Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

[Aussie Pete]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

yeh Bill, your right, i think theres way too many variables to be considered. Oh well, atleast it might give me something to do when not at work. I think i might turn out to be 1 of those old blokes that tinker around in their sheds all day, doing stuff all.....except....i'll be at my oven.

[Ken524]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Hi all,
Also realize that if you fire the oven, let's say every day for a week and never really let it cool down, assuming that you have plenty of thermal mass your results will be different from a firing from a cold start once a week.

Are saying that an oven fired for 4 days straight will cool down at a different rate than an oven heated up to the same temperature from a cold start? If so, I disagree.

A fully saturated oven, after the heat source is removed, should pretty much cool down on the same curve no matter how long or how often it had been previously heated or reheated.

[SCChris]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

An easy way to think about the heat storage in the WFO is like the rechargable battery in your phone. If you plug it in for a short time your not likley to fully charge an empty battery, but if your phone was just a bit off of full charge you might have topped the battery off so you now have the maximum time available.

Chris

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Are saying that an oven fired for 4 days straight will cool down at a different rate than an oven heated up to the same temperature from a cold start? If so, I disagree.

A fully saturated oven, after the heat source is removed, should pretty much cool down on the same curve no matter how long or how often it had been previously heated or reheated.

If your oven weighs 4 tons and it is heated up for a week it will cool down much slower than an oven that weighs one ton. The thermal mass will be much more and take much more time to cool. It is like comparing a D battery (cell) with a 500 Ampere/hour battery. Much longer to charge and surely much longer to discharge. I haven't weighed my oven but I know it has plenty of thermal mass. It takes much longer to heat up and much longer to cool down than my metal gas fired BBQ.
Burntfingers aka BillPizzaiolo

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

That is why you have to "know" your oven. Each one has many variables, size, weight, thermal mass, insulation, moisture, material composition, construction, time, heat source and speed of fire. Most bread bakers using a WFO do "artisan" bread and don't bake WonderBread type breads or store bought frozen pizzas. There is a difference between ovens methods and types. A tinkerer's delight for sure. That is why I also drive a 35 year old tractor on our farm. It always needs me to make it work right. No GPS, no fancy electronics just TLC. (tender loving care) Wives and wine are that way too. Both will turn to vinegar if mishandled.

[david s]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

This thread has gone from temperature to philosophy, I like it.
If your wife turns to vinegar can you restore her to a fine wine, or do you discard and purchase another bottle?

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

This thread has gone from temperature to philosophy, I like it.
If your wife turns to vinegar can you restore her to a fine wine, or do you discard and purchase another bottle?

I make Balsamic Reduction in that case. Lots of slow heat to concentrate the sugar.

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

I make Balsamic Reduction in that case. Lots of slow heat to concentrate the sugar.

Then a little vinegar always makes a good salad.

[kelly55]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Hi there. We've just built an igloo style pizza oven and are at the end of the curing period. Noticed that the top of the oven was white last night. When you guys talk about the inside of the oven going white when it is hot enough to cook pizzas - is it the whole of of the inside of the oven that goes white or is there still some black on the walls??

[david s]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Be careful, when you reach this point the top of the dome is dry and therefore gets quite hot, while the lower part of the dome and probably the bottom of the floor at the outside is still damp. This means that the temperature there is quite low. This big temperature difference can cause problems because thermal expansion is directly proportional to temperature. Go slowly still until that persistent ring of black around the base of the oven goes white as well. Try to use the heat of the oven to do some baking and roasting before trying the fire from hell to cook pizza.

[Wyatt Earp]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Hi James,

That is the temperature scale I use and I think it works well. I use it as a guide once I get clear dome.

Best,

Pat