Building a wood fired pizza oven thing ...

[Gordon Henderson]

Anyone here done this? Since the BBQ season is now upon us and we're doing some work round the house and I was thinking of building a BBQ, but wifey suggested one of those dome oven things... Which I quite fancy myself.

But there's not a lot online about building one though - at least not that half an hour with google found me last night. A few books on the subject that get varied reviews and one site with a description making one out of standard red bricks and another out of clay..

I suspect it's not rocket science - I can get bricks or clay and fashion it into the corner I want to put it, just wondering if anyones actually done it with any hints & tips..

Cheers,

Gordon

[jim]

well I've not done it but suspect you'd need either wood and warming up time a plenty or be making pizzas for man and beast to make it worthwhile - must take ages to get all the thermal mass up to a pizza cooking 250degC?

Did see some "wide mouthed" chimeneas (sp?) a while back that claimed able to be cooked in/on?

cheers jim

[The Medway Handyman]

I've seen it done & eaten the pizza! It seemed to be a very basic structure.

[Gordon Henderson]

Indeed they do - that's not an issue for me - you make it whole day thing. Fir it up in the morning for a few hours, pizza lunch, bake break, cook stew that sort of thing...

No better/worse than a BBWQ by the looks of it ...

Gordon

[Steve Firth]

We have two at the farm. Both were original to the house and are built on the wall facing the access road. We're moving and rebuilding one at present. There's more to it than slapping some clay/bricks around.

The oven itself is either a cast iron construction, which is built into a brick framework or a turtle shaped construction in refractory brick.

Here's how to do it with refractory brick:

at "La Realizzazione" to see how to do it.

I don't think you're going to get one of the cast-iron shells in the UK or be able to afford to import one. They make a better job IMO since they have the doors, control of inlet and exhaust gasses and are simple to install (place one on the reinforced concrete base then build over it as is shown in the guide above).

[jim]

out of interest how much are they?

you may well be surprised at the reasonable costs of groupage transport...

jim

[Steve Firth]

I'll have to ask someone. "Haggle" is the way that such things are bought. Italian businesses are famous for not giving prices until a man has been to your home, measured up and done a lot of sighing and hand-waving. Almost all businesses mark their wares "Chiedi un Preventivo" or "Call for a quote".

Here are some links:

that last one had some prices. It looks like they start at about EUR 300 - which to all intents is £300 currently. However that website is for a company in L'Aquila which is (a) close to the farm and (b) where the earthquake hit so I don't know if their business is back to normal yet.

At leas you can see a good range of ovens (sing. forno, pl forni) there.

It's this type:

I was thinking of. As you can see it says that the thermal insulation is of high quality and the day after they have been fired the internal temperature will still be 250C.

Hmm, we've been shipping in produce from Italy. "Pissed off by how much it costs" is more like it. At least £150 per pallet, which can be between 25 and 50% of the value of goods on the pallet.

[jim]

tried a quote for a full 20ft/20T container?? used to send these all the time to the Med (and further than Italy technically)- approx =A3900 excluding transport at their end, but including transport here.....

[Steve Firth]

I don't need something that size.

Fine if the business one is doing is more than a few pallets at a time.

[jim]

......but if it's only cheap stuff (hence your wince re shipping costs) why not bring it in bulk - it's only say 7 pallets to your break even point - plus you get the extra security of your own box.....maybe an extra discount from supplier? better still get them to quote you for delivery "CIF "your place"" and save yourself some of the grief - maybe they have a tame freight forwarder already with better prices than you can get?

anyhow I'm sure you've got it covered

cheers jim

[Steve Firth]

I can't handle a container. We don't have room for a container delivery, nor can I afford the capital cost of filling one up. I'd also have to arrange for a number of collections in different locations in Italy or ship from those small suppliers to one central location. It's a useful idea but not for me right now.

You're in about the same position as someone saying "If you filled up a supertanker you'd get your fuel shipped cheaper" as far as I'm concerned.

[jim]

then groupage it is then! :>)

except that fuel would definitely be worth bothering with :>) jim

[jim]

you could also explore using freight forwarders at both ends - one to receive your goods from around italy and load into your box, then another in UK to receive and unload? I expect a freight forwarder (specialising in Italy maybe) with proper connections would be able to arrange all this with a known (to them) partner at the other end i.e. a "one stop shop" jobby?

cheers jim

[Steve Firth]

They work for free do they?

[jim]

erm... do you?

20T X 150 = 3000 less cost of box say 1000 = 2000 to break even with your current situation - bet someone would be interested ...bet you know better somehow....

anyhow that's the end of my free impartial advice on this one

you're welcome

cheers Jim

[Steve Firth]

No. But that's not relevant.

Well unlike you I know what I have to buy, how much I can afford, how much capital I have, how the goods have to be stored, the sort of market etc. So I know considerably better than you in this instance, yes.

It was worth what I paid for it.

Phrases about grandmothers and eggs came to mind.

[jim]

whatever - I was just pointing out the stupidity of your question

yawn yes yes of course you do it's your business isn't it??!! about which you haven't said anything xcept "low value", and low quantities & presumably low sales potential, otherwise Rodney we'd be millionaires instead of moaning about freight rates for shifting 1 pallet from Italy....

and similarly I expect if there's anything in it it'll suddenly become

*your* latest great idea

ATB Jim

[Steve Firth]

And I was pointing out the stupidity of your answer. One can make use of any number of convenient business arrangements for shipping and forwarding, but either they cost too much per unit in freight charges or, if one gets the unit shippign costs down then one has to pay someone for storage, breaking down the delivery and onward shipping. One also has to put up with making use of warehouse staff who don't have an interest in the goods beind shipped and who will damage those by heavy handling or simply not know whwn they receive a picking list waht to pick because they are unfamiliar with the product.

Been there done that, had to pay for disgruntled customers, lost stock, spoiled goods etc.

[snip]

Indeed, which explains why what you are talking about has been considered, tried and doesn't work for me.

You don't say. Coming next, night follows day. Water discovered to be wet.

You may want to see someone about your issues. You're losing your rag because I'm not falling at your feet and declaring you to be a genius for suggesting something that has been tried and found wanting. If I was shipping in cheap crap from China and selling it on in bulk with a 500% mark-up your suggestion *might* work. For me it's useless.

[jim]

then one has to pay someone

eh? your stuff is on pallets isn't it?

and onward shipping. er.. yes?

One also

how is what you describe different from what happens with groupage?

what picking list? your goods are on pallets aren't they? who is breaking your pallets and picking things???

eh?? In general it seems you give yourself too much credit :>))

If you spent more time working (and thinking) at it and less time posting so prolifically on all manner of newsgroups (and usually moaning) - you might be a bit better at it.....

happy retirement JIm

[Steve Firth]

Yes. That's how it arrives.

Err no.

[snip]

You seem to mistake me for someone who wanted the "help" that you are offering.

Because it's not groupage.

That's how they arrive

At the moment members of my family.

So, you made some incorrect assumptions and gave me "advice" based on those assumptions.

Ah, again you're an expert on how hard I work are you? And I see you're trying the line of "you post to Usenet, so do I, therefore you're a lazy bastard". Can you see where that breaks down?

But thanks for proving your credentials as yet another armchair expert.