How to Build an Outdoor Brick Oven Workshop June 15-20, 2017

H
earthMasters, Inc. is presenting an outdoor brick oven workshop the week prior to the MCSC conference at the same location at 1134 S Pearl Street in Independence, MO. Gene Padgitt, an award-winning master mason, will be heading up the workshop.

Participants will learn everything about an outdoor brick oven from the footing, to the base, oven, insulation, chimney, and finishing work. There is an art and science to building a good oven, and it is not something most people can tackle on their own with out taking at least one class first.This class is for all skill levels. 

A certificate of completion will be issued to participants who successfully complete the course. A maximum of 8 attendees will be accepted. The cost is normally $1,200 per person but we have a special first-time attendee rate of  $850 per person for this workshop. The price  includes all lunches, handouts, and a film or photos of the project after it is completed. The CSIA has awarded 16 CEU credits for the class.  

For newbies: Take this class and learn the basics of masonry and get experience working with block, brick, firebrick,and mortar. So take this class to get hands-on masonry experience!

Gene Padgitt has 34 years of industry experience. He is a State Certified Private Fire Investigator, CSIA Certified Chimney Sweep, NFI Certified Gas Specialist, Licensed Mechanical Contractor, and holds a degree in HVACR Technology. Padgitt has been an instructor for 20 years and he and his wife, Marge, decided to open a training center in answer to requests from industry professionals.

Future courses will include Introduction to masonry, masonry heaters, and fireplaces.

For more information and to register visit www.hearthmasters.net or call 816-461-3665.

Outdoor Wood-fired Ovens More Popular than Ever

By Sheryl Isenhour

If you have never eaten a pizza that was baked in a wood-fired oven before, you are missing out! Many pizzerias use these types of ovens, and the popularity of these cooking appliances has grown so much that people are installing a wood-fire oven in their outdoor kitchens. Wood-fired ovens are the oldest way of taking the kitchen outside. Many different cultures have used wood fired ovens since ancient times, but the most famous ovens are the ones that were designed by the ancient Romans. Still found in homes across Italy, these wood fired ovens resemble a large round chamber with an opening in the front for venting. These ovens are constructed from stone or terra cotta brick.

You never have to worry about it being too cold to use a wood-fire oven because of its design. These ovens resemble a large round chamber, and the wood is burned inside the chamber. The fire produces very high temperatures with a range between 500 and 700 degrees Fahrenheit. If you and your family love to eat pizza, you can already imagine the benefits of having an outdoor wood-fired oven, but we would like to tell you more about the advantages of these ovens.

Whether you are preparing a pre-made, homemade, or frozen pizza, your oven cannot get any hotter than 500 degrees, so it can take up to 45 minutes (including time to preheat the oven) for the pizza to be ready. Depending on the thickness of the dough, you can cook a pizza in a wood-fired oven in just two to five minutes. You can cook more than just pizza in a wood-fired oven. Good foods to try include breads, roasts of any type of meat and vegetables, and casseroles.

Lots of folks think wood fired ovens are specifically for pizza. That’s partially true — you can make some amazing pizza in your oven, since the best pizza crust really needs to be cooked up crisp quickly and at super high heat, which a wood fired oven does exceptionally well. But your cooking options certainly don’t stop at pizza. Bake bread, roast vegetables and meats, make salmon steaks that’ll wow dinner guests, stews, sandwiches, desserts… Just about anything you might make in your regular oven can be made in your wood fired oven, and we might be biased, but we think everything comes out even better. Plus, when you’re entertaining, you don’t end up running in and out while everyone’s enjoying each other’s company in your outdoor room.

When you cook fruits and vegetables over an open flame in a wood-fired oven, they cook very quickly, which helps them retain certain nutrients and antioxidants. Studies have shown that longer cooking times deplete the nutritional value of food.

Other than giving food an enhanced flavor, wood fired ovens give you versatility, ambiance, and reliability. Your friends and family will enjoy the complete sensory experience of sitting by the stove while your food is cooking.

Whenever we meet a food-loving client who’s interested in creating or updating their outdoor room, our first thought is a wood-fired oven. If you’re really into cooking — or eating — a wood fired oven not only gives you a whole new world of culinary options, it makes your outdoor living space that much more beautiful and functional, too.

