How to clean a pizza oven and maintain it

One of the most common things we get asked is ‘how to clean a pizza oven’? We understand that your oven is a substantial investment for many people and caring it is a priority. And so it should be! In this article, we’ll give you some practical tips and advice about keeping your wood fired pizza oven in tip top condition. These tips will ensure you don’t make any rookie mistakes along the way! You might actually be pleasantly surprised just how easy it is to keep your Igneus oven looking good and performing well. Let’s get started!

Regular Cleaning Routine

A good place to start is what you should be doing each and every time you’ve used the oven. You know, those things that are just good practice, and will ensure you avoid a bigger clean up job when it comes to performing a deeper clean.

1. Remove Ashes

Once the oven has cooled down, it’s time to rake the ash and any other debris out of your oven. The ash can stay hot for a lot longer than you might expect, owing to the superior insulating qualities of the oven. It’s a good idea to use a thermometer to check the temperature before you start. You can then dispose of the ash in a safe, non-flammable container.

2. Brush the Oven Floor

Use a stiff bristled brush to sweep the oven floor. This will remove any debris and ash left behind by the rake. This prevents any residue from sticking and burning to the oven floor next time you fire it up.

3. Wipe the Dome

Next, it’s time to take a damp cloth and wipe the interior roof of the oven. This gets to any soot and smoke residue that made its way there. As your Igneus oven is wood fired, there can be a lot of soot, compared to that of a gas fired oven, so it’s a good idea to keep on top of cleaning it away, either after every use of every few uses – just to make your life easier when it comes to the deep clean!

Deep Cleaning

Now time for deep cleaning the oven, which we recommend you do roughly every 5-10 uses. This is where we tackle one of our most frequently asked questions which us ‘how do I remove oil stains from the floor tiles’?

Cleaning the Floor

Spilling cheese, sauce and other toppings on the floor of the oven is par for the course in the world of making pizza, whether you’re a novice or a pro, it’s just some that happens on occasion. Once the oven has fully cooled down, the first thing to do is use a scraper tool to gently remove any stuck-on debris or grease. Be careful not to scrape too hard and chip or cause any fractures to the tiles. Once you’ve scraped away as much as you can, sweep out the debris from the oven.

Now it’s time to build the fire again. No, we’re not getting ready to launch some pizzas. Heat and fire is the best way to clean the oven floor and rid those oily stains and soot once and for all. You’ll want to built the fire slightly bigger than you would normally. The objective here is to get the oven as hot as possible. Once the oven has reached 500°C+, spread the fire across the floor of the oven, right up to the mouth of the oven. You can place the door on the oven, but leave a slight gap so air can still feed the fire. The fire sucks the oil out of the floor tiles and burns it away – just like magic!

Igneus Tip: One important thing to note is you should never clean the oven floor with water or any other form of liquid, as the tiles are a pores material, they absorb water efficiently and can take a long time to fully dry out.

Cleaning the Outside

You can keep on top of cleaning the outside after every use if you wish, however, it’s an area that often gets forgotten about. When using your oven, you might find the flames lick up the front slightly, especially as you first build the fire as it will be closer to the mouth if the oven than when it’s fully in use. This can mean the front panel can become darker in colour. But don’t worry, this is just soot and can be simply wiped clean with a damp cloth. If you find the soot proves difficult to remove you can use a little ‘Bar Keeper’s Friend’ which is readily available on Amazon.

Protecting Your Oven from the Elements

Of course, you can use your Igneus Pizza Oven all year round, and many of our customers do just that. If you’re keeping it outside during the winter months, we recommend you keep the oven covered with a waterproof cover. This protects the oven from rain, snow, and debris, helping to prevent damage and wear.

If you don’t plan to use the oven during the colder month, if possible we recommend keeping it in a shed or outbuilding, to ensure it remains fully dry and away from the harsh winter conditions.

Final Thoughts

We hope this article has helped answer some questions you might have had about cleaning and caring for your Igneus oven. If you require any information about any oven in the Igneus range, or any accessories that we’ve mentioned throughout this article which will help with the cleaning process, you can contact us on 01423 575885 or browse our full range of products here.