Author Topic: Oven is here - guess this means we're really doing this! (Read 15620 times)

PizzaVera · « **Reply #120 on:** April 03, 2012, 12:48:14 AM »

first I will like to say, Bravo to Dan.. What an amazing job he did with that build. just perfect. and not to mention the patience. I am sure he is enjoying those pies.

second. Robyn from the first pizza you made, to the last one you posted on the other thread, what a difference and what a transformation you have accomplished. from that first pizza to these perfect pies you are pulling out of there now you have come a long way.

any chance of seeing a picture of the whole wall where the oven is coming into the dining room? I would like to see the difference compared to the very first picture you posted. must look cool in the room.

dellavecchia · « **Reply #121 on:** April 04, 2012, 07:18:55 PM »

Robyn - I have a quick question for you. Do you feel your oven could hold up to three pizzas at once as the distributor is claiming? What about just two? I am talking about 12 in pies. I do know the dimensions of the floor, and I can lay the pies out on paper, but I want some advice from someone who has actually used the oven and knows it's cooking space. Any feedback appreciated.

John

RobynB · « **Reply #122 on:** April 04, 2012, 07:38:23 PM »

John: Certainly 2, I haven't done it because I like cooking one at a time, but you could definitely fit two at once. If you knew what you were doing and could move quickly and delicately enough, I think you could shoe-horn 3 in there, but it would be tricky until you were used to doing it. The 950B actually is a bit over the 95 cm it's supposed to be (at least mine is) and mine is 39" which is a nice size. Because the dome is so low, it cooks very efficiently (once you get the hang of it) and doesn't require a ton of flame to have the flame going nicely across the dome. I could lay out plates in there (while it's cold) and take photos to show you if you'd like - I know where my coals would reach to, and what is my cooking surface, so I could see how 3 would fit that way. I usually cook 14+" pies and I know I could fit two in at once, probably not 3...

PizzaVera: Thanks so much for the kind words!! I will take photos of the dining room wall and post them later.

scott r · « **Reply #123 on:** April 04, 2012, 07:57:53 PM »

robyn, both John and I are interested in this oven, so sorry for all the questions. I love to bake both 1.5 minute pizzas and 4 minute pizzas. I was wondering if you think its fairly easy to bake at both speeds? I know neapolitan ovens are amazing with fast pizzas, some to the point where you dont even really need to spin the pies more than once. Unfortunately because of the low dome (or other factors) some of them actually create pizzas with pale undersides if you bake 4 minute pizzas in them. This usually occurs after 10 or so pies. Do you have any feelings on the ease of both slow and fast bakes in the four grand-mere?

Jackie Tran · « **Reply #124 on:** April 04, 2012, 08:17:13 PM »

Scott, from what I've seen of baking 4min pies in my wfo (15" dome), I prefer to cook the 4 min pies first on the way up rather than on the way down. Once I'm done, I'll load more wood in and bake NP at 60-90s. I can't imagine that you would have any trouble baking a 4min pie and getting an even bake in this oven. As long as you load the pie at your desired hearth temp (650f), you can then adjust your live flame for the top side, a slightly bigger flame for a taller ceiling and a smaller flame for a lower ceiling.

Go for it Scott and John. If I could do it over again, this FGM oven would be at the top of the list.

RobynB · « **Reply #125 on:** April 04, 2012, 08:48:15 PM »

Scott: I'm sorry but I'm not sure I can answer that. I've never tried to make a 4 minute pie. I understand your concern because of the low dome. If you want me to do an experiment for you, let me know. Or if you (or John) are ever in the Bay Area of California, you are more than welcome to come try it out.

scott r · « **Reply #126 on:** April 04, 2012, 09:04:38 PM »

Hey, thanks for the quick response. I already have wheelman testing out his blazing oven at that speed for me too. If you feel like trying a coal oven style (speed) pie, then do it, but I definitely don't expect you to! Depending on the oven and size of the pizza, this is usually a 650ish floor temp.

JConk007 · « **Reply #127 on:** April 04, 2012, 09:10:58 PM »

I would be Glad to try it in the earthstone or the mobile Scott. Next time I bake just bring over some of the dough and style you would like to try out not a problem. we'll set her up at 650 and give it go !
JOhn

shuboyje · « **Reply #128 on:** April 04, 2012, 09:21:50 PM »

My dome is 13" and the 18" pies I cooked last week and posted were 4 minute bakes with only coals, no open flame. I'm actually about to cook another one now once the temp drops, but from my experience this far I think the FGM would excel in the same situation.

