Saltillo tile for pizza stone?

[garyd]

Is using unglazed saltillo tile for a pizza stone really safe? Could it contain any harmful chemicals, lead or dyes? I found a 12"x12" tile at Homedepot but the clerk said he didn't know if it contained any harmful substances. The tile is made in Mexico so I don't know what their standards are.

[Boy Hits Car]

Don't know if this will help, however, when I was looking for unglazed tiles at Lowe's I found a brand that seemed OK.  When I looked at the box they came in, the bottom of the box indicated that the tile contained silica and could be harmful if broken.  Look on the box for any kind of warning similiar to that.

[dirtydave]

Real Mexican saltillo tile is made of just clay and water and fired in wood burning kiln.  If that is what you have, you should be fine.  The problem is that some tiles called saltillo are not really saltillo, just look alikes, usually a procelin tile.  The ingredients in those can vary a lot, and heating them may not be salubrious.   

[SemperFi]

Saltillo tiles are what I use in my oven.  Though I did take the time to condition them, ie: washed in warm water, both front and back, allowed to air dry outside in the sun for two days, then placed them in a cold oven and gradually brought the temperature up to 550 degrees over the course of 5 hours.  I let them bake at max temperature for 1 hour.  Even after all this, I still had a tile crack on me after 4 months of usage (breads and pizza), and I got one with a hairline crack.  But at $1 a piece, its worth it...a heck of alot better than the 30 bills for the "true pizza stones".

[jcguerra]

They work great! I actually live in Saltillo, Mexico. Here they make them up to 15 x 15" so I bought one for 11 pesos=1 US dollar. didn't really bother to clean it to much, because it does loose some of the clay, but like the other post mentioned, they are made of clay and water and fired at 1600 Degrees  F.
Just dont get them wet and stick em in a hot oven. Insert your tile in the oven and then turn it on, same way for cooling.  I had great results. Can't belive I live in this town, and got the advice to use Saltillo Tile frome this site.....thanks guys.

JC Guerra

[StephenS]

I have had great success using Super Saltillo tiles up to 800 deg F.

[buceriasdon]

Great looking pizza!! I can imagine it tasted just as good :-) My next project is using these tiles for a friend`s pizza oven. Don also in Mexico

[buceriasdon]

I can`t find the later posts, though I marked them Unread, about some possible patent infringement on the 2stone which is patent pending,meaning nothing,really. However I can build anything I like for my personal use, and so can anyone else, well except a still for distilling alcohol, actually here in Mexico I can, but I digress. Anyone can build an exact copy of the 2Stone for personal use. It has become public domain. He posted it here. I have built ovens very similar to Willard`s and will continue to do so, I wish him much success, but no way this forum could have some lawsuit come down, because we are not selling them and taking away from his profits from his work.  Well, I am selling something similar, I came up with a similar idea and I sell them here in Mexico, not copies, my design. I too used unglazed tiles, not pizza stones. Quite frankly, I would be surprised if a patent was granted, and I have a couple of patents myself.
 Warm regards,Don in Mexico

[Pete-zza]

Don,

You didn't see the posts because, at StephenS's request, I deleted his posts relating to a design he implemented using multiple tiles. Willard does not yet have a patent, so there can be no issue about infringement at this juncture nor has there been any intimations of such. However, your view on liability for patent infringement in the U.S. is not correct. Until a patent issues, one might escape liability for infringement, and you might escape it because you are in Mexico and beyond the reach of a U.S. patent, but once a U.S. patent issues and infringement is proven in the U.S., the infringer is subject to a claim of patent infringement. Assuming that Willard perfected his filing in the U.S. in a timely manner and otherwise complied with the U.S patent laws, his disclosure in a public setting, as on this forum, does not put his invention into the public domain or confer personal rights (a license) on anyone solely by virtue of such disclosure. Of course, I don't know any of the details surrounding Willard's filing of his patent application, but I don't want anyone reading your post to think that they can freely copy Willard's invention without exposing themselves to potential liability. Of course, if no patent ever issues, then that is the end of it. But, until then, we should respect what Willard is trying to do to get a patent on his invention.

