Slow Rise Bakery

New website is up!

2010-08-25T19:39:00.000-07:00

Well, well, well. It's been a long time coming, but thanks to one of our talented customers, our website has been revamped, and has just gone live. IT now includes our Twitter feed, as well as our most recent blog posts. Our blog has had to move over to WordPress, so this one won't see much action any more. Come check out the new site, and don't forget to follow us on Twitter, and the new blog.

market season once again...

2010-05-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

I know I haven't posted much lately, but we've just been working our way through the winter. We've tried a few new things, and changed the way we do a few others. Bagels have been a big hit, but they are so time consuming, we're having issues finding the time to fit them in.

As usual, spring finds us gearing up for Farmer's Market season, and this year you'll be able to visit us at your choice of THREE. Starting May 12th, from 4-6:30pm, we'll be at the Bowen Road Farmer's Market (at the VIEX grounds behind Beban Park Arena). Then, starting on May 14th, from 10am-2pm, we'll be at the Nanaimo Downtown Farmer's Market (in the plaza at the harbour). And last but not least, beginning on May 22, from 10am-12pm, we'll be at home at the Gabriola Farmer's Market (at the Agi Hall).

We are looking forward to seeing all our past and present customers again, as well as many new faces.
See you at the markets!

christmas break

2009-12-19T03:26:00.001-08:00

We are going to take a short break from baking over Christmas. Our last bake day before holidays will be Wednesday, Dec. 23. We will be back to work on Tuesday, Dec. 29. A wonderful holiday season to all!

come see us in Nanaimo this weekend

2009-12-04T09:54:00.001-08:00

We will be one of many vendors taking part in the first annual Christmas Farmer's Market at the Green Thumb Garden Centre. They will trees for sale, and the market place will be set up inside one of their greenhouses, so we'll be out of the weather. We'll have a variety of our breads, as well as honey granola, Garibaldi cookies, Christmas Stollen, and some other new treats. We look forward to seeing you there, Saturday and Sunday, 10am to 3pm.

we're on the map

2009-12-02T09:27:00.000-08:00

Well, no, we're not on the map exactly.... but we are on street view.

oven repairs done...for now

2009-11-24T16:52:00.000-08:00

Well, our oven repairs are done for now, the oven is fired back up, and we started baking again last Friday. The new fire box should last considerably longer than any of our previous attempts. Here is what it looks like now from the outside.

We are still playing with bagel recipes - we are finally getting our malt powder tomorrow, so now can try bagels for real! We'll be starting on our Christmas Stollen soon as well.

new door frame

2009-11-18T08:36:00.000-08:00

The look of the oven changed dramatically again yesterday. Chris (the mason we had doing the work), placed the formed pieces in the top of the fire box, and lined it all with ceramic blanket, then began the block work that will hold the doors. I had to step out after the first blocks were laid, and when I came back, I saw the finished product in the lower photo. What a transformation! We'll wait until Thursday to light a small fire, and then it's back to business as usual.

Oven Repairs Under Way

2009-11-16T22:07:00.000-08:00

On Sunday we took apart the inside portion of the fire box (top photo). Today we built the form for the new wall of the fire box, poured it, and prepared the two pieces that will sit on top of the wall, and the small slab that will become the new ceiling of the box. The ceiling will have a ceramic blanket placed between it and the underside of the main slab of the oven. Tomorrow we're going to build some block work in front of the fire box to create a more solid attachment point for the fire box door. The blocks and door will also be insulated from the main firebox by a gasket of ceramic fiber blanket.

Oven Maintenance

2009-11-13T18:42:00.000-08:00

After Saturday mornings baking, we will be shutting down for a few days so we can make some repairs/modifications to the fire box of the oven. We are hoping to be baking again on Thursday. Thanks for your patience.

Bagels

2009-11-02T11:21:00.000-08:00

Well, on Halloween we made our first attempt at baking bagels. If we can trust all our guinea pigs, they turned out pretty well! We'll keep messing around with them, and hopefully we'll have them available in the stores soon.

Weekend Workshop

2009-10-20T12:25:00.000-07:00

We will be taking part in a weekend workshop focusing on baking with wood-fired ovens this coming weekend. The workshop is hosted by Vancouver Island University, Nanaimo campus, and there will be an optional trip to our bakery on Sunday morning. Contact the university if you are interested in attending. Maybe we'll see you there!

Follow us on Twitter?

