The Wood-Fired Blog

Building from the Best – A Sampler of Casa Pizza Oven Projects

Jun 26, 2019Posted by Forno Bravo

Get inspired by this sampler of home oven builds using our reliable and accessible Casa Modular Pizza Oven Kit. With these durable, all-inclusive oven kits, you don’t have to be Tim ‘the tool man’ Taylor, or Norm Abram from This Old House to build your own wood fired pizza oven at home. First we’ll go through a few elements common to all Casa’s, and then we’ll look at a wide variety of installations so you know what’s possible!

All Inclusive – One-Stop Shopping

While some competitors may appear to have lower prices, they generally require you to buy all of the parts and pieces of your kit separately (for a higher combined cost, and often with inferior quality materials.) At Forno Bravo, we have a different philosophy. When you buy a Forno Bravo modular pizza oven kit, we want it to preform as well and cook as consistently as any of our fully assembled models! We also believe in transparent pricing. The cost of a Casa kit includes everything you need to assemble your oven, except the base and finish material. (We don’t include them because our customers typically prefer to customize the heck out of these components.) So just what do you get in a Casa kit?

Collage of Elements of a Casa Kit

Casa Kit Components

  • 2″-thick, double-sided, vibratory-cast refractory oven dome in 1 of 4 sizes;
  • 2″-thick, NSF-4 certified, firebrick cooking floor tiles (18″ x 18″ cut to fit the dome footprint);
  • 2″-thick, ultra-premium, ceramic fiber insulation board for beneath the floor;
  • 1″-thick,  ultra-premium, flexible, ceramic fiber blanket insulation (enough for a 3″ thick layer over the oven);
  • Single-wall, powder coated, steel door and built-in thermometer;
  • Single-wall, stainless steel DuraTech venting – flue, anchor plate, and chimney cap (upgrades available);
  • 50 lbs of high temperature mortar to seal the joints;
  • Optional real brick decorative arch in red or black;
  • Optional gas burner system.

Curb Side Delivery

The crate containing the Casa and its components is delivered to your home curbside with a a lift gate-equipped LTL truck. We manufacture and keep the kits in stock in our California factory for quick turn times, so you can get started on your project quickly! The heaviest part of the oven is the commercial grade dome, and no piece weighs more than 200 lbs. This allows customers to move either the whole crate into the install area using moving equipment, or to open it, and bring the pieces in through a regular door, stairwell, or fence with just a few strong friends. You’ll receive advanced notice from Forno Bravo when it ships and can coordinate the time of the delivery directly with the trucking company to perfectly match your schedule.

Bi-Pic Casa Kit - Crate

Interior of a Kit Crate and a Casa Crate onsite and ready to be opened

Assembling Your Oven in 5 Steps

All ovens are built from the base up. Establishing a strong and level foundation that can support the oven’s weight is critical to a good, long-lasting outcome.

Casa80 showing the different stages of installation – Model uses a Cuchina Stand

Step 1. Create your base. Sometimes, you can use an existing counter top (provided it can bear the weight of your oven.) Other common choices are cement block stands, a Steel Cucina Stand (with your choice of facing), or building the Casa into a wall or a fireplace combination. For easy access, the Casa Owner’s Manual includes step by step instructions for creating both the cinder block stand and the Cucina Stand. Some folks like to add prep counters to the base, or wood storage areas, and even bench seating, and integrated garden areas!

Casa Wood Fired Oven - Stucco by Barker

Casa with Extended Counter Top for Pizza Prep

Step 2. Lay out your insulation and floor tiles.

Outdoor Pizza Oven Build Carl 03

Outdoor Pizza Oven Build – Base and Floor

Step 3. Assemble the dome, mortar the seams, attach your venting, and install the optional gas burner.

tri-pic - oven installation

Prepping the floor and placing and mudding the dome for a Casa90 with a gas burner

Step 4. Add blanket insulation and complete the oven’s exterior to your taste, style, and space.

three men on oven installation

Installing the native rock facing after insulating the oven

Step 5. Cure and enjoy!

Custom Finishes are the Fun Part!

Once your Casa is assembled, that’s where the creativity really kicks in. The sky is the limit — well that, and the skill level of you or your contractor. However, skills are built by using them, and the learning curve, while both nerve wracking and a little scary, is ultimately the most rewarding part of building a pizza oven from a kit. You get to look at it, and say, “I (we) built that!” But also know that the core is solid, and the technology and design are proven to perform like you want after your investment of time and money. (This can’t be said of every full DIY oven.)

Some ideas for finishes on a Casa oven include: gentle, sloping stucco that mirrors the dome’s igloo shape, squared off enclosures faced with brick, granite, river rock, or other masonry (or a combination of materials,) tile mosaic or patterns, or even artistic, shaped-concrete sculptures. Your oven’s finish can be mild to wild! We even had one family report that they overhaul their backyard entertaining area annually, and change the painted stucco finish of their oven to match. Talk about some fun parties! 

4 Pic of Casa Ovens

Stone, Stucco, Tile, or Combinations – Your finish is 100% up to you

Never Alone – Getting Help With Kits

At Forno Bravo, we don’t leave our customers to their own devices if they get stuck with their build. As mentioned above, the installation and owner’s manual offers step by step assembly instructions. Also, our website offers many additional resources, articles, and hundreds of photos for inspiration and assistance. We have an online Community Forum on the website as well, with over 26,000 registered members world-wide willing to give building advice, and thousands of archived threads of questions already answered to help with the DIY and operational components. Finally, our customer service group of knowledgeable team members are available during business hours to answer technical questions, and our dealer network partners include many installers, landscape/kitchen designers, and contractors who are great local resources.

Modular oven kits make building your own pizza ovens a fun experience…and as we hear time and again, that positive experience is only topped by the fabulous pizza parties and family dinners that follow the installation!

Black Metal Firepit in Foreground - Stone Enclosed Casa 110 Pizza Oven with Fire Burning and Metal Doors Open in the Background

A Casa110 and matching firepit by Ted K – Getting ready for a gathering

Woman in front of brick oven

Casa90 and pizza for you!

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