykke019 at umn.edu>
>>> Cc: coblist at deatech.com
>>> Subject: Re: [Cob] Mobile cob oven
>>> Message-ID: <alpine.DEB.2.20.1805221459590.20956 at nashapur.deatech.com>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed
>>> 
>>>> On Tue, 22 May 2018, Allison Rykken wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Has anybody built a cob oven on a trailer? I'm looking into bringing an
>>>> oven to a nearby farmer's market, but have never made a mobile one before
>>>> and wondering what modifications should be made for traveling? Or even
>>>> insulating/containing the heat on the bottom?
>>>> 
>>>> Thanks for any insight!
>>>> 
>>>> Allie
>>> 
>>> Kiko Denzer did a portable oven on a trailer many years ago, though I think he 
>>> had to make some compromises on the use of cob in order to make it survive 
>>> riding around on a trailer. In any case, he (literally) wrote the book on 
>>> earthen ovens, so you should probably contact him. Contact information and 
>>> his book can be found on his web site:
>>> 
>>>  http://www.handprintpress.com/
>>> 
>>> Best regards,
>>> 
>>> Shannon C. Dealy               |       DeaTech Research Inc.
>>> dealy at deatech.com              | Biotechnology Development Services
>>> Telephone USA: +1 541-929-4089 |      USA and the Netherlands
>>> Netherlands:   +31 85 208 5570 |          www.deatech.com
>>> 
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