Here's a valuable perspective on the benefits of smaller, easier, cheaper, "faster-cooling" ovens, and a working baker's comparison w/the classic Alan Scott brick oven design (which isn't always the best option for someone who wants to start small and simple). The baker is Noah Elbers, who runs a small bakery in New Hampshire. There are some nice photos of him and his oven(s) on the web, but he's clearly spending his time in the bakery rather than on the computer -- hurrah! He does participate in the brickoven group on yahoogroups, which is where this comment came from. It is worth . . .
Terra Preta and “the Biochar Solution”
The Biochar Solution: Carbon Farming and Climate Change, by Albert BatesA review by Kiko Denzer Living trees lock up carbon, and burning releases it. That's (part of) the conflict-ridden equation of global warming. Albert Bates has been at the front lines of the warming conflict since his 1990 title, Climate in Crisis. In this book, he defines biocharĀ as charred (pyrolized) organic matter intended to be applied to soil in farming or gardening. His biochar solution merely asks us to partially burn our waste wood and other carbonaceous matter into charcoal, and add it to our soil where it . . .
Adding masonry to increase wood stove efficiency
Adding masonry to increase wood stove efficiency By adding masonry and mud to an old cast-iron wood stove, I greatly increased its efficiency -- and it even has an oven! (note the wooden door on the right, just above the iron stove door). The wood that used to over-heat me, briefly, in the morning, now keeps me comfortably warm all day, and into the next morning (depending on how long I fire it and how cold it is). And, unlike most iron stoves, it no longer generates that fierce, dry heat that you can only moderate by burning wet wood, or by damping the fire down to a messy, smoldering . . .