Wood-Fired Pizza Oven
Collapsible content
There are cheaper pizza ovens; why is ours better?
When deciding on the best oven for your family, it may be tempting to consider a cheaper alternative. However, it's essential to recognise that the performance of a genuine compressed fire brick oven will provide a better experience, enable you to cook more food using residual heat, and last longer. In terms of quality, durability and performance, it's hard to find anything better.
Typically, ovens available online are designed for use in short bursts and cool down quickly, preventing people from truly enjoying a shared meal. Ours are built to last and look stunning even after years of intensive use. Because baking a pizza takes only two minutes, your friends and family eat together. You can leave our oven unattended to return and find it still ready to bake another pizza or potato wedges.
At Kiwi Pizza Oven, we don't employ a factory or outsource the build of our pizza ovens. We maintain complete control over the construction process, ensuring that our pizza ovens meet the highest standards throughout New Zealand. This approach allows us to keep our operational costs low, providing our customers exceptional value for their investment.
Can I come and view the pizza ovens?
We manufacture all pizza ovens in Christchurch.
Give us a call at 022 074 1442 to organise a viewing.
Can I customise my oven?
Certainly! We take pride in producing premium wood-fired pizza ovens which can be personalised to enhance your surroundings. You can choose the exterior colour and the brick entrance archway to suit your preferences.
What is the lead time? - How long is it from ordering a custom oven until it is ready?
The pizza ovens take 100 hours to construct, and the production process spans 2-3 weeks. In times of high demand, it may extend further. It also depends on what custom specifications you would like for your pizza oven. To secure your place in the queue and tailor the specifications of your pizza oven to your unique preferences, we encourage you to contact us promptly and place a deposit to reserve your order.
It's best to get in quick!
How many pizzas can the oven cook?
The cooking area accommodates 2-3 pizzas simultaneously, with an impressive oven performance of 60 pizzas per hour. Even for smaller gatherings, our oven exceeds expectations, ensuring the capability to prepare more pizzas than required.
Thanks to our unique oven design, temperature retention is optimised, allowing you to cook a batch of pizzas, step away, and return later to continue cooking.
How heavy is the pizza oven?
The weight of our residential oven is 480 kg.
What can I use as a stand for the pizza oven?
The benefit of our Pizza Ovens is that they all have a self-supporting base. This means they don't need a bench top to be placed on, only a frame. You can build a pizza oven stand with timber, concrete blocks, or bricks. You can buy a wooden stand from us - either assembled and painted or a flatpack.
What works quite well is creating a U-shape structure to store the wood underneath. As the floor heats up, the stored firewood can be completely dry for optimal wood-fired pizza oven use.
Is the pizza oven portable?
Yes, the pizza oven is portable. Its structure has been designed with a self-supporting base. You can take your oven with you when moving house.
What temperature does the outside of the pizza oven reach?
Beneath the pizza oven, the maximum temperature is a safe 80 degrees, making it suitable for placement on any material without concern. The external temperature of the pizza oven ranges between 40-50 degrees, which may increase on sunny days.
The inside is 500 degrees. The construction process has had safety in mind, and our pizza ovens can retain very high temperatures on the inside while only feeling warm on the outside, emphasising safety.
Is it safe to place the pizza oven close to walls or a house? - How far away should it be?
We recommend consulting a qualified professional for specific advice on oven placement based on your local regulations and property layout.
How long does the pizza take to cook?
Due to the high temperature in the oven, the pizzas take 1-2 minutes to cook.
The pizzas come out perfectly cooked with a crispy base.
I want a pizza oven, but I would like it customised. - What should I do?
If you're interested in a customised oven, please get in touch with us.
Either give us a call at 022 074 1442
Or email us: info@pizzaoven.kiwi
We will happily discuss meeting your preferences and provide an accurate quote.
Is a barbeque grill or pizza oven better?
