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You have a lovely garden with a quaint cobbled pathway. The hedge is neat and trimmed and so are the all the shrubs that dot the garden. You also have an impressive wood-stoked oven that you set up just a few months ago which is now turning out to be an eye-sore. The reason mainly being that materials that were used to build it. Any surface that is subjected to fire has to be made with materials that can withstand it effectively. There are several materials and products in the market today that provide you functionality and good looks in one. Your garden oven should be made from fire bricks. These bricks are essentially made from simple fireclay that is found in nature and are also known as fire clay bricks. The difference between these bricks and normal ones being that they are fortified with the perfect ratio of alumina and silica thus making them hardy and capable of withstanding high temperatures. They are used in creating fireplaces, wood fired ovens, wood heater linings and fire boxes that are used in both industrial and residential use furnaces. Fire bricks have a low porosity, are dense and last for a very long time. These are not to be confused with insulating lightweight firebricks. Fire clay bricks though dense, can be easily be chopped in half with the use of a heavy hammer or brick chisel. Any structure, whether big or small that is constructed with these bricks should be held together with fire cement. Using ordinary cement in the construction of ovens, boilers, cooking ranges or fireplaces defeats the purpose of using specialized bricks. It is a fine powdery material that dries and hardens fast. It can be used in construction of as well as the repair of such structures. It provides crack-free joints that prevent the escape of smoke and fumes. On exposure to high temperatures it turns into a tough, hard sealant and has properties similar to that of any strong structural adhesive. The fire cement that is available in the market is ready-to-use. You have to ensure that the surface that needs to be treated is clean, dry and dust-free. This is critical in getting the best results. Application via a trowel or knife is very easy as well. Once it has been applied, you just have to leave it to dry naturally and harden. There are other products that are very similar to this cement. The premium black cement can be used specifically for repairing or patching up solid fuel ovens, fireplaces and other central heating systems and has more industrial uses. The fireplace render is another variant of this strong/ fire resistant cement. The heatproof mortar is ready-to-use cement that is available in a smooth trowelling consistency and forms an air-free bond with the bricks that it holds together. All these products are used by companies that specialize in building outdoor ovens and fireplaces. Those ugly cracks and fissures on your stylish wood-stoked outdoor oven are now a thing of the past. Resource box: Vitcas uses the latest Fire Cement and Fire Bricks in the construction of their outdoor ovens. They are easy to install and a delight to use.
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