I used an electric deck oven for many years and as time went by, I watched it slowly degrade, until I had a hard time baking a quality pizza in it. Then I switched to a gas deck (Marsal) and now I wouldn’t go back. More consistent bake times, better bake, a lot less load dependant, shorter bake times. One other thing, and I think George Mills, our resident equipment expert, might back me up on, is with regard to buying a used electric deck oven. My advice in one word…DON"T. A completely refurbished one with all new electricals…I’ll let George weigh in on that one. But with a gas deck, if you know how to look at and evaluate the condition of the oven, and if it isn’t too old, you might be able to latch onto a good used one. Refurbished gas ovens seem to be pretty good too, but with their reasonable cost, new deck ovens are not out of the reach of most operators.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor