It's the ultimate moment for the culinary outdoorsman: a warm summer evening, friends gathered around the table, and you wielding a pizza peel over a piping hot oven. Investing in a high-end pizza oven like the Nero is easy to make, but then comes the technical choice that will determine your future baking sessions: What fuel will you use?
The debate between "Camp Wood" and "Camp Gas" (and the middle ground of pellets) is often heated. Do you choose the centuries-old tradition of Naples, or do you embrace modern technology?
In this article, we list the pros and cons so you can make a choice that suits your ambitions.
The Attraction of Wood (The Tradition)
Let's face it: there's something magical about fire. For the purist, there's really only one way to bake pizza, and that's the way they did it in 1889 when the Margherita was invented.
Why people choose wood:
- The Ritual: Building the fire, hearing the logs crackle, and watching the flames roll across the oven ceiling. It's an experience in itself.
- The Challenge: Maintaining a consistent temperature requires skill ("fire management"). Successfully achieving this is incredibly rewarding.
If you choose wood, you're choosing a hobby within a hobby. You're not just a pizza maker, but also a stoker.
The Nuance of Pellets (The Middle Way)
Pellets are often presented as a compromise. They burn easily and are made of wood.
The reality: While pellets are easy to start, they tend to be fickle. They burn quickly, can get stuck in the feeder, and are sensitive to moisture. For many users, this ultimately feels like a "just not": you have the hassle of refilling and ash, but you miss the romance of real logs.
The Hidden Costs of Wood & Pellets: What No One Tells You
Before you fall for the charm of the fire, it's important to consider the practical and social realities of wood burning. Many new homeowners underestimate the "hidden" time and impact involved.
1. The impact on the environment and health (fine dust)
It is a fact that we can no longer ignore in 2025: wood smoke is a major source of particulate matter (PM2.5) and harmful substances such as benzene and PAHs.
- The facts: Data from RIVM and Milieu Centraal, among others, show that burning wood contributes significantly to air pollution in residential areas.
- Health: While baking, you're standing close to the oven. With wood and pellet stoves (especially if the wind shifts), you inevitably inhale smoke. This can cause respiratory irritation, which isn't a concern with the clean combustion of gas.
2. Social factor: Neighborhood nuisance
In the Netherlands, we often live close together. What smells like an authentic pizza night to you often makes your neighbors want to close their windows.
- Heating alerts: Increasingly, "heating alerts" are issued during calm weather. Do you have a wood-fired oven? Then you won't be able to bake that evening without causing a nuisance.
- Smoke etiquette: Smoke seeps into laundry, curtains, and neighbors' bedrooms. With a gas oven, you have zero smoke production, so you can stay friendly with your neighbors even in a densely populated garden or on a balcony (if permitted).
3. The "Time Tax": Waiting and Cleaning
Time is your most precious asset. A wood-fired oven simply demands more from your schedule than a gas oven.
- Start-up time: While gas heats up steadily within 15-20 minutes, wood often takes 30 to 45 minutes to heat not only the air but also the stone deeply enough for a crispy base.
- The "Cool-Down" & Cleaning: After dinner, you're not done yet. You have to wait until the ash has completely cooled (a fire hazard) before you can dispose of it. In addition, soot particles settle on the outside of your oven and the surrounding floor.
Comparison: You turn off a gas oven, wipe it down the next day, and you're done. A wood-fired oven requires a thorough cleaning of the combustion chamber and chimney after each session to prevent clogging and poor draft.
The Taste Dilemma: Time for the Truth
This is where most people hesitate. "I want gas for convenience, but I want wood for flavor."
Here we need to share an important insight that emerges from virtually every blind taste test: The “wood-fired oven taste” in pizza is largely a myth.
How can that be?
- Speed: A good pizza in a Nero oven bakes in 60 to 90 seconds. That's simply too short a time for smoke to penetrate the dough (unlike meat that cooks for hours on a barbecue).
- Heat is Heat: The characteristic flavor of a brick-oven pizza comes from the Maillard reaction (the caramelization of the crust) and the leopard spots (black blisters). This chemical process is caused by extreme heat (400°C+), regardless of whether the heat source is wood or gas.
This insight drastically changes the equation. If the taste is identical, why make it difficult for yourself?
Why Gas is the Smartest Choice for the Home Chef
Once we put the taste argument aside and look at performance, consistency and results , the gas oven quickly outpaces the competition.
Here's why the modern pizzaiolo is increasingly choosing gas:
1. Focus on baking, not firing
With wood, you spend 50% of your time focusing on the fire and 50% on the pizza. With gas, 100% of your attention is dedicated to baking. You can fully concentrate on turning the pizza, checking the crust, and perfecting the crust. The result? Fewer burnt pizzas and a steeper learning curve.
2. Ultimate temperature control
A Nero gas oven gives you control. Is the stone getting a little too hot? Turn the knob back a bit. Want to quickly brown the top of your pizza? Turn it all the way up. This precision is virtually impossible to match with wood blocks.
3. "Tuesday evening proof"
A gas oven heats up to temperature in 15 to 20 minutes. No ash removal beforehand, no ash removal afterward. This means you'll use the oven much more often. Not just for that big weekend garden party, but also for a quick, high-quality meal on a weeknight.
Conclusion
The choice is ultimately personal, but our advice is clear:
Are you looking for the romance of a campfire and don't mind that this sometimes comes at the expense of baking results or your time? Then wood is a wonderful tradition to keep alive.
But if you're looking for the best pizza , consistency, convenience, and an oven you'll actually use often, don't be fooled by the myth of smoky flavor. Gas is the superior choice for those who want to enjoy Italian quality with results.
Choose convenience. Choose perfection. Choose Nero Gas.