Is it possible to build a pizza oven like this?

[Paul Bacino]

Pizza Oven from CinderBlocks?

Post Number:#1 by Paul Bacino » Tue Mar 05, 2013 7:27 am

Looking @ this--I think it could work with a few modifications.
http://gizmodo.com/5987009/the-easy-che ... r-backyard

1) I live in the country, so its possible to build this.

2) Looks like an option for making pizza a grilling meats/proteins-- by adjusting the top solid metal cover, it could act as a dome? To cook top of pizza

3) Reasonable cost and multi tasker

Thoughts ?

[HungryC]

The linked photos show a pit cooker, not a pizza oven. A true oven--something that retains and reflects heat--will require something with more thermal mass than cinder blocks. In addition, quality pizza requires an oven with a relatively low ceiling, in order for the pizza to brown/cook from above and below.

Not to mention that cinder blocks probably wouldn't stand up to repeated use in direct contact with a hot fire. (Hence firebricks.)

Good old cob (earth and straw) is the cheapest way to build a backyard WFO. Check out Kiko Denzers blog and books for complete info.

[scamhi]

I looked at the gizmondo link and that is a piece of junk.

Get a Big Green Egg or Primo ceramic cooker and don't look back.

[dcarch]

Add another couple bags of cement and a few rebars, and you will have a good tornado shelter. :-)

dcarch

[Martin Fisher]

Check out Kiko Denzers blog and books for complete info.

X2

Buy Kiko's book, it's excellent.

I used to have an earthen oven.

~Martin

[jvalentino]

If you search "mortarless" on pizzamaking you can get some ideas. This one looks nice and made some good pizza.

http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,23141.0.html

[Paul Bacino]

Tornado Shelter.. sounds good!! Its gonna be the season soon

Thanks for some of the ideas..

Paul

[HungryC]

I looked at the gizmondo link and that is a piece of junk.

Get a Big Green Egg or Primo ceramic cooker and don't look back.

I have a BGE, and I get far better pizzamaking results out of my home oven/broiler and a Baking Steel. www.bakingsteel.com So if the OP's primary purpose is pizza, then the $72 price tag of the Baking Steel is probably the most cost effective solution.

[RobertCollins]

A friend sent me the following which you may find interesting:

These are the links for building a pizza oven.

http://blackoven.idkhosting.com/wfob.html?.State=Thumbnails&page=29

http://www.fornobravo.com/pompeii_oven/pompeii_oven.html

http://www.fogazzo.com/html/glendale_oven_57.html

http://www.considine.net/mac/brickoven/

http://www.traditionaloven.com/pizza_wood_oven/pizza_wood_oven.html

http://www.traditionaloven.com/wwwboard/messages/625.html

below is the official rules for making pizza:

http://www.fornobravo.com/vera_pizza_napoletana/VPN_spec.html

These Are Neapolitan rules and all that. My friend who sent these lives near Santa Barbara so he did build the project. I would not hasve kept "correct", I would have at least added either an electric or gas fire starter.

Hope you all gain from his research.

Robert

Seattle

[Paul Bacino]

Thanks

[larryroohr]

I looked at the gizmondo link and that is a piece of junk.

Get a Big Green Egg or Primo ceramic cooker and don't look back.

I have a BGE, and I get far better pizzamaking results out of my home oven/broiler and a Baking Steel. www.bakingsteel.com So if the OP's primary purpose is pizza, then the $72 price tag of the Baking Steel is probably the most cost effective solution.

Same here. I just got the pizza steel and the oven spring in my crust is very much improved. That and with no-knead dough always in the fridge we've been pizza eating fools lately.

[Unpopular Poet]

Does anyone have any experience with these ovens? http://www.brickwoodovens.com/index.html

I find my large BGE to be slightly small for making pizzas -- there is too much heat loss in my experience.

The cost of this oven is about the same as an XL BGE -- (which in reality, I believe only to be worth to me it for the pizza making - everything else has always been accomplished on my large)

Any thoughts or experiences with the brickwood ovens?

I am thinking summer project.

[HungryC]

Does anyone have any experience with these ovens? http://www.brickwoodovens.com/index.html

I find my large BGE to be slightly small for making pizzas -- there is too much heat loss in my experience.

