I wonder if the difference in expansion between the steel and the cob might cause cracks. The usual form for hornos is a shaped pile of sand. If you are looking for a box shape then sand isn't so good for that, but a beehive shape is relatively easy.
Cinder block fireplaces are generally lined with fire brick to keep the cmu's away from the intense heat.
spaceman All opinions expressed or implied are subject to change without notice upon receipt of new information. http://Starship-Enterprises.Net
On 10/7/2010 7:02 AM, JUDITH WILLIAMS wrote:
I am getting ready to build 2 small kiva fireplaces. I have a good book that shows just what to do (Clay Culture by Carole Crews) using adobe blocks. I have a few blocks but not enough. I'm wondering if I can form up the shape of the fireplace with welded wire and rebar then cob over it using a mix with a small amount of straw in it.
Other than that what I have are a lot of those half size cinder blocks that are left over from another fireplace I built. I could cut them to shape with a tile saw. The walls are papercrete so I think I will gauge it out and replace it with pumicecrete right behind where the fireplace will go.
The Making of Papercrete DVD now available on Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Making-Papercrete-Judith-Williams/dp/B0040ZNE9A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1283998627&sr=8-1
Follow progress on the new project at http://www.papercretebyjudith.com/blog
More papercrete info at http://squidoo.com/papercretebyjudith
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