- 1). Calculate the number of bricks you need for your design and have them shipped to the kiln site. Use a location with a roof to protect the kiln from rain. Clear the area of any brush or rocks, and use a shovel and level to create a pad on which to place the kiln; it must be perfectly level.
- 2). Dig the hole for the ash pit in front of the kiln, as per your design specifications. You may need to stoke and clean out the firebox during firing, which means it should be accessible through a lower draft hole in the front. Install the draft openings and peepholes as you build the kiln, as these are critical to its proper operation.
- 3). Place cement blocks on the entire pad, which act as the base for the kiln. Check that the entire base is level. Cover the cement blocks with a fiber blanket to insulate the floor of the kiln. Mix the mortar to lay the bricks. Cover the fiber blanket and cement blocks with a layer of straight kiln bricks using mortar on the sides to hold them in place. Do not use mortar on the fiber blanket.
- 4). Build up the sidewalls of the firebox to the point where it meets the main firing chamber in front of it. Once you reach the top of the walls, build a wooden mold of the arch. Mark and cut plywood in half-circles, according to design specifications, and connect them using wood strapping. Use blocks to raise the form securely into place over the firebox.
- 5). Dry-fit an arch on the wooden mold using arch bricks. Do not use more than one row of straight bricks between arch bricks. Lay them lengthwise from both sides in an order that best fits the curve of the mold. The top brick is called a "key-brick," and is the last one placed in the arch (top-middle), completing the structure. Calculate a minimal amount of mortar between bricks as you dry-fit the arch.
- 6). Mortar the bricks into place using the same order of bricks in your dry-fit, starting at the front. Stagger the rows of bricks going lengthwise from front to back to avoid lateral seams across the top of the arch. Build up both sides and place your row of key-bricks in the top middle to complete the arch. Remove the blocks and form to let the arch settle and the mortar dry.
- 7). Build up the sides of the main chamber using minimal amounts of mortar to connect the bricks. Keep checking with a level that everything is straight. Place the peepholes and any side openings in the walls. Stagger every row and cut the bricks with the brick saw when necessary. Complete the walls and build the form for the main arch of the kiln. Repeat the same steps used to create the first arch over the firebox.
- 8). Build the chimney and back wall of the kiln attached to the main chamber once the arch is finished. Incorporate the exit flu at the back of the kiln going to the chimney. Build up the chimney in staggered rows to the correct height, according to the design specifications.
- 9). Place a heavy steel grate in the firebox over the ash-pit to complete the kiln. Load and unload pottery from the front or side. A side opening requires a seperate arch under the main arch, and dry-stacked bricks to open and close the opening. Let the mortar dry before testing.
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