The patent pending status is a meaningful exercise and puts individuals on notice of a filing and, while no claim can be made for infringement during the pendency period, a claim can be made once the patent issues, including possible claims for multiple damages because of willful infringement and other forms of relief. For a simplified explanation, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent_pending.

Peter

[buceriasdon]

Peter,  Thank you for your thoughtful reply, as always.But Peter, sorry, you are incorrect.  I can build an exact copy of whatever I want for personal use, as long as I do not infringe on the trademark patent and sell it as an orginal idea. I am free where ever I am to build an exact copy of of say a Fender Stratocaster guitar, I just can`t sell it as a Fender Stratocaster guitar. That is how the laws reads.I am free and so is anyone else to build something that looks like a 2Stone pizza oven for your personal use, and I clearly stated that in my previous message. I hope Willard has termendous success with his design, I publicly and privately have stated that, none the less, a patent does not prevent a person to outright copy a trademarked and patented design for personal use. Here is the real deal, one can make an improvement to a previous patent, it happens all the time, and be issued a new patent, even though some one else came up with the orginal idea. If you like I can produce numerous documents that prove my point. The tile oven we are speaking of in no way copies Williard`s design, where is the rotating base? Willard`s design does not include vertical tiles. This one does, as does my design.I do stand corrected in my first post on Willard`s design. I do believe his lazy susan rotating base to be quite patentable, outside of that, it`s a single pizza oven that many,including myself have built and have posted many pics of. Also, yes, his applying for a patent is a warning to others that someone has claimed credit for a concept and in the future may take legal action against those that that sell this design as orginal.
 Warm regards, Don

Don,

You didn't see the posts because, at StephenS's request, I deleted his posts relating to a design he implemented using multiple tiles. Willard does not yet have a patent, so there can be no issue about infringement at this juncture nor has there been any intimations of such. However, your view on liability for patent infringement in the U.S. is not correct. Until a patent issues, one might escape liability for infringement, and you might escape it because you are in Mexico and beyond the reach of a U.S. patent, but once a U.S. patent issues and infringement is proven in the U.S., the infringer is subject to a claim of patent infringement. Assuming that Willard perfected his filing in the U.S. in a timely manner and otherwise complied with the U.S patent laws, his disclosure in a public setting, as on this forum, does not put his invention into the public domain or confer personal rights (a license) on anyone solely by virtue of such disclosure. Of course, I don't know any of the details surrounding Willard's filing of his patent application, but I don't want anyone reading your post to think that they can freely copy Willard's invention without exposing themselves to potential liability. Of course, if no patent ever issues, then that is the end of it. But, until then, we should respect what Willard is trying to do to get a patent on his invention.

The patent pending status is a meaningful exercise and puts individuals on notice of a filing and, while no claim can be made for infringement during the pendency period, a claim can be made once the patent issues, including possible claims for multiple damages because of willful infringement and other forms of relief. For a simplified explanation, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patent_pending.

Peter

[Pete-zza]

Don,

I did not want this thread to turn into a discussion about patent law and matters involving Willard's design that are yet to be resolved, but I stand by my last post. The U.S. Patent Office will ultimately decide whether Willard should be granted a patent and the legal scope of that patent based on the prior art that may apply to Willard's invention. I'd be happy to discuss the matter further by PMs if you'd like.

Peter

[buceriasdon]

Agreed Peter, Perhaps we can also discuss how many national pizza chain recipes are also posted here, studied, posts exchanged to duplicate their recipes,seemingly for private use only, of course. You yourself have done so. One has to wonder what their protection is.
        Don

Don,

I did not want this thread to turn into a discussion about patent law and matters involving Willard's design that are yet to be resolved, but I stand by my last post. The U.S. Patent Office will ultimately decide whether Willard should be granted a patent and the legal scope of that patent based on the prior art that may apply to Willard's invention. I'd be happy to discuss the matter further by PMs if you'd like.

Peter

[StephenS]

I have gone through a box of Saltillo tile for they break each time they are used.  The tiles do cook well but if you plan to cook pizzas more than a few times, my suggestions is to investment in a good pizza stone.

Regards

[Fingerstyle]

Big fan of firebrick splits here - all of the cost advantage of tile but much more durable and better baking properties as well (more mass = better heat retention). Also stands up to intense direct heat better (LBE, charcoal grill, etc.)