2009-10-19T16:20:00.000-07:00

I have started posting on twitter. Mainly about what tomorrows products will be, but you never know what else might come up. Check out Slow Rise Bakery on Twitter.

finished oven

2009-03-13T15:54:00.001-07:00

Here is the finished oven after it had a bit of time to dry. Here too is the first major firing after the cobbing and repairs to the fire box.

the oven's new clothes

2009-03-02T20:11:00.001-08:00

Thanks to the dedication of our cobbing team, our oven is finally sporting some new duds. After a long day of mixing plaster and spreading, poking, and smoothing, it looks fabulous. It is amazing how much can change in a few hours. Since we had to shut down briefly for the cobbing, we decided to close for an extra day or two and do some necessary maintenance on the fire box. The protective layer of fire bricks had partially collapsed, so we pulled off the doors, and cleaned out many of the old bricks. Tomorrow we'll start laying a new (and more substantial) wall of fire bricks to protect the insulating bricks. We'll be back up and baking on Friday morning. It is hard to believe that its been over a year since we put the cob on the oven. Many thanks to our friends and cobbing experts - Pollen, Lisa, Kevin, and Margo.

Before:

After:

the day has arrived

2008-11-06T18:29:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is another big day - our products will finally be available at retail outlets in Nanaimo and Lantzville! Come and check us out at the Black Dog Cafe and Island Natural Market.

find us in Nanaimo!

2008-10-24T20:08:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. It has been a very busy summer, and our market season has just ended. Baking six days a week, including 2 farmers' markets every week is tiring, but it has been a great summer.

We will be doing some maintenance work on the the oven in a week or so, and then settle in for the winter. We will continue to supply the grocery store on Gabriola, and in addition we are going to make our products available at a couple of locations in Nanaimo. The Black Dog Cafe in the heart of Lantzville will be selling and using our breads, and Island Natural Market, near Woodgrove Mall will be receiving deliveries about 3 times per week.

So never fear, you don't need to come to Gabriola to find our bread through the winter.

update

2008-04-25T19:34:00.001-07:00

OK, so once again it has been quite a while since my last post. I finally managed to grab the camera and get a few shots of the bakery this evening. We were busy firing the oven to get it up to a nice stable temperature for tomorrow morning, making starters, etc. Today turned out to be lovely and sunny, and tomorrow is supposed to be just as warm, but with a chance of showers.

We have been busy (and so have friends of ours), and we will soon have a great new logo printed on our bread bags, and various other things. We also have a new domain (www.slowrisebakery.ca), with a web site coming soon. You can check periodically, or wait for me to post when the web site is up and running.

Have a great weekend, and I'll try to post more frequently.

a month already?

2008-03-21T04:21:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it has already been a month since we started moving into the bakery! I just looked at the blog and realized it has been a long time since the last post. Things are going very well, and we are checking things off our list in terms of finishing little things. We are still figuring out the oven, but we seem to have a nice, consistent product. Things are picking up, and we are starting to prep for the Farmer's Market which starts in May. I will try to post some more photos soon.

set to move in!

2008-02-19T17:54:00.001-08:00

Well, the day we were beginning to think would never arrive has come! We are planning to move into the new bakery two days from now. Our fantastic group of cobbers (seen below: Dimitri, Margo, Kevin, Paulin, Lisa, and Paul), was here this afternoon to finish off the last bit of cob to go on the dome. Once the cob has dried fully, we will still need to trim it, then put a layer of plaster on, but that will come in 2-3 weeks time.

We also put the concrete sealer on the floor over the last 3 days, so the floor now looks darker, shinier, and help reflect the light around the bakery.

Now to move the mixers and other equipment in...

growing cob

2008-02-09T20:07:00.000-08:00

Well, the oven is finally looking like it will be done soon. We've been piling cob on the damn thing for what seems like ages, but over the last couple of days, it has really started to look great. We figure we have less than two more days of cobbing to go before it is done. Then we need to let it dry thoroughly before applying a final plaster coat of some kind.

On to more important matters... our beer fridge has moved in, the tap has been installed, and beer is flowing.

wood fired bread

2008-01-27T19:54:00.000-08:00

Having just finished a dinner of wood-fired oven pizzas, I thought it would be a good time to publish another post. On Saturday morning we baked a few loaves of each type in the big oven, and they came out beautifully. In the photos, you can see the honey sunflower loaves in the oven, and just after they came out, then a few of the apricot ginger loaves after baking. We both figured the oven could have been hotter, but we can see now that it will indeed be lots of fun learning to bake with the new oven. The hardest part will be resisting the temptation to put anything and everything we can think of into the oven to see how it does. It still amazes me that most of the time, when you look in the oven, it just looks like a cavern, not an actual oven, and only when you stick your arm in, or watch the loaves baking do you get a sense of the amount of heat inside.

