Soapstone Oven Floor

[tuckerdog99]

Thanks in advance for any comments

I am looking at having a WFO built and one of the questions is using Soapstone as the oven floor
Doing a search on this site I have seen posts on the use of Soapstone, however I am having a hard time pinning down whether it is a real improvement to the ovens performance

Taking advantage of the expertise here I would appreciate any and all opinions

Thanks again in advance
Michael

[TXCraig1]

IMO, soapstone's thermal conductivity (6.4 W/mK) is way too high for the floor of a WFO if you plan to bake at Neapolitan temps or anything close to that. You will scorch your bottoms instantly. I think the right number is in the range of 0.3 - 0.6 W/mK. Certainly not more than 1.1 W/mK.

If you never plan to bake over 600F, maybe, but why mess with a WFO if that is the case?

[tuckerdog99]

Thanks for the response
From your comment it would seem that excess floor heat would also be a problem if the oven was being used for baking bread etc.
I guess the implication is that you would end up with an unbalanced heat profile in relation to the size of your heat source, ie fire?
Thanks again
Michael