On the brink...

[halvogel]

Hi all,
Have been making pizzas in my gas oven for my kids for years. It's time to upgrade!
I have really enjoyed reading all the various posts and huge amount of information...as I'm just about to embark on designing everything...I have a couple of very basic questions.

1. is there a big difference in performance between buying a modular refractory oven (like a forno bravo casa / valronia / four grand mere) or building a brick oven from scratch myself? Is the heat retention etc. going to be better in one than the other?

And 2. How long does it take to build a pompeii from scracth - if one includes the foundation etc...How long should I allow? Do I need to wait for the foundation to dry before moving on to the next stage etc..

Finally - my other question is whether there are instructions for building a neopolitan brick oven rather than pompeii (ie with a lower dome)...or are they exactly the same thing?

I've never posted anything on a forum ever so forgive me if I've done the wrong thing....very much hope these questions aren't too dumb - even for a newbie?

[DavidApp]

Re: On the brink...

Hello Halvogel

Welcome to the forum.
You will find a lot of information and helpful people here.

I have built a 36" Pompeii oven but have no experience with the purchased ovens. The purchased oven would be a better choice if you did not feel comfortable building one.
I have no experience brick laying but am practical so I built mine and am very happy with the result.

It took me about 3 months total to build my oven but I had a lot of vacation so I could work on it full time during December and some of January.
You should give the foundation slab time to cure and the block work will probable be cured by the time you have the hearth slab forms built.

There is some information on the site about the Neapolitan oven build. Use the search function to find it.
I have read that they are more challenging to build and may not be as versatile. Because the dome is lower and flatter there is more outward pressure on the lower walls.
I have cooked more bread and roasts than pizza in my oven.

There is a set of free plans that you can download at the top of the site.

Hope that helps.

David