slow rise bakery and baked potato emporium

2008-01-16T20:44:00.000-08:00

Today we began laying cob around the base of the oven. Our friends, and cobbers (?) extra-ordinaire, Paulin and Margo are teaching and helping us with the process. The three piles outside the bakery are the ingredients: clay, sand, and straw. The oven dome now has a full layer of insulation, and is almost dry. The oven is already holding a much more constant and even heat. Tonight we baked a bunch of baked potatoes to go with dinner. They turned out very nice. Tomorrow may see one or two small loaves of bread baked in the oven.

interior update

2008-01-10T20:36:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we finished installing the tiles in the bakery, and here is what it looks like after a bit of cleaning up today. Tomorrow morning will be spent putting on the grout. The painting is just about done as well, with probably just one more coat left to do. We will also be filling in some of the spaces between the walls and the posts, and the notches at the tops of the wall posts with some cob most likely, while we are cobbing the outside of the oven. We picked up some beautiful stones today that will form a ring around the oven for the cob to sit on. The photo of the oven shows a partial layer of vermiculite/cement insulation, which will be completed during the cobbing process.

done shingling

2008-01-02T18:24:00.000-08:00

Today we finished the last section of exterior wall that needed shingles. We installed the rear door trim, then put up the last few shingles. We also removed the cracked window and replaced it with the new one. Tony came over and installed some of the interior front door stops.

Now it is time to start on the walls, and on the next oven layers.

happy new year

2007-12-31T23:38:00.001-08:00

A great way to end 2007 and begin 2008. Today we reinstalled the front doors (with the glass in them), and installed the two opening windows (top front). With the oven going sans insulation, the bakery warmed up very quickly once it was enclosed.

We hosted a few friends at the bakery for New Year's Eve, and baked a few flat breads and one little loaf. They turned out quite nice, and I think everyone had fun. Getting to this point has been fun, difficult, educational, exhausting, and exhilarating. Hopefully 2008 brings more of the same minus the stress, difficulty, and exhaustion.

let there be light (and doors!)

2007-12-29T19:08:00.000-08:00

Another big day in the history of the Slow Rise Bakery. Our gorgeous front doors were mounted. Tomorrow we will be putting the glass in the doors. We also installed our back door. We also installed temporary lights on the boxes (until we can find/afford some fixtures we like). The oven continues to reach higher temperature each day as the moisture is driven out. Soon we will start applying the insulation layer to the dome.
Stay tuned.

more fire

2007-12-21T23:33:00.000-08:00

Today we had a small fire going in the oven most of the day, then the plywood forms and 2x4 supports under the slab lit up. Not such a small fire any more.

fire!

2007-12-20T21:29:00.000-08:00

Well, today ended up being a big day. We've been waiting for some chimney pieces to arrive, and managed to get the final one today, and had the chimney fully assembled by late afternoon. So we lit a small fire in the oven.
There is still a lot of work to do on the oven, but it felt great to light it. We plan to light a small fire in it each day to help dry it out a bit before putting on the insulation and outer layers. It should also help keep us a bit warmer while we work on the bakery in this chilly weather.

windows etc

2007-12-11T08:09:00.000-08:00

My brother, Ollie, just left this morning after a week long visit. He gave us a hand installing most of our windows, and here is the result. We are still waiting for the windows that will be able to open, and the doors will hopefully be hung this week. The process of shingling continues, but is almost done. Most of our chimney pieces have arrived, and should be installed soon. We can then start lighting small fires in the oven to dry it out.
A quick tip to those of you that have never installed windows before - they don't take kindly to being hammered on.

the oven's new clothes

2007-11-16T16:03:00.000-08:00

Well, we finally got around to putting the cement cladding on the oven dome! We spent yesterday repairing the cement mixer, and glopping the special refractory cement on to the dome. It really changes the look of the oven. Today, we pulled the dome forms out of the oven and used some child labour to clean out the bake chamber (although I don't think we can call it "child labour", since technically, we didn't pay anything.

lots of progress

2007-11-09T16:48:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since my last post, longer than I had realized. A lot has been accomplished since September 13, but there is still much to be done. The roof was finished (aside from the actual green portion, which may be a while in the making), the first coat of varnish and oil was finished last week, and much of the window framing process has been done. Windows and chimney have been ordered. Outside window frames have been installed in the two front lower windows. A bit more work on the oven was done. Electrical wiring has been installed inside. We are waiting for the new power pole to be put up. I think the bakery is looking great, and it feels good to be able to cross things off our list on a regular basis again. It still hurts my head occasionally when I think about how much there is still left to do, but we chip away at it and it seems to get done. Here are a few photos to help show our progress:

back to it

2007-09-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

We are back to it after a short hiatus. My shoulder is improving, but still bothering me considerably, so we have enlisted the help of friends to get us caught up on construction. With the help of Christy's Dad and our friend Patrick, the roof decking is all in place and fastened. The plywood and other roofing materials are being delivered tomorrow, and hopefully by the end of a small work party on Sunday, the roof will be ready for the roofer to apply the torch-on. Oven parts are on order, and we will get back to that as soon as they arrive.

