Here is an easy way of making an insulated wood fired oven door.
This is made from 100% recycled materials... the screws are second hand (from a car boot sale) but new (count as recycled?)
Materials used to make this:
1x Night store heater, $1 from my local auction site. (provides sheet metal and crematic blanket insulation)
1x single bed head, again $1 from my local auction site. (Provides solid timber for front of door and handles)
+ screws $2 from local car boot sale.
Total price $4
Basic DIY tools required, tin snips, drill, jig saw etc.
This is made from 100% recycled materials... the screws are second hand (from a car boot sale) but new (count as recycled?)
Materials used to make this:
1x Night store heater, $1 from my local auction site. (provides sheet metal and crematic blanket insulation)
1x single bed head, again $1 from my local auction site. (Provides solid timber for front of door and handles)
+ screws $2 from local car boot sale.
Total price $4
Basic DIY tools required, tin snips, drill, jig saw etc.
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Signing UpStep 1: Cutting and lining front wood bit.
When you made the front arch of your oven you would have already made the cutout template for the door, this should be almost perfect... but may need a little adjusting, in this case it was good as i used a 3mm layer of MDF over the curve which will leave me with 3mm of a gap around this template.
As we only have 3mm of room to play with and want to make a snug fit, once you have drawn your template onto your wood you want to remove the line when you cut... not leave it... that's about 1mm or more extra if you leave it.
Once you have cut it though, pop it in your oven gap and check and adjust in any spots if you need too.
You also want to cut the breather hole here,
As my flue is 100mm diameter i want to cut the hole the same area so it is ___x___
Next use your new piece of wood as the new template and cut your piece of sheet metal to line the rear of the wood.
Then pop some screws in, as many as you feel necessary.
As we only have 3mm of room to play with and want to make a snug fit, once you have drawn your template onto your wood you want to remove the line when you cut... not leave it... that's about 1mm or more extra if you leave it.
Once you have cut it though, pop it in your oven gap and check and adjust in any spots if you need too.
You also want to cut the breather hole here,
As my flue is 100mm diameter i want to cut the hole the same area so it is ___x___
Next use your new piece of wood as the new template and cut your piece of sheet metal to line the rear of the wood.
Then pop some screws in, as many as you feel necessary.
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Experience has taught me this...I used to work in a foundry.
Burning the galve in the fire like you are saying would make it rust really quick would it not?
As I understand the operation of this kind of oven you "fire" it, get it all nice and hot and then clean out the fire and use the residual heat in the structure to cook the food. In a traditional oven, the door is SEALED with dough, clay, or any other convenient method, the idea being to retain the heat in the chamber for as long as possible. The ART of this kind of cooking lies in knowing when to break the seal, and how to schedule your cooking. Large loaves in the first batch, rolls or smaller loaves might be possible in a second batch, and if you're really good you might even manage pastries, in a final load as the oven cools.
In your case I suspect a hole in the door would prevent your oven from retaining heat effectively. The insulation IS an EXCELLENT plan and getting it out of an old storage heater is a good idea too, but are you using your oven with a fire inside AS YOU COOK?
Yes this is my firing door, i will build another exact replica but with a second recess protruding further into the oven making it around 100-120mm overall thickness... this door will be for baking with no breathing holes.
The baking door will be for heat retention for long periods, i will also be using a flue damper to stop that rising heat escaping.
This door will be used when firing and between cooking pizzas, BBQ food etc yes while the coals are still inside.
Also will most likely add a damper to the front of this door to control air flow as i am building a smoking chamber above my oven, will update when i have done this.
With this firing door, it will heat the oven much faster than without a door, its best to burn the oven for a bit to preheat so it does not suffer from thermal shock but once you put the door in place its like someone blowing on the fire... it really cranks it!
If this rain ever stops i will shoot a short video to show how it works.
Please view my other projects for the oven construction... still not finished yet... hope to get it done after xmas.
Cheers for your questions