Re: Top soil as insulation

Posted by Rado (144.134.145.123)

In Reply to: Re: Top soil as insulation posted by dutch

Guys,
it's raining out a bit I am in today. I will place in gallery some pictures starting with old French oven(s) as Dutch mentioned. Yes light top soil with mulch mixed in use to be used for insulating. Thinking about it they must have been rather large in production surface or those days' communal ovens. Light particles or the air as insulating spaces is the insulation itsel (air is the best insulation - honey comb effect) and the rest in the stuff is just a matter holding insulation or the air spaces separated. Large ovens have huge heat absorbing mass so the oven stays hot long and warm for days and were used daily cooking foods for many people in past. I am sure gradually over time as the non insulating dust particles from the soil formed as a first layer, the top soil was replaced for new and so on. But in small family oven, even if it's with good cladding layer (a great heat battery/storage ;o) I would use another insulation as a first layer.
I built oven that is covered with soil, it has heat insulation → over the cladding → then hard weather finish → soil and grass → people walk on it. Email me to pizzapaddle[at]gmail[dot]com I will send you from there the rest of the low-set MTo photos on progress with these layers (was added in MTo CDrom now.) r

Oven building details pages

Re: Top soil as insulation