What you can do is clamp one of those scoring pads onto a orbital sander ( not a rotating sander as that will erode the bricks ) or do what I did and that is ceramic fire proof tiles with the top one in a nice hand made pattern , soot doesn't stick to glazed fire proof tiles
Thanks for sharing. I have a D105 oven, and it's awesome. I've fired up more than 200 times and have no signs of outside, front-facing soot. I'd have the owner of that oven check his chimney draw was working well. Very rarely have I experienced the soot flooding to point of it coming out the front, given how well the oven is designed. I will be trying out the floor cleaning however... generally when we're booting up the oven we cook chicken wings, and that makes an awful mess, splattering oils and fats. Thanks again!
Great video, my concern is the cleaning method using water for the front bricks. Once the bricks get saturated with moisture, isn’t there a problem if heating too fast for normal use, the bricks could crack?
Good question! The bricks at the front will always get a little wet, usually from getting rained on. Because they're all the way out the front of the oven, they heat up very slowly and dry out well before they reach any high temperatures.
I’d clean the floor of my oven (when I can finally get/make one!) since some foods are cooked directly on that surface, most notably pizza. But would there be any harm to not ever cleaning the front? To maximize the rustic look that you mention; plus, just laziness 😀 But seriously speaking, would it eventually become some sort of hazard?
I recently learned a trick to cleaning soot off of brick, mortar and stucco. Although it is supposedly non-toxic, Cleaning Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner has a chemical reaction to soot that releases it quite easily. I have an area above my BBQ that is natural stone and some stucco. I sprayed on the cleanser, waited a few minutes for the foam to work, scrubbed a little with a brush (or scourer) and rinsed off. I was shocked at how great it worked. I needed to do two treatments on one area. Try it out!!!
You might blast the mortar out of the joints - but it could work if you took it very very easy (which is not really how a pressure washer likes to work!)
What you can do is clamp one of those scoring pads onto a orbital sander ( not a rotating sander as that will erode the bricks ) or do what I did and that is ceramic fire proof tiles with the top one in a nice hand made pattern , soot doesn't stick to glazed fire proof tiles
Thanks for sharing. I have a D105 oven, and it's awesome. I've fired up more than 200 times and have no signs of outside, front-facing soot. I'd have the owner of that oven check his chimney draw was working well. Very rarely have I experienced the soot flooding to point of it coming out the front, given how well the oven is designed. I will be trying out the floor cleaning however... generally when we're booting up the oven we cook chicken wings, and that makes an awful mess, splattering oils and fats. Thanks again!
You're so welcome!!
Great video, my concern is the cleaning method using water for the front bricks. Once the bricks get saturated with moisture, isn’t there a problem if heating too fast for normal use, the bricks could crack?
Good question! The bricks at the front will always get a little wet, usually from getting rained on. Because they're all the way out the front of the oven, they heat up very slowly and dry out well before they reach any high temperatures.
I’d clean the floor of my oven (when I can finally get/make one!) since some foods are cooked directly on that surface, most notably pizza. But would there be any harm to not ever cleaning the front? To maximize the rustic look that you mention; plus, just laziness 😀 But seriously speaking, would it eventually become some sort of hazard?
Good question Joey! No harm in letting soot build on the front - adds some character if you ask me. This oven was pretty black though!
Brilliant video Ben. Great tip with the coals doing the hard work for ya!
Thankyou Mark!!
What if the front is all rendered? Wouldnt it crack it
This is one of the reasons that we don't normally render the front of our ovens - those bricks can get pretty darn hot!
How do you remove ashes after the fire... a shovel?
I generally leave them in there - you can burn about a tonne of wood before the ash builds up enough to warrant removing it.
i new to pizza ovens can you use pine wood in your pizza oven
Good for kindling, but not for a full firing. Waayyyy too much sooty smoke, and not the best flavour
I recently learned a trick to cleaning soot off of brick, mortar and stucco. Although it is supposedly non-toxic, Cleaning Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner has a chemical reaction to soot that releases it quite easily. I have an area above my BBQ that is natural stone and some stucco. I sprayed on the cleanser, waited a few minutes for the foam to work, scrubbed a little with a brush (or scourer) and rinsed off. I was shocked at how great it worked. I needed to do two treatments on one area. Try it out!!!
Great tip Scott!
Wet ash will probably dissolve all the soot in seconds. So put ash on your blue thingy and soap water.
The reason is ash is full of lye.
Is using a power washer a bad idea?
Hi Edward - I wouldn't advise it, you could damage the bricks and/or blast mortar out of the joints if you weren't careful
A nylon or brass brush will work better to clean the brick and they are both non-abrasive to firebricks.
Good tip!
What about pressure washing the oven? High pressure water might get it even cleaner 😅
You might blast the mortar out of the joints - but it could work if you took it very very easy (which is not really how a pressure washer likes to work!)