quick update

2007-08-08T20:58:00.000-07:00

We haven't managed to put much time in working on the building lately. Last week we spent a day going to a bakery auction in Nanaimo, then pretty much two days bringing our purchases back to Gabriola. We did buy a few things that we really needed for the new bakery, so it was a success. We found a fridge, sinks, baking trays, cooling racks, tray carts, a table, a great mixer, and other assorted items. Just baking enough to keep the stores stocked is taking up a lot of time as well. August has been very busy so far.

In other, more nerve-racking news, I was involved in what ended up being (thankfully) a single vehicle accident last Sunday. I was responding to a first responder page for the fire department, alone in a pumper truck, when a minivan pulled out in front of me at an intersection. After making sure the other lane was clear, I was able to swerve around the front of the van, missing him completely. With the weight of all the water on the truck, the back of the truck started to slide, and the truck ended up across the roadway, then rolled over once, stopping back on its wheels! In mid roll, the back of the truck took out the bottom of a power pole, and one of the power lines snapped, starting 4-5 small fires in the bushes. Once the truck had stopped, I got out, called dispatch on a radio, and tried to find a fire extinguisher. By the time I had, the fires had put themselves out, and there wasn't much to do except wait for the other emergency crews to arrive. To everyone's amazement (especially mine), I made it through the incident with only a couple of sore spots! As lucky as I was, I strongly suggest to everyone to take extra care while driving... You can never trust that another driver will do what you expect. Here are a couple of photos of the ruined truck.The large metal unit in the front is the water tank that used to make up the bulk of the rear of the truck. In the foreground you can see a piece of the power pole. Most of the rescue equipment on the truck was ejected as it rolled. A huge thank you to the rest of the Gabriola fire fighters for cleaning up my mess. And thanks to whoever it was that was looking after me, and allowed me to walk away from the incident.

roof building, roof burning

2007-07-16T21:49:00.001-07:00

We had a great day today at the bakery. We arranged all the rafters in their proper places. We'll spend the next day or so attaching the rafters to each other and to the purlins. Every time we get a step closer to completion, the bakery gets a little more impressive.

Shortly after the end of our work day at the bakery, we got a page for a roof fire. We don't get many structure fires, so it was an exciting way to end the day. I made it home just in time to eat my catered anniversary dinner before someone else did.

walls

2007-07-12T20:01:00.001-07:00

We have some walls. Partly. In most of the places they need to be. Braving the last few days of hot, hot weather, we've managed to get the exterior portion of almost all the walls up. Only the front right corner is left. Both front corners will be filled with windows above the short walls. Doing a bit of framing feels great... it goes so quickly. On Monday we will start spreading out and securing the 34 rafters. It is really starting to look like a building now, and it is very satisfying.

posts & purlins

2007-07-05T17:04:00.000-07:00

As planned, the crane arrived this afternoon, and in just under 2 hours, transformed scattered posts and purlins into the structure of a bakery! As usual, there is still lots to do, but it is a wonderful feeling to have this step done. The crane will be back on Tuesday to lift the 34 6x10 rafters up on to the purlins, then we will space them out and begin attaching them. Everything went very smoothly, and all the pieces fit together nicely - proof of a great job done by everyone involved.

t-17 hours

2007-07-04T19:57:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day. Tomorrow promises to be even better. The beautiful weather is supposed to hold through the weekend, and we ended today with 10 of 16 posts standing. Tomorrow morning after baking we will help prepare the remaining posts (and arches), and drill holes in the slab for the brackets to help hold the posts. Then, in the afternoon, a crane truck will arrive to lift the purlins up on to the posts, then place the 34 6x10 rafters up on top of the purlins for later placement. By the end of tomorrow afternoon, the bakery structure will basically be in place!

done, done, done, done, dome!

