Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

[applor]

Hey guys,

I am not really a newbie but this seems to be the area to post such a question.
I currently have a 40" WFO recently finished but suddenly find myself having to move house.
I plan to build a new modular oven at the new house and I am trying to decide what size.
I find my 40" oven to be great but with a 1.5 hour heat up time you chew through a lot of wood and would not be used as much as a smaller oven that heats up quicker. I also find I do not need such a big oven as I have only done 1 pizza at a time so far (though plan to try 2 at a time this weekend).

I am thinking of going a 28" or 32" oven.
The 32" oven will probably let me do two pizzas at a time while the 28" will only have room for one.
The big kicker here though is that the heat up time for the Giardino70 28" oven is 20 minutes, while the Casa2G80 32" oven is 40 minutes!
That's a massive increase for only 4" more room.
I think the much faster heat up time in the 28" will mean I will use it a lot more and burn lot less wood.
I understand those heat up time figures are probably inaccurate and way too short for Neapolitan pizza. I wonder if anyone has more accurate numbers?
Even if it is 40 mins for the 28" and 1 hour for the 32" that is a fair amount of time and wood saving.

Anyone care to comment?
Also keen to hear from 28" and 32" oven owners as to heat up times.

Thanks

[cobblerdave]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

G'day
You'll use less wood sure, as these ovens are roughly 1/4 smaller than what you have. You'll find that being smaller the walls and floor will be roughly the same mass but the amount of room you have to burn wood in is smaller so heat up times will remain the same.
I haven't the time to do the math but oven door height might be a consideration. Figure out the heights and of course the width should be under 1/2 the width of the oven. Go out with a ruler and find out how it looks in comparison to what you have. Also check the distance between 2 shelf spacings in your inside oven you'll be suprised in how small it is. I never take a shelve in an oven more than 2 apart to cook anything.
Also might be time to think about stand height now that you have had one oven. Too high? too low ? Now that you have had an oven you know better what suits
My own is just on elbow height and ysuits me fine cause I can see into the oven easily, but with a smaller oven entrance it might be a case of a bit higher to make sure that you can see into you oven fully without bending.
Anyway more questions than answers but I hope this helps
Regards dave

[stonecutter]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

I have a 33" right now....there's no way I would try two pizzas at Neapolitan temps and times in an oven that small. The pizza 10"-12"...will be close to the fire and you will be working two at a time without burning? Let's just say you'll have to be a magician on the peel.

And heat up times are not dictated by the size of the oven so much as the thickness and type of the refractory mass as well as the insulation, the type and condition of the fuel. I can completely heat up a 42" oven with a 1.25" oven shell that is heavily insulated vs a 32" that has 5" of mass with average insulation.

[applor]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

Thanks for the quick responses guys.

I am actually really happy with my current oven height. 1.1m to hearth works a treat so wouldn't change anything there though I agree the new entry height will need to be taken into consideration.
Thanks stonecutter for your experience with your 33", exactly what I was looking for.

As far as heat times, I am talking about if all things were considered equal as far as thermal mass and insulation goes.
As reference I was comparing the two ovens that FB sell.
The Giardino70 does have less thermal mass than the Casa2G80 though, so guessing that is probably the cause of the big heat up time difference. They both have the same insulation though.

Forno Bravo Modular Oven Sizes

I will add that my current 40" Vibrok has approx. 40mm hearth (1.6") which is in between the Giardino and the Casa2G.

[wotavidone]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

My smaller oven, 750mm/29.5 inches, will go white in less than one hour.
It's brick, but only 3 inches thick.
You might think that'd mean it'd go even faster but, the thing is, a small oven also only has a small fire.

There are a lot of factors too - quality and quantity of insulation, total mass you are trying to heat to temperature v. the space available to build a fire, etc. So 40 minutes v. 20 minutes might not need twice as much wood.

I have since helped my mate build a 850mm/33.5 inch oven. Trust me when I say it's not "only" 4 inches. 4 inches of extra diameter makes for a much easier to operate oven. I might not bother with a 42 inch oven, unless I suddenly developed a family of 10 or so, but if given a choice between a 28 inch or 32 inch oven, I'd take the 32.

[v12spirit]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

So long as you fuel efficiency is a factor. The door is the most responsible for heat escape from your oven. With a bigger oven you can have the suitable door width without losing too much heat as from a smaller oven.The door width is better not to exceed half of the hearth diameter, as I think and as clobberdave says.

[david s]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

The bigger the oven chamber is the bigger the fire it will run so fuel consumption is relative to oven volume. A small oven may take just as long as a large one to heat up because the fire is smaller. Heat up time is directly related to wall and floor thickness.it generally takes around one hour per inch of thickness for the heat to penetrate.

[boerwarrior]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

I have a 32 inch. It takes me 1 hour and 15 minutes to get it 'white.' I only cook one pizza at a time. I supposed I could try and fit 2 in there, but I leave small fires at the back and sides and find there is a perfect amount of space to cook one pizza in the middle with pretty even heat from all directions. I don't think I would be as happy with a smaller oven - I've also never really needed a larger one either. Late last year I had a pizza party for about 70 people and cooked 50+ pizzas.

[applor]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

Yeah I've pretty much decided on a 32"

These two seem to be my best choices available here in Australia:

FVR80 from Vesuvio ovens
Residential Oven Specifications | Wood Fired Ovens | Pizza Oven | Vesuvio | Woodfire Oven

Midi from Alfresco ovens
Woodfired Pizza Ovens | Alfresco - DIY Oven Kits


The Vesuvio is a Napoli style oven and appears very similar to the FB ovens.
The Midi weighs a lot more and is 1 piece dome, however I worry the metal will rust over time.

Which do you guys think? Neither have pricing listed however.

[stonecutter]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

I saw your posts on pizza making regarding Neapolitan pizza. If that is the main thing you are focusing on, I think the Vesuvio is the better brand..they have a lower ceiling than the Alfresco, which appears to be more of a hemispherical dome...like a Pompeii. Not that you couldn't bake Neo style in that either...but the lower ceiling is better for what you are shooting for, pizza wise.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

G'day
Why aren't any of the forno ovens sold in Aust in the running?
I have heard zip, about them. Why I don't know, they figure over seas but hear in Aust, I just can't imagine why
Regards dave

[applor]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

Well I didn't consider them because I wasn't aware that FB sold ovens here in Australia - they're a US company.

I saw one dealer listed for Aus here but they don't even have a website:

Coming Soon...

Do you have any info on what forno ovens are sold in Aus and the pricing?

I will try oven masters e-mail and see if I get a response.

The other factor will be pricing. The Casa2G80 is listed at $1,850 US while the Vesuvio can be had for $1,650 AU which ends up as a $350 AU difference not including the possibly ridiculous 'Australia tax' that we always get slumped with.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Choosing oven - 28" vs 32" and heat up times

G'day
Sorry can't link with this phone, but all I did was type in forno bravo Australia and the site came up. Has all the bells and whistles as well links to the forum etc. They have an agent In Gosford NSW and a quick check from the last time I looked they still don't sell oven tools, or the DIY brick oven kits which I recon would sell in Aust. No price list either which is not surprising considering its probably dependent on the exchange rate.
Regards dave