The Surge

Hi All,
Well today was productive. It was our first day on site at The Surge. The Surge is the former Doctors surgery in Watton, which has been converted to be used as a drop in centre for over 50s and teenagers.
As you know I have been asked to build an oven to be used by centre members and visitors.


Starting at 8am, two of us took about a ton of aggregate and soil out of the footings for the oven as well as about a ton of lovely blue gray Norfolk clay. Pretty much pure, this clay will give the finished oven a great colour. Using this clay, and the other materials removed from the foundations helps to reinforce the message of recycling and sustainability.


After lunch I came back to site and filled in the hole with drain rock, flint and half bricks, as well as about half a ton of concrete mixed with soil which when tamped firm will set as concrete, best of all it was free.


Once tamped I placed the first ring of stones on the foundations and filled with more rock and shingle. I will repeat this tomorrow, with help, and eventually stop once the base reaches about 40", as this is an ideal working height for a hearth.


When I got home after a hard days work I went straight outside to fir my own oven which has been sat uncovered in the rain for two or three days.
I lit a fire to test out my new blow pipe.
not an Amazonian hunting tool as you may imagine, but a length of 15mm copper pipe crimped almost closed at one end, which I use to blow oxygenated air into the base of a stubborn fire. I could not believe the effect of such a simple tool, it was like a bellows on a blacksmith's furnace, the flames leapt a good foot out of the door of the oven.


I will definitely be offering these blowpipes with other ovens.


Well that's all for today, I will have more to report tomorrow as Junk-It week starts in earnest.

Keep on cobbing.