2007-07-03T23:01:00.000-07:00

The dome of the wood oven is finished. Now all that needs doing is the chimney, the cladding, the insulation, the facade, etc. Some of these things won't get done right away, but we would like the oven usable fairly soon. The second photo shows the vent in the back side of the dome that will join with the main exhaust pipe coming from the side of the oven below the slab. We placed three thermocouples in the dome to help us when we are learning how to operate the oven efficiently.

it's that time again

2007-06-29T12:49:00.000-07:00

Today is the day before the Farmer's Market. It seems that I now measure my week by the market. Sunday is "recover from market day", Thursday is "start resting for market day", and so on. It's lunch time, and it's raining. We got two more rows of dome bricks layed out, but we need more mortar. This afternoon will be spent prepping for tomorrow morning. The dome only needs a half day of work to be finished, then we can clad the outside of the dome with a layer of refractory fondu cement mixed with some more stainless steel needles. After that, the first fire won't be too far off!

growing a dome

2007-06-25T20:43:00.001-07:00

Our wood oven dome grew by three rows today. It is amazing the difference a few bricks can make. It feels like we are making some progress again, now that the dome is going up. Paul and i figure we should be able to finish the dome with one more solid days of cutting and mortaring. The lower photo is the view through the bake door.

minor change of plans

2007-06-22T12:37:00.000-07:00

Nothing major, but we figured that since we'll likely have heat to spare, we'd get into the bath house business as well. We're going to have an assortment of "traditional" baths, all heated by the wood fired oven. People will be able to enjoy a relaxing soak in the tub and a warm scone at the same time.

We've now stuck down the first row of bricks for the dome, and are waiting for a friend's brick saw before continuing. We also borrowed a couple of scaffolding stages, and I took a panoramic photo of the building site (there are a couple of glitches, so I'll try to get a better one after the rain stops). It is once again the day before the market, and this afternoon will be spent prepping for the long night and day ahead. Hopefully the rain clears by tomorrow morning :)

movin' on up

2007-06-18T21:31:00.000-07:00

Today Paul & I stuck down the perimeter hearth bricks, and brought down the two door frames to decide on how we want to mount them. The one that is upper center is the door we will put the bread in/out through. The actual door part is obviously not there for the photo. We have a few more plywood forms to cut for the dome, and we want to install the doors before starting on the dome.

hearth! hearth!

2007-06-14T19:21:00.000-07:00

Today we (mostly Paul) managed to lay the bricks forming the baking surface of the oven. They need some minor adjustments before we can stick the outer few layers of bricks together, but that should be finished tomorrow. Then we can start putting up the forms for the dome, as well as installing the beautiful doors we had made.

Oh yeah, and Billy was busy working on posts and arch templates. Here's a photo of a pretty much completed post waiting to be erected permanently (insert your own joke here, I'm too tired).

posts are up!

2007-06-04T19:10:00.001-07:00

OK, maybe "posts are up" is a bit strong. Two posts were up temporarily so that the bottom ends could be scribed and cut to fit the foundation. One of them is still standing.

We'll probably start moving on the oven again in the next couple of days, laying the hearth bricks.

back in business

2007-05-28T19:17:00.000-07:00

More work on the purlins today. We began notching what will be the bottoms of the purlins where they will sit on the posts.

This morning Paul & I built the slab for the oven. It is full of small stainless steel needles that are mixed into the refractory cement to provide strength to the suspended portions of the slab. The randomness of the needles provides fewer places that the slab would be likely to crack along than using rebar or mesh. Next comes a layer of fire bricks which will become our baking surface.

purlins are all cut

2007-05-26T19:28:00.000-07:00

After a little nap this afternoon, we finished cutting our fourth and final purlin! Now there only remains lots and lots of sanding to do on the last few beams, most of the posts, and the purlins. We are planning to pour the oven slab on Monday, so stay tuned.

still millin' purlin

2007-05-25T19:29:00.000-07:00

Almost done. We spent yesterday and today trying to get our purlins finished. We almost got our last purlin milled today, but we had to dash off to a motor vehicle accident page for the fire department. There is about 40 minutes of sawing left to finish the last one. They'll definitely look impressive in the bakery. We're hoping that building the oven will get us pumped-up enough to lift them up onto the posts when its time.

Market day tomorrow again. Time for bed.

milling purlins

2007-05-23T19:35:00.000-07:00

We finished peeling the purlins today, and began setting up a jig for the Alaskan mill. It took a while, and a fair amount of fiddling, but we finally got it set up satisfactorily, then came the slow job of actually cutting it. In the end, it turned out very well. Only 3 more purlins to mill. The kids seem to love sawdust and planer shavings only slightly less than sand.

planing

2007-05-22T23:00:00.000-07:00

Today we planed. We planed a lot. The stack of wood you can see at the far left of the photo is what we planed today. I wonder if I can put the word "planed" in every sentence? All the boards we planed today will be part of the ceiling, above the 6x10 beams.

We picked up the items we need to get going on the oven. We may start the slab on Friday or Monday. We shall see. Until then, there is some planing to finish, and a lot of log work and sanding too.

the market has begun

2007-05-19T17:04:00.000-07:00

Today was the first of many farmer's markets. Paul and I started baking at 1am this morning, and actually got to the market with lots of time to spare. After baking for most of the night, the market is a very satisfying way to end the work day. So many people so eager to take home a bit (or a lot) of what we worked so hard on. Not that it all makes it all the way home. Even the sun came out for our first market. Back to cleaning up posts tomorrow. I wonder what the neighbours would say if I got up at 1am and fired up the chainsaw?

check out our beams

2007-05-17T19:18:00.000-07:00

They are long, smooth, and have gorgeous grain.

