Fire and Frozen Pizza

Now it is time for the first real fire to see how hot it gets.

Picture 16

Using the infrared thermometer I measured the oven floor temperature which after about 90 minutes registered around 630 degrees.  Underneath the hearth, 125 degrees.  I was hoping for the hearth temperature to be around 100 or less.  Hence my earlier comment of using 10:1 Vermiculite and Portland Cement ratio for the floor insulation.  125 degrees is still acceptable, it is just that I am loosing heat from the bottom a little more than I'd like.  The outside dome temperature registered at 80 degrees, but this is because the final layer of insulation is still damp.

Picture 17

Tossed a frozen pizza in the oven and after about 2 minutes you can see the results.  Burnt.  However it does make for a very hot oven.