Must have Charcoal/Ash Rake to Clean Baking Hearths of Tiny Pizza Ovens

[Pizza Shark]

So I took delivery of an OONI Koda 16 propane fired oven recently and first night baking I realized it was tough to clean the residual scorched peel dust from the hearth after a bake to prep it for following bake.  I ended up using my peel to push it all to the back of oven and would clean it out the next day when cooled (that involved pulling the hearth, pulling out the vacuum cleaner and shoving it in there, etc)  Total PITA. 

I looked at various brushes but concluded they wouldn't work well and also various charcoal/ash rakes that were $5 cheaper and absolute garbage with lousy reviews. 

Then I found this little wonder...  One-piece & solid stainless steel from Weber for $24.  No rivets, no screws, no 2-piece pole to screw together with a rake attachment to attach.  Small enough to fit in there all around, strong enough to use like a long chisel and scrape away anything burned on and it allows me to quickly rake the scorched dust and debris from all the way at the back of the oven to the front and out of it.  It is 21" long with a 4" wide rake and a hair over 1 3/4" tall so it will fit in there all around.  I can use it for my grill too (which is what it was really intended for).  Wonderful little thing for anyone who has one of these little pizza ovens like OONI and others that ya can't fit much into to sweep and clean the hearth.  This thing will outlast me and I'll just leave it hanging outside by the oven year-round.  An absolute "must have" in my opinion if you have one of these little ovens.           

[Mark Polo]

Interesting.  My surface is usually over 900, so any residue from the previous bake is usually incinerated, so I just use a copper tube like a straw to blow away any residue ( ashes ).  I have seen brass bristle brushes, but worry about a stray bristle coming loose.  What are others using?

[Travinos_Pizza]

Interesting.  My surface is usually over 900, so any residue from the previous bake is usually incinerated, so I just use a copper tube like a straw to blow away any residue ( ashes ).  I have seen brass bristle brushes, but worry about a stray bristle coming loose.  What are others using?

I use the brass bristle brush from Carbon.

I am cognizant of the bristle fallen off into the oven as well as I’ve heard horror stories of folks accidentally ingesting it. I would love to find a safer alternative that can handle the heat.

[kbrede]

Post cook with my Roccbox I leave whatever's on the stone there. When I fire it up the next time I scrape any bits to the back with my turning peel. By the time I launch all the crud is gone. Occasionally, when the oven has completely cooled I'll wipe off the stone with a dry paper towel. 

[TXCraig1]

I use the brass bristle brush from Carbon.

I am cognizant of the bristle fallen off into the oven as well as I’ve heard horror stories of folks accidentally ingesting it. I would love to find a safer alternative that can handle the heat.

I have an old copper tube I use to blow off the deck after brushing. In any case, I've never seen a bristle left behind.

[Pizza Shark]

I think the difference for me having just started into this Neapolitan thing is the high temps.  When I worked for a NY Style pizzeria baking at 550 we had long natural fiber brushes we could sweep the entire deck with quickly but at 900+ using one of those it would probably instantly catch fire.  That leaves the brass bristle brush that can take the heat but in my tiny OONI Koda 16 that doesn't offer much height not many would work and the brass bristle thing still spooked me.  I'll use a metal bristle brush on my grill where I can see if anything broke off but in one of these little ovens I'm a little spooked.  Furthermore, I really wanted something compact and strong that I could both push/scrape anything that burned on without waiting for it to turn to ash for a subsequent pie and then rake most of it all from back to front and out.  I figure the less I push back or may blow back into the burners and such the better as I don't want to take the deck out and clean the inside of this oven after every use.       

[Travinos_Pizza]

I have an old copper tube I use to blow off the deck after brushing. In any case, I've never seen a bristle left behind.

Damn that’s a good idea