We spent today sanding beams, moving beams, and sanding beams. Our posts are all milled now, so the crew can start prepping them for installation as well.

Not much else to report. We're planning to mix and pour the slab on Tuesday. Stay tuned.

First Farmer's Market of the season this Saturday. I'm not sure that I feel like getting up at 1am to start baking, but there are only about 22 markets, so we better make the best of them.

sawdust, sawdust, everywhere

2007-05-16T19:42:00.000-07:00

We might not be able to work on the oven right now, but the building site was a busy place today (even if its not obvious from the photo). Our logs were being milled into lumber, posts, and beams. Our beams were being sanded and prepped for installation once the posts and purlins are in place. Okay, when I summarize that way, it doesn't sound like that busy of a day, but it was, with lots of people working.

All in all, it was another lovely day on Gabriola. The only problem is that it is way past beer time.

ready for cement slab (almost)

2007-05-15T23:10:00.000-07:00

The oven is ready for the slab to be poured, but we aren't. We need more "needles". For each bag of cement we use for the slab, we need to add 1 pound of 1" long stainless steel needles to give it added strength to span the 3 foot gaps on each side of the oven. Hopefully the back ordered needles will arrive soon.

The top photo is the completed layer of insulating bricks. The middle picture is of the completed plywood forms supported underneath by short 2x4 posts (check the Picasa web album to see these). There is a ring of 1x4" strips around the top to hold the 4 inch thick slab.

The bottom picture is of one of our many 6x10 beams being sanded. The fir is beautiful after a bit of sanding. We only have about 38 more hours of sanding to go!

back to work

2007-05-14T20:04:00.000-07:00

After a slow Saturday and slower Sunday, I went into Nanaimo today to pick up our much needed zonolite. When I got back, our contractor's crew were busy preparing for the next building stage. They had peeled the bark off most of the logs, and were setting up an Alaskan chainsaw mill to start getting the posts ready.

Paul and I topped up the zonolite, then added a bunch more insulating bricks to the left side of the oven. We got most of the center support wall covered with insulating bricks as well. There are still some bricks to lay, but we should be ready to start building forms for the slab tomorrow.

slow day

2007-05-12T14:43:00.000-07:00

We picked up all the perlite we could find on Gabriola this morning, but still came up a bit short. We placed a few more insulating bricks on the right side, but couldn't go much further. The slab will sit on a full ring of bricks as set up on the right side of the oven. The wall down the middle will also be covered with insulating bricks, and those will support the slab down the middle.

We peeled a few more logs that will be suitable for posts, but then kind of ran out of bakery things to do. I guess it is the weekend, but it feels strange with nothing to do. I might have to get some work done around the house!

brick laying

2007-05-11T19:36:00.000-07:00

Today we mixed our zonolite with cement and water and shoveled it on top of the wonder board. We leveled it and started placing insulating bricks. We finished the bottom layer of bricks on the right side of the oven. There are more layers of bricks to go on, and we need some more zonolite for the left side. The opening you see in the photo is for the chimney ducting. The heated air will flow from the top of the fire box around the semicircle, and out the ducting. The slab and hearth bricks will sit above the insulating bricks to come. They will be supported around the edges and down the middle. More details on the slab when we get to it.

We have lots of sun in the forecast, so it is great to be able to work outside and listen to music and the birds and frogs. Its a wonderful feeling watching our oven grow everyday. Soon the bakery will start growing again as well.

photo albums

2007-05-10T19:48:00.000-07:00

If you would like to browse through the photos of either the building of the bakery, or just of the wood oven, feel free to go to my picasa web album. I will try to add a few more photos of the oven construction to the album as time allows.

progress

2007-05-10T19:18:00.000-07:00

Today we continued with the oven. We started building the fire box, using both insulating bricks (white), and fire bricks (orange). The fires will be built on a grate which sits on the supporting rows of bricks along the edges of the bottom of the the fire box.

We also cut and installed most of the wonder board in the base of the oven, which will get covered with a mixture of zonolite and portland cement tomorrow. The zonolite mix will be around 10" thick. On top of that will be many more insulating bricks.

