New life of old things: a cast iron bath stove

The advantages of cast iron

The antique bathrooms our fathers and grandfathers used were massive. Unfortunately, over the years, the coating becomes unusable, it would be more rational to redesign the bathroom for something no less useful. There are plenty of opportunities for this. A stove or barbecue is far from an exception. Crafted owners of suburban areas manage to build with their own hands from a cast-iron bath:

• decorative pond;
• a couple of garden benches;
• creative flower bed or garden bed;
• miniature greenhouse;
• swimming pool for children;
• a brazier for a bath.

Cast iron has several main advantages:

1. Resistant to high temperatures. Even a brick-built stove begins to crumble over the years and requires repair.
2. Increased strength. In this regard, cast iron will give odds even to steel.
3. High thermal conductivity. Heats up quickly and begins to heat the room (the same bathhouse, for example) earlier than other materials.
4. Resistant to open flames. You don't have to worry about compliance with fire safety rules.

However, it is worth mentioning the shortcomings. Cast iron, firstly, is fragile, and secondly, it lends itself to rust. You should not exert a mechanical effect on it, and to combat corrosion, the surface is treated with specific compounds.

Video "How to make a stove from a cast iron bath"

From this video you will learn how to make a stove from a cast iron bath with your own hands.

How to build

To create a furnace, you will need additional materials and a set of tools. Make sure you have at hand:

• grinder (grinder) with wheels for working on metal and for grinding;
• electric drill with a set of drills;
• hammer and files;
• plumb line and building level;
• Master OK;
• construction gun for applying sealant.

In addition to the cast-iron bath itself, the following are also useful:

• steel four- or five-millimeter sheet;
• refractory bricks;
• grate for the grate;
• Rabitz;
• cement, sand, water and clay;
• metal corners, bolts, nuts, washers;
• 12 cm chimney pipe;
• sealant.

It is advisable to work in the yard, since this type of activity cannot be called clean (the bathroom will have to be cut in half into two identical halves). The seriousness of the process is evidenced by the fact that the master is strongly recommended:

• dress up in protective overalls;
• wear glasses and gloves;
• use a respirator.

Base

Since a cast iron stove weighs a lot, it needs some kind of foundation to work properly. It is formed on the basis of a concrete solution or laid out from refractory bricks.

The work on laying the foundation is carried out in several stages:

1. A rectangular trench half a meter deep is dug.
2. At the bottom, a sand-crushed stone pillow is being built, a film for waterproofing is laid on top.
3. A formwork is being built that rises above the ground level by 25-30 cm.
4. The voids are reinforced, then poured with a concrete mixture (1 part of cement to 3 parts of sand). Another way is to fill the entire volume with bricks, fastening them with cement mortar of M-300 or higher grade. The bricks are placed on the ribs.

Assembly of cameras

To create a barbecue oven, you need both halves of the bath: one for the fuel chamber, the other for cooking. If you plan to make a sauna stove or a country fireplace, you can get by with one part.

The sequence for assembling a two-chamber cooking oven:

1. On the finished concrete foundation, put that half of the bathtub in which there is no drain hole (put downside down, with a cut towards the facade). This will be a firebox.
2. The top is covered with a metal sheet cut according to the bath pattern. If you make holes in the sheet, you get a hob.
3. A hole must be cut in the sheet for the chimney pipe. Insert the pipe, then weld to the sheet.
4. On top of the sheet, put the second part turned upside down (cooking-oven). In it, the drain hole is pre-sealed with a heat-resistant sealant. In addition, a chimney hole is cut to match the bottom hole.
5. After installing the chimney, the remaining gaps are filled with a heat-resistant sealant.
6. Along the entire line of joining of both halves, holes are drilled with a pitch of 20 cm, through which the chambers are pulled together with M10 or M12 bolts. Tighten the bolts without fanaticism, remember the fragility of cast iron.
7. In the lower chamber at a height of 15–20 cm, screws are screwed in or corners are fixed, creating supports for the grate grate. This is an important detail that will not allow the burning fuel to crumble downward when the grate is shifted, and when laying new logs, the grate will not move or tilt.

Thermal insulation

To reduce heat loss, the cooking chamber is insulated. For this:

1. A mesh-netting is tightly applied to the upper half.
2. Along the perimeter, the mesh is attached to the brickwork.
3. The mesh frame is filled with the prepared clay solution (medium viscosity).
4. When the clay dries, a finishing layer is applied on top.

For the time of solidification, the structure is covered with polyethylene, leaving access to air. When the clay is completely hardened, it is decorated with lime whitewash in several layers.

Finishing

The lower hob can be tiled with a brick wall. It must completely cover the rear wall of the firebox and both sides. If desired, the front part of the furnace is also easily formed, only openings for the doors are left. The upper line of the masonry should coincide with the level of the cooking compartment, the bottom is made slightly wider than the top.

A shutter is needed for the upper chamber. It is made of metal, and the shape matches the curve of the bathtub. The handle is insulated to avoid scalding.

The upper part of the pipe is protected from precipitation with a special agent.

Although the brickwork looks beautiful, it can be additionally plastered and painted, mosaicked or finished with natural stone.

Bathtub Cutting Tips

To do this, you need a grinder. Marker across the bath mark the cutting line (inside and outside). It is more convenient to cut on the outside, although this does not really matter.

In the process, the tool must be periodically turned off so that it does not fail.

The bowl is fixed during cutting so that the cutting disc does not get stuck. Be careful, because a broken canvas can injure you with its fragments. Do not hit the bath with force - remember that cast iron is fragile.

All work will take a maximum of an hour, it all depends on the skills of using the grinder. The cutting process is carried out as follows:

1. Peel off the enamel layer along the line. This will reduce the risk of chipping at the edges.
2. Cast iron is cut in small sections, about 10 cm each, so that the apparatus does not overheat.
3. It is easier to work at an angle with a sander. In this case, the enamel does not exfoliate, the incision comes out even.
4. Upon completion, the sawn parts are placed on supports so that they do not fall or break.

This is not to say that creating a country stove from an old cast-iron bath is an easy task. It requires experience with welding, skills in erecting brickwork, serious equipment. But spending time and money, the owners will receive an excellent design that will serve its owners for many years.