Dropped $600 on a wood-fired pizza oven that can't get hot enough

Bought a compact Ooni oven last spring thinking I'd make Neapolitan pizzas in 90 seconds, but even after buying a gas attachment and a IR thermometer I can't get the stone past 650 degrees. The manufacturer says I need longer preheat times but I've waited 45 minutes and it still comes out doughy in the middle. Has anyone else had luck with these ovens or is this thing just a glorified toaster?

2 comments

2 Comments

eva90824d ago

Oh, have you tried doing the preheat with the gas on high and then turning it down right before you launch the pizza? I had a similar issue with my cheap little camping oven where the stone just would not get hot enough no matter what I did. I ended up using a blowtorch on the stone for like a minute before putting the pizza in, but then I burned the bottom and the top was still raw. It was a whole mess and I just gave up and now I only use it for reheating leftover slices.

elizabethtaylor24d ago

Oh geez, is it really that deep though? I mean it's just a little camp oven, not like you're running a Michelin star pizzeria out of your backyard. Maybe just accept that some tools have their limits and save the high end pizza for takeout.