We also received more logs to peel today, and maybe we'll get around to some more peeling and milling tomorrow.

today we are masons

2007-05-09T20:10:00.000-07:00

Today we felt like starting the oven, so we did. We scooped a friend's cement mixer and got going. The oven was going to be rectangular, but we decided circles are nicer, so we built a round wall for the base. The gap in the front is where the fire box will be built. The cinder blocks sitting in seemingly random places within the walls are to support the wonder board which will in turn support the zonolite insulation layer which will be below the layer of insulating bricks. I think the photo shows it pretty well. Hey! There's a block missing in the top row! Oh, just a second, thats where the heated air goes out and up to the chimney.

As I said before, if that was clear as mud, you'll just have to check back tomorrow to see how it goes. Actually, hopefully tomorrow we will be helping mill the peeled logs. Our construction crew may even be back on Monday to start putting up the posts, purlins (did you remember this word from yesterday?), beams, and roof!

A quick tip for budding masons: Paul discovered that you can get really smooth joints if you lick them.

A tip for all - you can view the photos larger if you click on them. After checking out a large picture, click "back" to come back to the blog.

we have big logs

2007-05-08T23:18:00.000-07:00

The logs that will become the posts and purlins for the bakery arrived this morning, and we promptly began peeling off the bark. We will have 16 posts, in four rows of four. Across each row of four posts, will be one 30 foot long purlin (or roof supporting beam). Staggered across the purlins will be thirty-three 6x10 inch fir beams. The roof deck will sit on top of the 6x10s. Confused? You'll just have to keep watching the bakery grow.

Luckily this picture was taken before a wind storm partially dismantled our tarp setup.

another step forward

2007-05-07T20:19:00.000-07:00

While Paul and I were in Nanaimo picking up supplies for the oven today, Gordy stopped by and back-filled around the foundation, so that we now have nice level terrain around the building.

A couple of days ago we put up the tarp so we can keep working in case one of those rare west coast rain days comes along. We picked up some of the mortar and concrete mixes we will need to start the oven, as well as 10 of the approximately 60 bags of zonolite we will use as insulation under and above the baking area of the oven. We're planing to start sticking the cinder blocks together tomorrow.

the fun begins

2007-05-03T23:26:00.000-07:00

While we wait for our logs to be delivered, Paul and I started to lay out the base of the wood oven to get an idea of its size and placement. The smaller, light colored bricks in the front will form the firebox. You'll see how the rest develops with many photos of the oven building process. We should have about 20 fir logs within the next couple of days, which will all need peeling and some milling. The next month will be very busy (and exciting).

work party

2007-04-30T21:25:00.000-07:00

Not really bakery related, but it was a great day yesterday, and I wanted to post a couple of pictures of some of the things we accomplished. We hosted a work party of 5 families yesterday, and got a ton of yard work done. The plant beds were all cleaned and weeded, new plant put in, the sandbox was upgraded, a fire pit built, the old fenced garden was dismantled, and the forest cleaned up.

We ended the day with a potluck party on the new bakery slab, and a bunch of friends and neighbours joined us. It was a great day, and thanks to everyone that took part.

completed slab

2007-04-27T19:21:00.000-07:00

As promised, here is a photo of the completed slab, after the tarp was removed today. It rained most of the day, which is apparently great for the concrete, as it absorbs the water and gains strength faster than curing without extra water. Not much to do now until it is strong enough to support a few loads of bricks.

the slab has landed

2007-04-26T21:57:00.000-07:00

The bakery now has a floor. And almost all the work we have done so far will never be seen again. A concrete finishing crew from Nanaimo came over today and poured the slab. It went amazingly quick, until they had to wait between passes with the power trowel. They weren't completely done until around 7pm. It does look pretty great though. It went from this:

To this:

This is after about 4 passes with the power trowel (sitting on the slab). They did about 6 or 7 all together. I'll post a tarpless slab pic tomorrow.

good to go

2007-04-24T23:23:00.000-07:00

Quick post tonight. It's late, and I'm tired.

The engineer came by this morning and gave us the go ahead to pour the slab. We finished up preparing the foundation, then as a bonus converted our borrowed boat trailer into a slab hauling machine. A "slab" is an off-cut edge piece leftover from the log milling process. We are planning to collect slabs, cut them, and use them to fire the bake oven.

"S" minus 3 days and counting

2007-04-23T21:24:00.000-07:00

I thought today would be a slow day. I was planning to do a bit of work on the trailer we are going to use for hauling firewood. The day soon turned into a busy one. Pay attention now, this gets confusing....

The slab is scheduled to be poured on Thursday. We still needed more sand. We need to place rebar on top of the finished sand. The engineer needs to inspect the rebar before the concrete is poured, but he can only make it tomorrow. In short, we need to have the rebar ready for inspection tomorrow morning, and we are still short of sand.