The cost of this oven is about the same as an XL BGE -- (which in reality, I believe only to be worth to me it for the pizza making - everything else has always been accomplished on my large)

Any thoughts or experiences with the brickwood ovens?

I am thinking summer project.

No direct experience with Brickwood, but just a few observations--the Brickwood oven form is most emphatically NOT an oven shaped for pizza. True pizza ovens have low, wide domes (see the Napoletana shape at Breadstone Ovens or the low-ceiling oven shapes at Forno Bravo). The whole point of a WFO for pizza is the intense heat reflected downward by the dome--it's what allows the upper and lower sides of the pizza to cook at the same rate. Without the downward reflecting heat, you'll get performance no better than your BGE.

Furthermore, the gurus at pizzamaking.com don't have very kind things to say about the brickwood design. See this thread, and you can search for others.

Since I got my Baking Steel, all my WFO desires have been cured. But if I were buying an oven (or an oven insert to finish in place), I'd buy the Napoletana oven linked above from Antoine at Breadstone.

[dcarch]

I am not sure. Bricks have no ability to reflect heat. All bricks do is to absorb heat from the fire by conduction, than re-radiate the heat (IR radiation).

Perhaps a flat roofed oven will give better even baking?

dcarch

[rotuts]

I think dcarch is very correct. the shape of the ceiling is less important than its distance from the top of the pizza. if the ceiling is 'higher' it radiates less to the top of the pizza by the cube (?) of the distance or so you see.

ultra hot pizza ovens might give you a stunning pizza with say some wetter dough so it doesnt dry out.

the test on this would be the Student of the Pie that had Two steel pizza squares and heated both up in the oven until ( ultra hot? or what ever ) and the top steel was on a rack say 6 " above the bottom one and you slid the pizza on the bottom steel and well ...

pizza Nirvana? think of all the IR and etc heat from that top Steel!

I do think the shape of these outdoor ovens adds a Cool-ness to what you eat.

but Id bet the Farm if I had one on the Dual Steel in your oven approach.

Edited March 27, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[Paul Bacino]

Interesting... Rotuts

[rotuts]

Sooooooooo Mr Beef: you going to take the Plunge for the E Gulletter and study this?

I think that those steel plates are about

http://bakingsteel.com/shop/baking-steel/

110 a PIECE? go to a scrap yard. get to locally cut for 25 total.

but I will tell you this: after you get a Smoke Alarm-en this would be the way to go.

[Paul Bacino]

Rotuts,

I already have SS plates : one is 14x20x 0.5 inch ( quite a heavy beast I must say ) and the other is 0.25. It's just not that same Carbon steel plates I spec those are.

I know you might get some seasoning with the your above mentioned plates but I might have to try mine?

Never would have thought of trying that. Dont know if the racks can hold the weight with the heat.

cheers

[rotuts]

another idea is to use Patio Bricks: I 'tempered' some patio bricks from Home depot a while back to make an oven for some sour dough bread.

it worked fine:

these were 8" x 15" by 2 " very heavy!

http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/100345134?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=patio+bricks+8+x+15&storeId=10051&N=5yc1v&R=100345134#.UVM6lIVJMUk

you have to understand that if you choose to use these: if not 'tempered' to remove the water, they might explode!

if you are of a 'certain age' get a thick plywood sheet that fits over you oven door while you load them: if you drop one over that glass you are out of luck for a repair!

2" are good for your door.

Put these on the top ( ? two ? ) rack.

you could use two on the bottom and save 100 bucks but: you need a conductive sheet to put on top of that

Please be aware this this is not designed for this and if you are not carfull you will hurt yourself and your family!

but radiation? you got it.

[rotuts]

Well Mr Beef: Id love to see the results of your experiments:

as we all know Thin is Thin and Thick is Thick

and there there is the Smoke!

[rotuts]

I also think that each rack in our oven will hold each just try it!

with not Heat On!

for those with out Mr. Beef's stuff the 'patio bricks' might be interesting to try

but please understand the issues this these!

Boom! no glass in the Door!

Boom!

Edited March 27, 2013 by rotuts (log)