Life in Washington - The Building of Our Outdoor Kitchen

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For our seventh wedding anniversary we decided to give each other the gift of a wood-fire oven.  It was something we
had talked about for a few years, and we decided the time was right to turn our dream into a reality.  This webpage will
capture the progress of the build.
   
We decided to have the kitchen built next to the garage to give easy access to the house, and it also allows us to put all the
charcoal and wood burning equipment together.
Kitchen Site 1 Kitchen Site 2
                                    
Kitchen Site 3  
     
December 5, 2008:  The oven arrives.  We opted to go with an Earthstone Wood-Fire Oven.  Model 110 to be specific. 
It has a cooking area of 43".  That would give us plenty of room to cook multiple pizzas and lots of other goodies. 
The oven weighs 1,700 pounds!
Oven Arrives 1 Oven Arrives 2
     
Oven Arrives 3  
     
December 31, 2008:  Our contractor starts the project.  
Site Prep Begins 1 Site Prep Begins 2
    
January 2, 2009:  The gravel arrives. January 5, 2009:  Forms are built.
Gravel Arrives Forms for Pad are Built
   
January 6, 2009:  Concrete is poured for the pad.
Pouring the Pad 1 Pouring the Pad 2
   
January 7, 2009:  The completed pad.  This makes our dream seem a little more real.
The Completed Pad  
    
January 13, 2009:  Block laying begins.  
Block Laying 1 Block Laying
     
January 22, 2009:  Slowly it is beginning to look like something.  The oven support area is starting to take shape.
Block Laying - January 22, 2009 Block Laying
     
February 2, 2009:  The floor tiles are laid on a six inch concrete slab.  Forms are built for our counters, and actual oven is
put together for the first time.  It's starting to look REAL for the first time!
Oven Floor Tiles Counter Top Forms
     
Actual Oven Inside of Actual Oven
    
February 9, 2009:  The oven's protective housing is being built.  
Oven Blocks Laying Oven Blocks
     
February 13, 2009:  The curing process begins.  For six days we light a small fire and allow it to burn for one hour.  After an hour,
we replace the door and let the fire slowly burn out.  This dries out the inside of the oven and prepares it for use.
Day 1 Curing Fire Day 1 Curing Fire
    
Day 1 Curing Fire  
     
February 18, 2009:  Our first dinner in the wood fire oven... roasted chicken thighs and assorted vegetables.  
First Night of Cooking First Night of Cooking
    
First Night of Cooking  
    
February 19, 2009:  Our first pizzas!  
First Pizzas First Pizzas
     
First Pizzas  
     
April 18, 2009:  It's been pretty slow going, but the kitchen is coming together.  We didn't like the concrete counters so we had black granite tile installed.  We have lights at both the counters and on the side of the house.  And we purchased a new patio table to seat 6.
Lights Lights
   
House Lights Patio Furniture
     
Patio Furniture Patio Furniture
    
June 7, 2009:  99% done!   The black metal accent pieces gives the oven a very nice, finished look.  The stucco guys did a fantastic job.  This is such a nice area.
Our Oven Outdoor Kitchen
    
Outdoor Kitchen Outdoor Kitchen
    
Outdoor Kitchen