Masonry oven more common as accessory features of a masonry heater. A compromise design known as the gueulard in France combines aspects of both internal and external-fired models. Masonry ovens remain popular in part because of the way their use affects cooking processes and food flavor. Where modern gas or electric ovens cook food by moving hot air around inside an insulated, lightweight box, a masonry oven works by soaking up heat, like a battery building up a full charge. When hot, the heavy oven walls release the heat slowly, for hours. Thus the food is cooked not only by hot air,
Earth structure principal directions, based on wall thickness, story height, bracing wall spacing, and the roof, loft and second story weight above earthen walls. Building techniques that are more ductile than brittle, like the contained earth type of earthbag, or tire walls of earthships, may better avoid collapse than brittle unreinforced earth. Contained gravel base courses may add base isolation potential. Wall containment can be added to techniques like adobe to resist loss of material that leads to collapse. Confined masonry is effective for adobe against quake forces of 0.3 g may be useful with earthen masonry. Many types of reinforcement can