You do not need any electricity or gas to use a wood-fired oven, and for the environmentally conscious, this is quite a plus. If you are looking for a way to reduce your energy consumption, cooking in a wood-fired oven is a good choice.

Also — you don’t have to cook in it to enjoy it. You can still circle around and enjoy the warmth and ambience, maybe make some s’mores if you felt moved to. A wood fired oven is kind of like having the best of both worlds — a fireplace when you want it, an oven to cook in when you want that too.

Your wood fired oven can be the centerpiece of a complete outdoor kitchen.

Sheryl Isenhour
IBD Outdoor Rooms
IBD Outdoor Rooms is located in Concord, NC. We manufacture outdoor living comonents which include grill islands, fireplacs, fire pits, wood-fired ovens, Kamodo Kaddies, and other modular units. Units made to your specs and then shipped to you for onside finishes. Our website is www.ibdodr.com and facebook https://www.facebook.com/IBDODR

New Wood-Fired Magazine

HearthMasters, Inc. announced today that their new Wood-Fired Magazine will be published this summer.  Editor Marge Padgitt has been working on the project for the past two years and is ready to publish the first issue.

Wood-Fired Magazine covers design, construction, maintenance and use of wood-fired appliances. This includes chimneys, fireplaces, masonry heaters, heating appliances, smokers, bake ovens, cooking and baking. Writers interview expert chefs, restaurant owners, masons, tile makers, manufacturers, and chimney sweeps to produce in-depth articles with quality photos of their work.

Chefs, designers, architects, builders, masons, chimney sweeps, and homeowners will find the articles interesting and informative. The magazine will be available in print and via digital download at different price points. Subscriptions are available. 

Marge Padgitt is the author of 12 books including The Chimney and Hearth Pro's Resource Guide and the Homeowner's Operation Manual for Chimneys, Fireplaces, and Heating Appliances. She is a national speaker and has been heavily involved in the chimney industry for almost 30 years.

Article guidelines, calendar, classified, and display advertising information are available at www.hearthmasters.net.

Outdoor Heating and Cooking

By Marge Padgitt

The outdoor room concept is very popular across the U.S., and Kansas City is no exception. Outdoor fireplaces are definitely all about aesthetics, but they do keep the area in front of them warm, too. Sitting around the fireplace on a cool fall or spring evening is more comfortable and encourages people to stay outside longer. And roasting a few marshmallows for s’mores can’t be beat.

Outdoor fireplaces can actually be built more efficiently than a standard box-style fireplace by building in a Rumford style. Count Rumford created this design in the 1700’s and it has not been improved on since. Instead of a box with straight walls, the fireplace is built with a sloping back wall, angled side walls, and smooth throat transition. This allows more heat to be directed out of the fireplace—about 40% more heat than a box style. So when planning an outdoor masonry fireplace, homeowners may want to consider this method.

Fireplace by Gene Padgitt

Another trend that is becoming more popular is the outdoor bake oven. This is a site-built brick oven or a pre-fabricated Italian oven that can be built alongside or on top of a fireplace, or as a stand-alone appliance. This is a “black” oven, meaning that wood is burned inside the oven where it turns black from the soot, then as the temperature gets higher the soot burns off. The ashes are removed after approximately three hours, leaving a 700-degree oven with even temperatures that are perfect for baking delicious pizzas. As the oven cools, artisan breads, and even whole meals can be cooked. Some folks “fire up” the oven weekly and bake their own breads, which are much healthier than store-bought bread.

My husband, Gene Padgitt is a master mason who builds fireplaces and ovens.  He built us an outdoor bake oven in our own back yard so we could entertain, but it has turned into more than that because now we cook our own breads weekly and often cook entire meals in this oven.

We often have guests over to have fun throwing pizza dough and making their own pizza, and everyone who tries it says that the pizza from the bake oven is by far the best they ever had.

Every Thanksgiving the entire family comes over to have roasted turkey from the wood-fired oven.  The flavor can't be matched in our gas oven!  Now we can't get the family to go anywhere else! 

For more information on outdoor fireplaces and bake ovens please visit www.chimkc.com.

Wood-fired oven built by Gene Padgitt