RobynB · « **Reply #129 on:** April 04, 2012, 10:13:33 PM »

Scott: would my dough (Caputo 00 @ 58%, straight Neapolitan-style dough) be okay to try it at 650 for your purposes? Or do I need to make a BF dough or something?

dellavecchia · « **Reply #130 on:** April 05, 2012, 06:46:08 AM »

Thanks very much Robyn. I don't think I would ever be able to do three pies at once, but two pies with nice amount of room would be very nice. It looks like my trepidation between a 41.5 in oven and this one is unfounded.

BTW, I am looking at the 950 C "raised" dome version, which has a 12.8 in dome and larger mouth opening. I am waiting for drawings from the manufacturer. This would allow for baking bread in addition to pizza, but Scott and I are also concerned about the size of mouth, which would go to 11.5in high. Anyone care to comment on how this would affect the performance of the oven for neapolitan and 4 minute bakes?

John

dellavecchia · « **Reply #131 on:** April 05, 2012, 07:03:41 AM »

Here is a link to the technical data of the 950 C:

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B0c5Mg6oCkx9ZzR5NWgwVUlUb3FWTTM2bE1kQzFKdw

John

RobynB · « **Reply #132 on:** April 07, 2012, 04:27:04 PM »

Here are a few photos of the finished interior of the room. We went for understated at least for now, so it doesn't really stand out when it's closed up. Someday we may do a different wall treatment, we're seeing how the drywall and paint hold up. I have had to wash oil and soot off the wall a couple times, so we're not sure how it will look long-term. If it starts looking stained or dingy, we'll do something.

PizzaVera · « **Reply #133 on:** April 07, 2012, 10:32:55 PM »

Quote from: RobynB on April 07, 2012, 04:27:04 PM

Here are a few photos of the finished interior of the room. We went for understated at least for now, so it doesn't really stand out when it's closed up. Someday we may do a different wall treatment, we're seeing how the drywall and paint hold up. I have had to wash oil and soot off the wall a couple times, so we're not sure how it will look long-term. If it starts looking stained or dingy, we'll do something.

cool pictures, yeah looks minimal , very clean, rustic, Love the old iron fireplace ! bet ya that room is nice and warm in winter

TXCraig1 · « **Reply #134 on:** April 07, 2012, 11:54:14 PM »

That is very cool Robyn. You guys did a fantastic job on the project and the real results are off the charts incredible!

CL

Ev · « **Reply #135 on:** April 08, 2012, 09:54:07 AM »

I agree with Craig. I love the way the wood stove and oven compliment each other. Beautiful!

The Gizz · « **Reply #136 on:** April 09, 2012, 10:19:17 AM »

WoW Robyn

What a beautiful and cozy space for making pies. Just wondering, where do you store the wood? and do you use something like a cart while baking?

Tee

RobynB · « **Reply #137 on:** April 09, 2012, 11:15:39 AM »

Thanks, Tee! Since our house is also heated by wood only, storing wood is a way of life here. We live on 3 acres so we have room to store wood, the biggest issue is keeping rodents away from it. My outdoor cats are spoiled so they aren't doing their job as well as they should

For the pizza oven, I spend a few hours a couple times a year to split a bunch of very dry wood and we pack it into plastic and cardboard boxes that are sealed and stacked. We have them in my horse barn, in the water heater room, and in my husband's wood shop. We bring in a box as needed. We have a galvanized oval container that will hold a night's worth, that sits under the oven. When I'm pre-heating the oven, I use bigger logs that are set aside from our general wood supply which is usually bay or oak, occasionally madrone. I've found that once the oven is well-heated, it really doesn't require that much of the super-dry split stuff to maintain the flame I need to cook, so I probably only use half a box or less each night for cooking. The preheat uses more wood, but this oven is pretty efficient so I probably use less than others with bigger ovens.

jever4321 · « **Reply #138 on:** April 09, 2012, 07:22:00 PM »

Awesome thread. Love the idea and execution from start to finish. If you continue to have problems with soot or oil on the drywall, you could just cut the drywall out vertically and hang dura-rock. Then you could stick cultured stone, thin brick, or tile as a basic back splash. Glass tile would look good also and would be easy to clean. Thanks for sharing your experience here! Great job!

dellavecchia · « **Reply #139 on:** April 09, 2012, 07:24:27 PM »

Robyn - what is your firing time?

John