What to Consider in Installing an Indoor Pizza Oven

The holidays make us think of good old traditional home cooked meals. Maybe you start thinking of adding a wood fired pizza oven in your indoor kitchen. Why not?  

If you enjoy traditional cooking, a residential pizza oven is always a good addition to your house. But before installing one in your kitchen, there are additional considerations to think about when installing one indoors.

Not all pizza oven installation is created equal. Each one is different because it depends on the structure of your house, and where you are geographically located. However, there are things that are generally considered like the local laws or regulations. It’s important to know your local building codes and that you comply with it. So before buying an indoor pizza oven, check if there are any specific certifications needed for pizza ovens in your area. 

We strongly suggested that you contact your local building officers or inspectors to check for requirements that are specific to your area. They will be measuring up your installation with the manufacturer’s specification guidelines so if your oven does not come with specifications, you might not be able to install it in your house after all.

Read: Authentic Pizza Ovens’ Recommendation on Oven Installations

We will recommend installation companies if we have contacts in your area but the freight drivers cannot do this. Installation is not difficult but you definitely need to have extra hands to assist. If you want to have your oven built-in, we urge you to consult with an outdoor kitchen contractor or landscaper. We also suggest contacting safe or piano movers- they know a thing or two about lifting heavy things. We do provide an easy diagram which will help assist with the install.  We welcome phone calls, so feel free to call us for any questions and/or advice. Call 602-482-1000 or email info@authenticpizzaovens.com. We respond to emails quickly!

Below are best practices and standard guidelines for an indoor pizza oven installation.

Non-combustible clearances

Indoor oven installations must maintain the right distance away from highly combustible materials. Failure to maintain the required distance is a major cause for oven related fires.  To give you a general reference, safe clearances for wood fire oven are as follows:

1. It should have space of at least 30 inches to each side, and 36 inches in front of the door opening
2. It should have 18 inches top clearance away from the top of the oven to highly flammable materials
3. It should have 10 inches clearance from the back of the oven away from combustible materials
4. Have 30 inches bottom clearance from the bottom of the oven from combustible materials
5. Install non-combustible façade materials 6 inches to either side of and above the doorway. Usually, non-flammable cement boards are used as a facing material. Standard drywall and sheetrock are combustible materials and should not be used.
6. Have a non-combustible floor surface exceeding 36 inches in front and 30 inches to each side of the door. Like any other cooking equipment, choose appropriate surfaces in the front of the oven to protect the floor from potential damage due to the hot, heavy items that may be removed from the cooking chamber.
7. Use non-flammable materials to build a non-flammable mantle above your wood fired oven.

While these are the typical recommendations, the responsibility still lies in you to ensure that your installation meets building regulations and manufacturer’s recommendations provided in the manufacturer’s manual.

Ventilation with Range Hoods

It is important that you prioritize having proper ventilation for your pizza oven. Having a strong range hood can help ensure that your kitchen will not be consumed by smoke, odors or soot covering the walls, cabinet and ceiling of your house. To find the best range hood, here are tips that you can follow:

• Find a ducted range hood
• Consider a hood with at least 1200+ CFM (cubic feet per minute)
• Hood with stainless steel baffle filters is a good choice
• Hood size should be between 12 and 24 inches larger than your pizza oven
• Your duct should be large enough to move all greasy air and smoke out of your kitchen
• A hood built with durable stainless steel that can hold up heavy smoke and heat 

Chimney Flue Clearances

When in use, a chimney flue can get extremely hot. If you’re not using a hood, most inside installations need a UL-certified steel double wall chimney system. Never use any flammable materials near the oven’s flue stack.

Typical recommendation is 6 inches of air space between the anchor plate or flue and any flammable material. Contact your HVAC company and buy only products that are recommended for this use. Again, check your building department for local building codes.

Carbon Monoxide

It is extremely important to vent a wood fired pizza oven. When fossil fuels like wood and gas are burned without good air supply, they produce carbon monoxide. If the room does not have adequate ventilation, dangerous levels of carbon monoxide could build up. Therefore, it is very important to have enough oxygen for the fire.

The visible signs of carbon monoxide emissions may include black soot marks on the walls around the stove and heaters. It is important that you have an expert in gas or wood appliances to help you check through your installation to make sure there is enough oxygen supply and proper venting. Have a carbon monoxide detector whenever you use a wood burning appliance. 

Pizza Oven Stand or Wall Enclosure

It is highly recommended to construct a supporting stand from metal for interior use. Following the local codes and manufacturer’s guidelines, build the oven wall enclosure using metal studs and non-flammable wallboard.

For added precaution, some installers cover the oven with a fire blanket or use an asbestos-free insulation like vermiculite or perlite to fill up any space that does not need airspace.

Important notes to remember:

• Consider getting a hood with more power, a larger duct and more coverage over your cooktop.
• Make sure that your hood ducts to the outside. Ductless hoods will not have enough power to vent all the smoke and fumes from your kitchen.
• Using stainless steel baffle filters are not crucial, but they are efficient enough at capturing grease in baffles as greasy air travels out of your house.
• Lastly and most importantly, talk with your local building department to find out all requirements and certifications specific to your location before buying or installing your new indoor pizza oven. 

Visit our website for our selection of indoor pizza ovens. Contact us for more product information. We ship daily out of the USA, CANADA & AUSTRALIA. Call us at 602-482-1000 or send us an email info@authenticpizzaovens.com.

Related Reads:

• What is the Best Wood to Use for a Wood-Fired Pizza Oven?
• How to Properly Cure Your Brick Pizza Oven
• Wood Fire Pizza Ovens vs Gas Pizza Ovens: Which Should You Choose?

← Previous Post Next Post →