So we start getting rebar ready, and leveling the sand where we think there is enough. The sand arrives in the afternoon, and we work until almost 7pm finishing the rear of the bakery, so it is ready for inspection. We'll get an early start tomorrow, and hopefully have most of it finished before the engineer arrives.

The photo shows the bakery foundation, partially finished, with the sand packed and leveled, covered with vapor barrier, and with the reinforcing wire mesh on the plastic. As mentioned before, the depression in the rear middle is where the concrete slab has to be thicker to support the weight of the oven. The thickened slab is reinforced with a grid of 15mm rebar.

done with the sand!

2007-04-21T20:30:00.000-07:00

WRONG.
Believe it or not, we still need more sand. Just a couple of inches across the front of the foundation, but the thought of another dump truck coming is getting a bit depressing. The thought of having a finished slab by the end of the week more than makes up for it though. The depression in the sand where the compactor is sitting is where the slab has to be thicker to support the weight of the oven.

Now, if only this stomach flu would go away.

can you guess what we did today?

2007-04-20T18:38:00.000-07:00

If you said "I bet Paul and Dimitri moved mountains" , then right you are. Two more dump trucks of sand appeared and disappeared into the foundation. I swear the loads of sand are getting bigger each time. We had a great surprise when Matt stopped by to kill some of his spare time by shoveling sand! Thanks tons Matt. The bad news is that we're not done just yet. The good news is that we only need about half a truck, and it is coming tomorrow morning. As long as we get some nice weather, we should have a slab sometime this coming week!

sand

2007-04-19T19:10:00.000-07:00

Sand. Sand. Sand.

We started our day off by leveling the sand left over from yesterday. We squeezed in a full 5 minutes of rest before Gordy showed up with the compactor, and back to work we went.

Lunch.

Two more truck loads of sand are delivered, and we start all over again. Shoveling, wheelbarrowing, and dumping. Over, and over, and over. The front right corner of the foundation needed some extra stabilization with all the sand being packed in, but Paul was up to the task. Raena and Rosie helped with the compacting. The kids will be pretty sad when their giant sandbox finally gets covered in concrete.

Whats on tomorrow's agenda you ask? Sand.

got a shovel? come on down!

2007-04-18T20:28:00.000-07:00

3 dump trucks of fill, 1 dump truck of drain rock, and 2 dump trucks of sand.

That is what we dealt with today. The outside of the left side of the foundation was back-filled this morning, then the drain rock was dumped, and we spent a good part of the day spreading it around the foundation with shovels and wheelbarrows. With that done, I thought a quick dip in the hot tub and a cold beer was in order.

Then came the sand. One truck load dumped inside the foundation. We must have been pretty impressive moving that pile, because Gordy decided to bring us another load right away. So we have two truck loads of sand to level out in the left side of the bakery, then we can compact it, then comes several more trucks full of sand until the foundation is full, and ready for the slab to be poured on top.

we are now up to date (or at least you are)

2007-04-14T19:11:00.000-07:00

okay. Here is my most recent photo of the bakery. The foundation walls have been painted, the drainage pipe is in place, and we have dumped as much spare (waste) concrete debris in the hole as we could find. Now we wait. I suppose if we get bored enough we could spend several hours picking up used nails.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2007-04-13T16:12:00.000-07:00

A miserable weather day. No excavator today.

Paul has created his blog about our bakery. Check it out at:
http://web.mac.com/macewen/iWeb/Site/Blog/Blog.html

Forming up

2007-04-12T22:17:00.000-07:00

Here are the forms for the foundation wall partially finished. The kids are loving having a construction site in the front yard! It was almost a shame tearing down all the forms once the concrete was set, but it was a major step forward.

Now we need to fill around the outside of the walls and pack the inside of the foundation with sand, then pour the slab that will be the bakery floor. Then on to the oven!

Entry #1 - Some Background....

2007-04-12T21:43:00.000-07:00

Where to start? I am partnering with a friend (and now neighbor) in a great little bakery. We have started the process of building a new structure to house the bakery and an 8 foot round, wood fired bake oven. Here are the preliminary plans.

Here is the building site before we got started.

We started back in January '07 by clearing a small area for the bakery, and getting a few trees cut down to make space. Clearing doesn't take long with an excavator and experienced operator.

In early February, we had the logs milled into almost all the beams we'll need for the ceiling structure of the building. In mid-March, we had the site excavated, and we began the actual process of building. A friend and his crew take care of most of the difficult stuff, and we are told what to do, and do a lot of the monotonous jobs.

That will all change once the slab is done and we can get started on our new oven! The building will grow around us as we construct a great new wood fired bake oven. The foundation walls are done, and we are hoping to have the slab poured some time next week. It is very exciting to have things moving after talking about our plans for so long.