How to heat up oven?

[grbrum]

I have baked bread the next morning after a pizza afternoon and the temperatures are just perfect. How do you heat up the oven if you are only planning on baking bread?
Do you heat up just enough to get to temperature? If so, what do you do with all the soot and coal inside the oven (it will be blazing red)
Or do you heat up all the way until inside of oven is clean of soot and really wait until next day to bake your bread?

thanks

[david s]

I have a method that works for my oven and saves time and fuel. I fire for exactly one hour and let the flames die. At that point the heat has only partially penetrated the walls and floor and the oven is around 250C with the crown of the dome beginning to clear. I push the coals to the back and sides then place a couple of baguettes and a larger loaf, on stainless trays into the oven. The trays take the sting out of the floor and keep the bottoms clean. Once the door is in place the coals extinguish extinguish due to lack of oxygen. It is important to make sure there is no flame from the fire before pushing the coals aside or the bread will end up having a smoky flavour which is quite unpleasant. This method removes the need to take out the coals, mop the floor and having to wait ages for the temperature to drop to baking level. It also saves heaps of time and fuel. Knowing it only takes one hour means I can light the fire as soon as the dough begins to prove.

[JRPizza]

david s, since the oven is not saturated and at different temperatures depending on where you location, whereabouts are you taking your 250C reading?

[david s]

Air temp in the middle of the oven, about 30 mm off the floor.

[JRPizza]

Thanks - What's your technique for measuring. Suspended oven thermometer? Like the OP, my oven is always at a good bread temperature the morning after pizza, but I'm never ready to bake that early. Your method sounds like something I want to try out.