Our pizza ovens offer remarkable versatility, allowing you to prepare a wide range of grilled dishes with exceptional taste. Baking in a pizza oven enhances efficiency, ensuring dishes are cooked simultaneously from all sides.
This unique cooking method allows the food to retain more juices and acquire a subtle, delightful aroma of firewood, resulting in an exceptional and flavorful culinary experience.
What are the measurements?
They are approximately 1m x 1m x 1m
How do wood-fired pizza ovens work?
Wood-fired ovens are heated by setting wood on fire. The heat is stored in the walls and floor of the oven (thermal mass). Our pizza ovens are well insulated so that once the dense mass is heated, the pizza oven takes a long time to cool down. While the thermal mass of the oven helps cook the pizza, maintaining a fire is key to achieving a crispy crust.
A pizza oven equipped with a dense thermal mass and robust insulation not only minimises wood consumption for extensive cooking but also has a long heat retention time, distinguishing it from the cheaper options available.
Why are Kiwi Pizza Ovens so heavy? Will a lighter one do the same job?
We employ an advanced construction method for our pizza ovens, incorporating up to 10 walls using a sandwich technique to ensure optimal insulation and prolonged heat retention. The walls and floor of the pizza oven effectively store the heat, serving as the essential element that cooks the food.
If our pizza ovens were lighter, we wouldn't have an adequate thermal mass or insulation to retain the heat. This would see you using more fire food to maintain the temperature and a quicker cooling time, which wouldn't allow you to utilise the oven fully. The outside would be much hotter from lack of insulation, which would be a safety concern.
Kiwi Pizza Oven vs Metal Pizza Ovens?
Metal pizza ovens are known for their lightweight nature and ability to heat up quickly. However, their thin thermal mass results in quick cooling once the fire diminishes, demanding constant attention to sustain pizza production.
In contrast, our authentic pizza ovens are meticulously crafted for longevity and versatility. With a substantial thermal mass, they offer a prolonged heat retention that efficiently cooks a diverse range of foods throughout the cooling period.
Do wood-fired pizza ovens crack?
We minimise the risk of cracks in pizza ovens by using carefully chosen and in-house materials.
Pizza ovens made of various materials may crack, as each material has different thermal expansion properties.
Our innovative solution - a dome consisting of four distinct sections - reduces the risk of cracks forming during thermal expansion, which can be a concern when working with bricks due to the numerous joints involved. We manage thermal expansion through strategically placed expansion joints, minimising the likelihood of structural cracks.
Where are your pizza ovens made?
Our pizza ovens are made in Christchurch. Reach out and come take a look!
Using the Wood-Fired Pizza Oven
How long does the wood-fired pizza oven take to heat up?
Our Pizza ovens take 90 minutes to heat up.
Can I grill over coals in my pizza oven?
Yes, you can grill over coals in your wood-fired pizza oven.
Buy or construct a grill section and place it on a couple of bricks to raise it above the floor of the pizza oven. Rake the coals beneath it.
What can be baked in a pizza oven?
Our pizza ovens can be used to fry, grill, boil and dehydrate foods. An exceptionally long heat retention period enables customers to bake fresh bread, slow-cook a stew, toast bread or bake cakes.
Due to their exceptional insulation, our ovens retain heat for an exceptionally long period of time. Thanks to that, you can fire our oven at noon, enjoy a pizza dinner, roast potato supper and a fresh batch of jam for breakfast. It only takes ten pieces of wood to create a variety of dishes in one day.
The pizza oven also provides a cooking means during natural disasters such as earthquakes, power outages, or floodings. Your cosy garden pizzeria will still provide your family with hot meals.
How do I clean the pizza oven floor?
Some marks, from oil stains (cheese) to other ingredients, may be left on the pizza oven floor.
To clean the pizza oven floor, fire the oven over the area you want to clean. You will find that after 30 minutes, when you push the ambers back, the floor will be clean.
Can I use the pizza oven during a fire ban?
Fire Safety First! Always check local fire codes and fire bans before installation and/or use. While some fire bans might not apply to pizza ovens or outdoor fireplaces, it's crucial to be aware of restrictions in your area.
