Trying to make a key decision about the type of outdoor pizza oven I want to build in the next few months. Decisions I’ve made: 44” diameter cooking surface and dome style oven. Key decision I’m struggling with: Precast concrete vs brick. Here’s what I’ve learned from the research I’ve done to date:
- Precast kit costs less and easier for a DIY job
- Precast ovens heat in 60-90 min, brick ovens take almost twice as long and thus require much more wood
- Brick ovens retain heat better and longer. Tough to tell if this is a benefit for me or a restaurant that needs it going 24x7
- Precast oven may crack from excessive heat
I was pretty much sold on a precast till I saw some videos about their tendency to crack. Would love to get some sage advice from owners of each. I’d love to have an oven that’s ready in an hour or 90 min but not if there’s a high likelihood of it cracking from the heat, especially after all the work that goes into building one.
Thanks a million for all your help.