Burnt / Overdone Crust Bottom...

[asudavew]

It simply seems to me the floor is too hot.

What else could it be?

[RTflorida]

OK,

I'm going to recommend something CJ (CanuckJim) recommends for all of the bread bakers looking for consistancy. Only change ONE variable at a time.

Its easy to say the floor is too hot, too much bench flour, etc. But only you know the differences (no matter how slight) between each pizza bake.

Pick a dough formula, a firng temp - equalization, and cooking routine that you think has worked in the past. Follow it exactly a few times to establish a benchmark.
Personally, if I were faced with your dilemma, I would go the simplest route with proven results. Try the dough instructions listed here on the FB forum for Caputo flour. You can try being creative AFTER you have consistant results. I would also drop to 750-800 degrees. I still think there is something going on with your floor temp, but could be (and probably am) wrong.

I went through a similar situation (no burning, just inconsistancy) early on, MY problem was due to experimentation (tweaking things every time I made pizza). I would add a little more water, then a little less, I added EVO, and strayed a bit on the knead times. The problem was that I didn't perfect the basics first and kept changing things a little each time - searching for that "perfect" pizza. Finally,I went back to "square one" and followed the basic instructions to the letter a few times. My consistancy was there, but still not perfect. I then went higher with my hearth temp, as I mentioned before, 850-900 works for me. Since then I have eliminated EVO from my dough (which early on, really gave me a nice crust a few times), and I've lowered the salt a bit. I'm REALLY close to perfect (for my taste) at this point. I learned to take notes of my changes, AND more importantly, try each new routine several times for consistancy (even if I didn't like it) - simply to be sure.

RT

[aeneas1]

i'm convinced that it must be a temperature issue with the oven floor and i will be experimenting with all week and report back. fwiw i did "swab the deck" tonight and discovered that it probably needed a good wipe - nothing that would cause the burning mind you (imo), but it needed a wipe nonetheless.

as far as eliminating possibilities via establishing a benchmark in formulation and oven temp is concerned and proceeding from there, i've already gone down that road quite a few times. imo the bottom line is that there is a huge range of of hydration/formulation/proof/temp combinations that produce excellent results without burning. in other words, outside of obvious potential problems such as excessively low hydration levels, bubbling of the dough due to extreme over-proofing, under-proofing, oven floor of 1200f+, etc. there really is no reason that burning should occur on a consistent basis imo. anyway, i'll be at it again this week (most likely daily) and will post my experiences.

thanks again for all of our input!