How much firewood do pizza ovens need?
Some pizza ovens devour masses of firewood to maintain their heat. Commonly, these are seen in pizza ovens that do not have a thick thermal mass and are built with poor insulation.
Our pizza ovens are satisfied with only a few pieces of wood and maintain their temperature for a long time.
Around 10 pieces of wood are required.
DIY Pizza Oven Kit Set
How long does the DIY kit set take to assemble?
10-15 hours spread throughout a few days.
Is the finishing material supplied?
Any finishing work, such as painting and styling, is the buyer's part of the job. The premium kit set includes all the parts, mortars, plasters, and adhesives. It does not include paints, other colourants, or a brick-style entrance unless you order them additionally.
How are the kit sets packed? What size and weight are they?
Basic - on a pallet, wrapped and strapped. 0.6m3, 280kg
Premium - on a pallet, wrapped and strapped. 0.8m3, 400kg
What do I need for building the pizza oven?
- Japanese spatula
- Felt for plaster rounding
- Hand saw for shaping shell
- Grinder with a diamond blade
- Flat pry bar
- Trowel
- Sanding disc
- Scissors
- Sponge
I am not skilled - will I still be able to construct it?
Yes, our pizza oven kits are designed for anyone, regardless of skill, to be able to build.
We provide step-by-step instructions and are happy to answer any questions. Just give us a call if you need help.
Pizza Oven Accessories
Do I need the stainless steel fire separator?
It helps to keep a large, clean working area. The stainless steel fire separator is precisely matched to the hearth's shape, creating a tight, stable barrier to embers. It greatly improves the wood-fired pizza oven.
Are the chimney's extendable?
The chimney, known as a flue, serves to ventilate smoke and gases while ensuring a consistent and even heat distribution, effectively preventing temperature fluctuations. The stainless steel flue is precisely crafted to seamlessly fit our chimneys, allowing for convenient extension above structures such as pergolas or umbrellas.
A flue cap and a door shield your oven against rain and the elements. We offer a selection of caps and a stainless door with a thermometer, especially for our ovens.
Our pizza ovens use a traditional external front flue system. Ovens that contain the flue system inside the dome area of the pizza oven are not as effective at retaining heat as the heat escapes out the flue without transferring to the dome mass.
Why do I need under-oven flexible pads?
The under-oven flexible pads are 5mm thick. When placing the wood-fired pizza oven on a concrete slab, bench top, or stand, you may need flexible pads around the bottom of the oven. They work as spacers, separate the oven from the moisture substrate, provide ventilation, compensate for stresses resulting from loads, and allow the self-drying system to work correctly.
Why do I need the laser thermometer?
Curing is required when using your pizza oven for the first time. It uses small amounts of sustained heat, which causes the moisture inside the mortar to evaporate, allowing you to fire your oven at a maximum temperature later on without worrying about damage.
Curing a pizza oven requires special attention and is done over a few days. The laser thermometer is used to pay close attention to the pizza oven to ensure the temperature does not exceed safe levels.
The door gauge is not accurate enough during the curing process.
Shipping
What are my delivery options?
1. Local Pickup: You can come and collect your pizza oven from our location in Christchurch
2. Depot Pickup: We can organise your Pizza Oven or Kit Set to be delivered to your local depot, and you can organise pickup from your depot. It's free for orders over $1000.
4. Home Delivery: We can organise home delivery from your local depot. If your location is difficult to access, the shipping company may charge extra. Our customers tend to prefer delivery to the depot, and they can pick up from the depot and then hire a local crane in their area if need be.
Is delivery included in the price of the pizza oven and kit set?
We offer free shipping above $1,000 to your nearest depot.
We can provide shipping quotes for delivery to your property.
Please note shipping to your property is an additional cost that must be paid prior to delivery. If the address is difficult for the delivery team to access it may be more expensive.
It's best to call us for an accurate quote.