Clay Wood Oven Vs A Freestanding Wood Fired Pizza Oven: Which Is Right For Your Backyard?

There's something romantic about a clay wood oven. The domed shape, the crackle of the fire, the idea of building it yourself in the corner of the yard. It's no wonder so many Aussies go searching for one when they catch the wood fired pizza bug.

But before you order a pallet of clay and bricks, it's worth knowing what you're signing up for. Clay and brick ovens are brilliant at some things and hard work at others. That's why we built the Flaming Coals range of freestanding wood fired pizza ovens: the Stainless Steel Wood Fired Pizza Oven and the Premium Woodfire Pizza Oven. Both have a real firebrick cooking floor for crispy, wood fired pizza, both sit on a trolley you can wheel around the yard, and both get hot in around 30 to 45 minutes.

Here's an honest look at how they compare with a clay or brick oven, whether it's worth building your own, and which one suits the way you actually cook.

What Is A Clay Wood Oven?

A clay wood oven is a dome of clay (often mixed with sand and straw) built over a firebrick or clay cooking floor, usually sitting on a solid, permanent base. Traditional brick ovens work the same way, just built from firebricks and mortar instead of clay.

Both rely on thermal mass: thick walls that soak up the heat of the fire and radiate it back onto the food. That's what gives them their famous cooking, and it's also where most of their drawbacks come from.

Thinking Of Building A Pizza Oven?

Plenty of people who search "build a pizza oven" picture a fun weekend project. The reality is usually bigger:

• The base comes first. A clay or brick oven is heavy, so it needs a solid, level foundation that can carry the weight for years.
• The build takes time. Between the base, the floor, the dome, the insulation and the finishing layers, most DIY ovens take many weekends, not one.
• Then it has to cure. A new clay oven needs to dry out slowly with a series of small fires before it can take full heat. Rush it and you risk cracks.
• It needs a roof over its head. Clay doesn't love rain, so most clay ovens need shelter to last.
• And it's staying put. Once it's built, that's where it lives. Move house, redo the yard or change your mind about the spot, and the oven can't come with you.

If you love a big project, building your own can be deeply satisfying. If you mostly just want great pizza in the backyard, there's a faster path.

How To Build A Wood Pizza Oven Vs Just Wheeling One Out

A Flaming Coals wood fired pizza oven skips the big build. There's no foundation to pour, no dome to shape and no weekends of bricklaying. It comes in two main parts, the trolley and the oven dome, and assembly takes roughly 20 to 30 minutes. Bolt the trolley together, sit the dome on top, and it's ready to roll.

Once it's together, the Stainless Steel oven sits on four heavy-duty wheels, so you can roll it to the patio for a party, tuck it under cover when the weather turns, and take it with you if you ever move.

Inside, you still get what makes wood fired pizza great: a firebrick cooking floor for crispy bases and real wood-fired flavour, plus double-wall insulation to hold a cooking temperature of 400 to 450°C.

Picking one up? Each oven ships in a large crate, so you'll need a ute or a trailer to collect it from our showroom. It won't fit in a regular car without damaging the inside.

Heat-Up Time: Tonight's Pizza Vs Tomorrow's

This is the biggest day-to-day difference. All that thick clay or brick has to soak up heat before the oven is ready, so a traditional oven often takes well over an hour to come up to temperature, and big traditional ovens take longer again.

A Flaming Coals pizza oven gets to temperature in around 30 to 45 minutes. Light it when the guests arrive, and you're sliding pizzas in before the first drinks are finished. Our guide on how to light a fire in a wood fired pizza oven walks you through it.

Heat Retention: Where Clay Ovens Win (And Why It Matters Less Than You Think)

Credit where it's due. A clay or brick oven's heavy walls hold heat for hours after the fire dies down. That's why traditional oven owners can bake bread or slow-roast in the falling heat the next morning. If that's your main goal, a clay oven is hard to beat.

But here's the thing about pizza: at 400 to 450°C, a pizza typically cooks in around 90 seconds. You don't need hours of stored heat for that. You need an oven that gets hot fast and stays hot for the night. Hours of heat retention only really matters for slow roasting or bread making.

That's exactly why we built the Premium Woodfire Pizza Oven with 100mm of fibreglass insulation in a double-wall dome. It holds its heat for roasts, bread and grilled veg once the pizzas are done, without the hours-long warm-up. It's also on four wheels, with a peephole door so you can check the cook without letting the heat out.

Clay Vs Brick Vs Flaming Coals: At A Glance

Which Flaming Coals Oven Should You Choose?

• The Stainless Steel Wood Fired Pizza Oven fits 4 standard pizzas at once. It's stainless inside and out, and comes with a built-in thermometer and a rear ash drawer. It's the pick for big families and pizza nights with a crowd.
• The Premium Woodfire Pizza Oven takes 3 large pizzas at a time. Its heavily insulated dome makes it the pick if you want to roast, bake and cook long after the pizzas are done.

For a full side-by-side, see our stainless steel vs premium pizza oven comparison. Or read our wider guide to the best pizza ovens for home use in Australia.

The Verdict

If you want a weekend-long project, and your dream is baking bread in yesterday's heat, a clay wood oven is a beautiful thing. If you want real wood fired pizza tonight, in an oven you can move, that's hot in under an hour and still holds its heat, a Flaming Coals pizza oven gets you there faster.

Ready to skip the big build?

Compare the Flaming Coals Stainless Steel and Premium wood fired pizza ovens above, and find the one that suits your backyard.

Clay Wood Oven FAQ

How long does a clay wood oven take to heat up?

A clay wood oven usually takes well over an hour to reach pizza temperature, because its thick clay walls have to absorb heat before the oven is ready, and larger traditional ovens can take longer. A Flaming Coals wood fired pizza oven reaches cooking temperature in around 30 to 45 minutes.

How long does it take to build a pizza oven?

Building a clay or brick pizza oven usually takes many weekends. You need a solid, level base, the cooking floor, the dome and insulation, and a new clay oven then needs to be cured slowly with small fires before it can take full heat. A Flaming Coals wood fired pizza oven comes in two main parts, the trolley and the oven dome, and takes roughly 20 to 30 minutes to assemble.

Do clay ovens hold heat better than steel pizza ovens?

Yes. Clay and brick ovens have thick walls that store heat for hours after the fire dies down, which suits bread baking and slow roasting. For pizza, though, which typically cooks in around 90 seconds at 400 to 450°C, fast heat-up matters more than long retention. The Flaming Coals Premium Woodfire Pizza Oven adds 100mm of fibreglass insulation, so it still holds heat well for roasts and bread after the pizzas are done.

Can you move a wood fired pizza oven?

A clay or brick wood fired oven is built in place and can't be moved. Flaming Coals wood fired pizza ovens sit on a trolley with four heavy-duty wheels, so you can move them around the backyard, wheel them under cover, or take them with you when you move house.

How long does a pizza take to cook in a wood fired oven?

In a wood fired oven running at 400 to 450°C, a pizza typically cooks in around 90 seconds. Turn it once or twice with a peel so the crust cooks evenly on the firebrick floor.